Social Media Marketing, Urgency Marketing
You know all about social media marketing — its effectiveness, how to boost engagement, the impact marketing psychology can have on your goals within it — but what about its connection to urgency marketing?
To discuss how social media and urgency intersect, we called on Karen Spaeder, Vice President of Communications at Rallio, a software as a service (SaaS) platform combining cloud-based social media technology, artificial intelligence and employee advocacy.
Here’s what she had to say:
Social media and urgency marketing work hand in hand
In order to have a clear grasp on the relationship between social media and urgency marketing, you first have to understand what makes both of these concepts attractive to consumers.
Social media thrives with consumers thanks to its accessibility; in an instant, consumers can receive promotional offers that move their shopping experience along. When paired with urgency marketing, a marketing tactic that utilizes psychology to motivate immediate action from consumers, that quick and easy shopping experience is simplified even further.
The relationship between social media and urgency marketing strategies doesn’t just reflect well on the customer experience, but also has the potential to drive home your marketing goals.
“Nowadays, and particularly since the pandemic, people are scrolling through social media at all hours of the day, discovering new products and services, and making purchases on the spot. When you combine urgency marketing with social media posts, and especially social ads, you can experience great results,” Spaeder said. “People who otherwise didn't know about your brand can be suddenly interrupted as they're scrolling with a limited-time offer, exclusive savings or some other form of urgency marketing that inspires immediate action. If people fear they're going to forget about your offer or miss out on it unless they act now, they are more likely to tap on your offer and make a purchase — even if they didn't wake up that morning thinking about lash extensions or gut-health supplements.”
Marketing psychology can help move your social media goals forward
There’s no denying that consumers move at the speed of lightning. With short attention spans and an expectation for fast service, consumers often move from one interest to another — and social media helps contribute to the distractions. Spaeder says urgency marketing can be used to slow previously distracted consumers down long enough to place their interest on what a brand is doing.
“If you've ever been told that you missed out on something and then felt like you really wanted it, you know exactly how urgency marketing works. It subtly pressures people to act quickly before the deal is gone. Mix in the scarcity factor ("we only have X seats left") and/or urgency ("this deal expires tomorrow at noon"), and you're more likely to get people to slow down and pay attention to what you're doing,” Spaeder said. “Rather than risk missing out on your unique offer, they're going to make sure they keep an eye on your social media posts, Reels, stories, emails, website and other online media to take advantage when those deals pop up.”
The key then, of course, is to inspire action.
“If people feel like they can come back to your page anytime and make a purchase, they won't necessarily be inspired to take action. Even if they like your product or browse around your site looking at it, they may procrastinate on taking the next steps," said Spaeder. "Urgency marketing can encourage users to react quickly so that people feel that if they don't take action now, they will miss out on something. It's a great way to get people who are on the fence about buying to finally pull the trigger and make a purchase.”
Combine trusted social media strategies with urgency marketing to motivate action in consumers
Social media marketing is all about creating memorable interactions between consumers and brands. Engaging your social media audience with urgency marketing can be done by taking trusted social tactics and elevating them with this marketing psychology practice.
For example, one of the most common ways to engage consumers on social media today is through brand advocates, who inspire people to like, share, follow and buy from your brand. Combined with urgency marketing — say, an influencer who provides a unique, limited-time discount code and promotes your brand on their social feeds and stories — this type of social media marketing can cut through the clutter of highly branded posts and sales pitches.
Social media is sure to be an effective marketing channel for years to come, and if you have any plans on remaining a social champion, you must explore innovative avenues that can take your marketing efforts to the next level. With urgency marketing, you’re simply taking practices you already know work well for your brand and making them better.
