How Outsiders Influence the Consumer Decision Making Process?

Why do consumers buy your product or service?

To answer this question, a whole field in social sciences exists – Consumer Behaviour.

But, we can be a bit more specific with our questioning and draw further from the exercise.

We have spent quite a bit of time and effort into discussing how internal processes affect the success of a business. We have even discussed the role of regulations, and how, still the efforts need to come from within.

But, there is one more element to the bigger picture – people that are not directly associated or benefit from a business, at least directly.

The Good Word

What works better? Bolstering about yourself or a recommendation from outside?

Whether we are talking from an individual or organisational perspective, there is higher value in getting the good word from outside. I am not suggesting that at a personal level, you start looking for validation from outside. This can be really harming for you.

But, at an organisational level, validation always comes from outside. Whether this validation is from personal connections or other clients, in the form of testimonials for instance, a positive word always gives a boost to your business.

But, if validation and the good word is an external process, what does it do to the concept of marketing a business in the first place?

Boundless Marketing

In the purest form, the concept of target audience is over-simplified.

Your target audience is not just the people that will buy from you. It also includes the people that can influence the people that are buying from you.

And, if we continue on this train of thought, your marketing has the potential to become boundless marketing.

In the case of some products, this is completely true. For instance, the target of Coca Cola is everyone. This means that even when their ad feels targeted, their end goal is to reach everyone one way or another.

But, in the case of your business, especially if you are a B2B, I will suggest limiting your target market anyways. Get the smaller victories before building up on them.

Add 1 or 2 layers to your current target market – the layers being the people that can influence your target. (In Facebook lingo, this simply means Friends of Friends. I can go into further personal examples, but you get the picture).