“The competent advertising man must understand psychology. The more he knows about it the better. ” – Claude Hopkins
Who am I to argue? Claude Hopkins was one of the world’s best direct marketers.
The problem is, this quote was written decades ago, way before the internet. To update it, all you have to do is replace “advertising man” with “online marketer.”
Why is psychology so important? Well, it helps you discover why people do the things they do. This is priceless for online marketers because each explanation creates an opportunity for you to improve your marketing.
So, let’s get down to business. Here are the three social psychology books that will help you with your online marketing:
1. The Art of Choosing
This wonderful book by Sheena Iyengar came out in March 2010. In it, you’ll discover how and why people make choices in business, political, and social settings. If you’re an online marketer armed with this knowledge, you’ll be able to construct better sales page that sell and convert like crazy. If you want a preview, check out my previous blog post about online sales.
2. Switch
How do you get people to change when change is hard? An interesting question, right? Well, the Heath brothers set out to answer it in their new book. The insight they provide is essential because people are often “set in their ways,” and if you’re an online marketer pitching information products, this book can show you how to create lessons that actually get people to work on what you tell them.
3. Drive
This is an intriguing book by Dan Pink. In it, he notes that companies motivate people with “carrots and sticks,” which don’t work, and often do harm, for more challenging, creative tasks. Since online marketers often create contests and give away free stuff to generate buzz, this new way to motivate people may help you create more effective buzz campaigns, without upping the ante. Or, in other words, more traffic for less money. Win.
Have you ready any social psychology books that will help with online marketing? Please take a moment and talk about them in the comments!
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I just picked up “Priceless: The Myth of Fair Value (and How to Take Advantage of It)”
It covers the beginning of Psycho Physics and how price studies evolved from there. It includes a bunch of very interesting studies, experiments and suggestions.
I’m totally fascinated by it ( and I’m only 1/4 if the way through )
More: http://www.boingboing.net/2010/03/23/priceless-how-our-un.html
Great call on that book. I’ll have to check it out for sure.
My favorite psychology book is Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert Cialdini. Every marketer should sleep with it under his or her pillow.
Another great book, though not geared specifically to marketers, is Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely.
I’m totally with you there… on both counts. I own both of those books, but this post’s main focus was “new books.”
However, now that I think about it, I probably should create a top 10 list for the best social psychology books ever. What do you think?
I’m totally up for a top 10 list. Definitely a must.
Do a Top 10! Influence by Cialdini is about as mandatory a read as any book can be. Its pure gold.
The one I’m recommending to all business owners now is less about the psychology of the customer and more about the psychology of the businessperson — it’s Carol Dweck’s Mindset. I’m convinced that the central issue she talks about & studies is a big part of that #1 problem for entrepreneurs — that we don’t implement, or we don’t implement consistently.
A friend of mine just gave a copy of Mindset this weekend. He said it was a great book for anyone, entrepreneur or not. As soon as I finish my current read I’m going jump right in.
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