Grabbing someone’s attention, arousing their interest, stoking their desire and moving them to action is mastering the art of marketing. And this is what the famous AIDA method, the secret of the world’s great companies, teaches you. Indeed, a consumer goes through several stages when he is faced with a product. These steps represent each word in the AIDA acronym.
Whether you’re writing a prospecting email, a landing page or marketing content, AIDA is the magic formula to convert any potential customer. But to benefit from the spectacular results of the AIDA method, you must know how to use it!
The AIDA method: where does it come from and what does it mean?
The AIDA method has been around for over a century. It is the brainchild of Elmo Lewis, a businessman whose goal was to improve the interaction between customers and vendors. Elmo is now considered one of the pioneers of many marketing principles. The proof is that AIDA is still one of the most used tricks in modern marketing.
AIDA is a tip that presents a model, a path to follow to convert a lead into a customer. Applied in digital marketing, it allows many companies to boost their sales. By using it, you encourage your future customers to buy your products or services.
The acronym AIDA stands for :
- Attention for the letter A ;
- Interest in the letter I;
- Desire for the letter D and ;
- Action for the letter A.
You would have understood it, it is not a feminine name or any other classic word. This is a summary of the steps a lead goes through during relatively inexpensive and simple purchases.
How to use the AIDA method to obtain convincing results?
One thing is knowing the AIDA tip and another is knowing how to apply it. In order to obtain optimal results, you must follow different steps: attracting attention, arousing the prospect’s interest, creating a desire and inciting him to take action.
Grab the prospect’s attention
This is the first step in applying the AIDA method. Did you know that you only have a few seconds to captivate the prospect? Yes, whether it’s through a video ad, a classic poster campaign or through social networks, you only have a short time to convince them.
The most important thing is to constantly remind yourself that your product or service is far from obvious. It is not known by everyone. You must therefore use all means to attract the attention of the target audience. How do you captivate a consumer and introduce them to your service?
Focus on the form of your marketing communication:
- Choose an original, beautiful or funny image. Don’t skimp on captivating colors;
- Choose an attractive and fairly prominent font and do not use a lower case title;
- Challenge with surprising numbers or questions;
- Do not hesitate to personalize the message sent to your prospect.
In addition to the form, the content of the message can also be modified to captivate:
- Be funny;
- Write a message that promises total satisfaction;
- Write either a totally incongruous sentence or one that requires thought.
Get the prospect interested
Once you’ve captured your prospect’s attention, you need to get them interested. How do I go about it? You need to know it. You need to identify his questions, his expectations and his needs. That’s how you can understand how to help and satisfy them. The challenge is to infuse your message with communication and empathy.
From the first sentence of your message, your prospect must identify with your product. Use simple, short sentences or simply images. Basically, the objective of this step is to remove any doubt from your prospect’s mind. They need to be sure that your product is the one they need. And then you can begin the process of desire.
You want to help the customer and you really care about them. That’s what they need to understand when they read the first sentence of your message. Storytelling can engage your target audience as long as your narrative is relevant and consistent.
Touch the emotions of your target: make him desire
Selling is art. To excel in this art, no matter what your business is, you must be able to captivate your prospect all the way. After having aroused their desire, it is now a question of touching their emotions, of making them feel something positive about your brand.
The desire stage is probably the most difficult in the AIDA method. This is where you get your prospect to understand that they are really interested in your product. To do this, you need to focus on two important areas : showing your product’s features and making compelling arguments. What does your product bring to the daily life of your target? Why your product and not another one? Many arguments can be used here:
- The product saves your prospect money and time;
- The scarcity of your service or product: let the customer know that if they don’t buy your offer right away, it will be less interesting later on;
- By choosing your product, the customer will belong to a community; make him understand that.
To convince a prospect, you must know how to put forward the benefits of your product, it is very important.
Encourage your target to take action
Here we are at the A of the AIDA tip. Encourage your target to take action. The decisive phase in the use of this method is indeed this one. You have your prospect’s attention, you have their interest and desire. It must now act in favor of your product. It is true that it is good to suggest, but it is better to persuade to take action.
This persuasion is materialized with the “call to action” button. However, the “click here” is now obsolete. It does not work anymore. Instead, offer a short-lived offer or a free trial.
You can also suggest to your prospect to subscribe to a newsletter or an e-mailing at the end of a blog post. He will be able to receive essential information on the subject.
Inviting the prospect to make an appointment with your company’s dedicated team to get concrete answers to their questions is also a good idea. Apply this advice especially in a prospecting e-mail for example.
When should the AIDA method be used?
Discover some examples of how the AIDA method is used.
The AIDA method for a prospecting e-mail
Do you know what a cold calling email is? This is an e-mail sent to a stranger who does not necessarily want to get to know you, in which you ask them to give you some time for an exchange.
AIDA is one method among many others to write this type of email. Here is a concrete example of its application for a prospecting e-mail.
In this example, the subject of the email is a reply that directly addresses the recipient. The latter then thinks that he has solicited Salesforce, which leads him to open the message. His attention is therefore successfully drawn.
As for the interest, it is in the added value of the message. In fact, a download link for the Unified Commerce Market study is provided for the reader to learn more about the topic.
What gives rise to desire in this example? Well, the target of the email being a business owner, he will certainly turn to unified commerce when he is confronted with the decrease of his turnover.
Finally, the target can contact a representative, as his name and contact are mentioned. The study that is presented offers credibility to the supplier and this is how this email prompts action. You can apply AIDA to your business at any level.
The AIDA trick in B2B e-mail marketing
Using the AIDA trick in B2B email marketing is very simple. No matter what offer you are making, you need to capture attention already from the subject line. As soon as your target opens the email, they should automatically perceive the interest of your offer or product. The promise must be clear.
To generate interest, include images that show what can be accomplished with your product. Its advantages are clear and your target is half won over. Finally, you have to create desire. And for that, rely on emotional arguments (save time, work like a professional, etc.)
AIDA on a landing page
The main purpose of a landing page is to get people to take action. The AIDA method is therefore perfect for this type of page. Several sites like Shopify apply this method perfectly.
Why use AIDA, the popular tip?
You really need to use the AIDA method in your marketing strategy to see real customer conversion results. In addition, it is suitable for all supports and profiles.
Just imagine the results: email campaigns with a high open rate, interesting advertising content that attracts, videos that get thousands of views, etc. And all this without outsourcing, with simply copywriting following the AIDA method.
Thanks to this method, you become more and more efficient and productive. You don’t put in a lot of effort, you just work tactfully and most importantly, you know the secret.
AIDA is simple because it adapts to all profiles and all media. Whether you are a start-up or a successful company that wants to optimize its conversion rate, whether you have a small budget or a larger one, AIDA is possible. This is what makes this technique a very powerful lever for success for your start-up.
Furthermore, at the risk of repetition, note that the AIDA structure is adapted to a multitude of content: landing page, sales page, white paper, social media posts, videos, blog articles, newsletter, etc. This is great especially since all the content you decide to put out there is a source of success.
The AIDA method: how to apply it in your company?
If you’re tired of creating content with little or no impact, AIDA is the trick you need to apply. However, it is necessary to know how to go about it. Here are some tips that not only summarize our article, but also help you to implement it effectively:
- Fully understand each step of the AIDA method (make sure your team does too);
- Define your target audience to propose a marketing message that really grabs their attention;
- Adapt your communication materials and sales techniques (the most effective ones) to the AIDA system;
- Turn to outsourcing if the application of the AIDA method proves difficult.
Ultimately, AIDA is a plan. It is a method or a magic formula that helps you sell better. It is divided into 4 main parts:
- Attention: captivate your target. Give your message the power to distract your reader from whatever they were doing in the minute before;
- Interest: prove to your reader that you know and understand them. You will not only have caught his attention, but you will have retained him;
- Desire: show your customer that you have the solution to their problem;
- Action: encourage your prospect to buy your product, i.e. to take action.
