I have sat in on more than a few discussions about what it really takes to capture the interest of a prospective customer. Usually, the debate comes down to two approaches—value or visuals. Value, of course, meaning that prospective customers are price conscious first and foremost and will respond to good prices, sales, and value. Others argue, that we are becoming increasingly “visual” and that prospective customers respond to flashy, witty, colorful ads or need to see good images of the product before they will be tempted to make a purchase. Which is it for your business?
I do think that different markets respond differently. Or, at least that people have been trained to be “marketed to” in different ways for different products and services. Think of purchasing a car—you want to know what the car looks like, in addition to the price, extras, gas mileage, etc. The fact that more and more people are doing their “shopping” for cars online can tell us something about the average prospective customer.
Some other markets are very value-conscious however. I know that when I go to the grocery store, I buy whatever milk, bread, eggs and butter that happen to be the cheapest. I am not someone who cares what the cartons or containers look like, and while I will definitely spend extra for an obviously “better” product—most of the time when I am grocery shopping, I am concerned with getting the most and the best for the least amount of money.
So in answer to the value or visual question—I think the answer is BOTH. Both approaches work, it just depends on what you are selling or what your business is all about and who your target market is. Often, it doesn’t hurt to use a bit of both—good value and good visuals—just to really bring in the prospects!
Also: “You’ve Got to Try This Product!”
Watch Out for Double Messages in Your Marketing