Learn To Engage An Audience With Your Buyer’s Guide

More than half of all shopping takes place online, and customers are getting smarter. With the ability to research before purchase, customers have high expectations and require transparency before buying any product.

If you want people to purchase off your website, you must be catering to a 21st Century audience. Read on to learn some tips and tricks that will elevate your buyer’s guide.

Specs and Details

Customers don’t want surprises when it comes to online shopping. When a package shows up at their door, it should be exactly what was described and advertised. 

For example, if you write about a niche product such as the best double bass pedal, you will need to have all the product specs there and ready. You will want every detail about bass pedals broken down and described, too, so that even someone who knows nothing about bass pedals will have a fighting chance. 

Just a list of specifications lets readers quickly check if the product is what they are looking for without wasting time.

Compare and Contrast

Never create a list of products that can all be found in your online store. You must include competitors throughout your buyer’s guide.

If you have created an improved or useful item, customers will wonder what makes you special vs. the leading competitor. Don’t be afraid to list the pros and cons of both products — if you don’t do it in your guide, the customer will find the information somewhere else.

As long as you trust in the merits of selling, the pros should speak for themselves without any boasting necessary.

Identify Your Audience 

Get as specific as you can here. That even means inventing a character. Humans respond well when they see themselves. This is a tenet of advertising psychology. 

If your target demographic is a 40-50-year-old Caucasian woman who lives in the UK and speaks English as a first language, call her Sally, give her a job (say, accountant or actuary), and list her hobbies (jogging, cooking, fostering animals). 

Now you have a framework, don’t try to sell to everyone in the world. Just speak to Sally and inform her about what you have to offer. Check out other websites and buyer’s guides that would appeal to Sally and use those as a framework for the tone of your content.

Use a Call To Action

While you want to give out airs of neutrality in the first stages of your writing, don’t forget you are selling something. That’s where your call to action (CTA) comes in.

The CTA should be a link that takes a single click and sends the user directly to your shop or check-out page. You want to avoid the user heading over to Amazon or another third-party e-commerce site when they have the option to buy directly. 

When you are wrapping up your guide, add a “buy now,” “shop for ____,” or “discover more” button that makes the user lean in and feel compelled to click on. 

Pro tip: always use an active verb in your CTA, and keep it pithy.

Conclusion

Your buyer’s guide is not meant to trick anyone into buying your product. It should list the facts, remain conversational, and convince a customer that yours is the best choice.  Remember, even the best buyer’s guides will not work if the end product is shoddy or not what is promised. Start with a product you are proud of, and selling it will be the easy part.