If you’re reading this article, It’s because you know urgency works. There’s absolutely no doubt about it.
Everyone knows this – Black Friday & Cyber Monday sales bring in huge returns because once those deals are gone, It will be a year till something as good comes along.
The use of urgency is an important tactic to master if you want to boost conversion on your site & offers.
As human beings, we are wired to act when a situation becomes urgent. And it’s this behaviour that marketers have been able to pick out to drive the psychology of urgency on customers & interested buyers.
When something is scarce, the value is believed to be high so it moves people to get it immediately.
Back in 1975, three researchers carried out a study looking out how scarcity influenced people’s perception. The study asked participants to rate cookies from two jars. One of the jars held ten cookies, the other contained just two.
The participants rated the two-jar-cookies as higher, even though the cookies were identical.
The jar with fewer cookies inside had more value in the eyes of the participants(despite the fact that the cookies are identical). Because it was just two cookies inside the jar, the thinking goes that the people who bought the cookies have a very good reason for doing so.
What is Urgency?
Urgency is the use of trigger words or tactics to get your prospects or clients to act fast.
The number one key to activating a sense of urgency in your audience is that the product or service involved must be something relevant to your audience. people won’t take action on something they are not interested in, regardless of the tactic you use.
Urgency amplifies already present feelings on wanting something, It won’t create the feeling if it’s not there.
In this article, I’m going to reveal the different ways you can create urgency and scarcity in your marketing to increase leads & sales;
1. Use Words That Encourages Action
Using powerful words with action triggers can make all the difference in your marketing. You don’t need buyers waiting around when they land on your site, so it’s important that you use the right words to activate the sense of urgency in them.
Here are examples of such words;
– HURRY
– FAST
– LAST CHANCE
– CLOSING SOON
– LIMITED TIME
– INSTANT
2. Clearly State a Deadline
It’s not urgent until there’s a “deadline or closing date” that is well written and is attached to the offer. This is where the true power of urgency is released.
You must give people a very good reason to take urgent action… This is why cyber Mondays & Black Fridays generate the most sales because the end date is first communicated clearly & people know that if they miss that date, it’s the end.
If your customers see that there’s no rush to purchase for your product or service, they’ll put off buying it for that time & may never come back to that product again.
This is why another good way to create urgency is by clearly showing deadlines – A date for when your product or offer is ending & how long they have to get it
For example;
- The deadline for signing up is May 7.
- This sales ends at 12 am on November 1st.
- Beginning June 5, I will no longer be accepting new patients
- Orders must be placed within 48 hours.
3. Use a Clock or Countdown Timer
In today’s world, a clock represents time, and it also represents that time is passing.
When users see that a clock is ticking and it’s counting down, It raises their urgency level and compels them to take action immediately.
You can add countdown timers in your emails and also include them to your website to make use of this tactic.
4. Use FOMO(Fear of Missing Out)
FOMO – the fear of missing out – is another type of urgency that’s known to push people to act. It’s a powerful tactic to get people to take urgent action.
Studies have shown that the scarcer a product is, the more people want it.
When customers see a product is short in supply and that people are purchasing it, It makes them want to get it too. In fact, 68% of Millenials will make a purchase in an attempt not to be left behind by their peers.
So if you can highlight how scarce your product or service is – or at least create the illusion that it’s about to run out – you can drive people to make the purchase immediately.
For example – if you sell physical or even digital products, you can announce that you have very limited stock for the item you’re selling & show the actual number.
If it’s a service-based business, you can active FOMO in your prospects by announcing that you’re only taking a certain number of clients for this month.
The idea here is to put pressure on your prospects or clients and make them see that they will miss out if they don’t take action.
5. Show Realtime Behaviour Of Other Shoppers.
This is a very good way to trigger urgency in your clients & prospects – by showing real-time behaviour of actual shoppers on your website.
This tactic works on two levels. Firstly, It adds social proof – when people land on your website & see other people purchasing the same product they are interested in, it immediately builds their trust in that product.
Secondly, It triggers FOMO – as much as your web visitors see other people buying a specific product & they get to trust the product from then on, they also know that if they don’t take action fast, the product will be sold out & they won’t get it. So it makes them hurry & pick the product.
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6. Add It to Your Email Subject Lines
If you’re sending an email, your subject line is a good place to establish a sense of urgency or scarcity.
Your email subject line is the first part of your email that people sees. By showing urgency in your subject lines, you’re preparing the minds of your subscribers to take action fast as soon as the mail is opened.
Conclusion
Urgency is not a new term in marketing. We’ve observed it being used in traditional marketing & recently online marketers have adopted the tactic, but sadly, some marketers are not doing it well.
When it’s used properly, Urgency has the power to boost your conversion rates & explode your sales overnight.
With the points outlined inside this article, we hope you’ll be able to create urgency in your marketing & get more sales & opt-ins.
