In many cases, users find the request they are interested in on the first or second search results page. Finding a site in the top search results for queries significantly affects the amount of traffic attracted to the site (Chaffey and Smith, 2017; Kingsnorth, 2019; Moore, 2021). Therefore, many site owners are faced with the question of how to get to the top. By properly optimizing the site, the owner will not have problems with clients (Johnson, 2021). SEO is necessary for a business to ensure a steady stream of customers. Then, a fairly large percentage of users who research products on the site follow them to retail stores, especially when it comes to HIPs (Smith, 2011). Because of this, it is difficult to calculate the exact conversion and ROI of online ads and can make erroneous decisions. If a ROPO analysis is carried out and it is found that users prefer to go to retail stores for certain products, it is worth considering what is wrong with the site (Smith and Zook, 2020). Having studied in detail the behavior of users, one can understand what prevents them from making purchases on the site.
Within the scope of the decision-making process of online customers, there are three psychological factors – motivation, learning and socialization, and attitudes and beliefs (Smith and Zook, 2020; Stankevish, 2017). The former is a drive that makes one act to satisfy needs. It displays what triggers a customer to take action in order to resolve need-based issues. Learning is fluctuations in behaviors that come from previous experience. The related concept here is socialization – a process of integrating into a society, which implies the presence of accepted (learned) behavioral patterns transmitted by other individuals. Then, all people have beliefs and attitudes towards everything, and it is essential for marketers to realize them appropriately. In another case, the situation can cause considerable damage to a company’s profits and reputation.
A notable example of using the mentioned factors in the HIPs framework was demonstrated by Samsung. In 2016, there were issues with Galaxy Note 7 that burnt itself due to an adverse battery (Chen and Sang-Hun, 2016, Dolcourt, 2017; Kovach, 2017). The corporation immediately responded to the problem with public statements, compensations, and official videos with apologies to the affected consumers. The company motivated clients to further purchase its products by proving its CSR and proper understanding of their current and potential attitudes.
Reference List
Chaffey, D. and Smith, P. (2017) Digital marketing excellence (5th ed.). Routledge.
Chen, B. and Sang-Hun, C. (2016) Why Samsung abandoned its Galaxy Note 7 flagship phone.
Dolcourt, J. (2017) Samsung Galaxy Note 7 recall: Here’s what happens now.
Johnson, T. (2021) The shift from traditional marketing to digital marketing campaigns.
Kingsnorth, S. (2019) Digital marketing strategy: An integrated approach to online marketing (2nd ed.). Kogan Page.
Kovach, S. (2017) Samsung announces what caused the Galaxy Note 7 to overheat and explode.
Moore, E. (2021) 10 reasons you need a digital marketing strategy in 2021.
Smith, K. (2011) ‘Digital marketing strategies that millennials find appealing, motivating, or just annoying’, Journal of Strategic Marketing, 19(6), pp. 1–25. 10.2139/ssrn.1692443
Smith, P. and Zook, Z. (2020) Marketing communications: Integrated online and offline, customer engagement and digital technologies (7th ed.). Kogan Page.
Stankevish, A. (2017) ‘Explaining the customer decision-making process: Critical literature review’, Journal of International Business Research and Marketing, 2(6), pp. 1–8.