Brands can ‘supercharge’ search ads with behavioural science

Updated research from Google finds that “supercharging” search results, owned content, and presence at points of sale with insights derived from behavioural science can improve ROI and growth.

The research findings can help brands respond to consumers’ increasingly nuanced and specific search queries.

Why online search matters

Three years ago Google introduced the concept of the “messy middle”, which explained how online consumers, faced with abundant information and unlimited choice, navigate using a range of cognitive shortcuts. Now the second part of its Decoding Decisions series, in partnership with The Behavioural Architects, takes that research further and outlines what brands can do.

Tracking trends in Google Search, for example, shows that consumer demand is a moving target. Google suggests that marketers need to not only keep an eye on evolving trends but also invest in tools that will enable them to respond in real time, whenever unpredictable pockets of demand appear.

Takeaways 

• By supercharging Search Ads with compelling aspects of behavioural science, shoppers across every category switched not just from a preferred brand to their second-choice brand, but to an invented brand created purely for the experiment.
• For established brands, supercharging ad copy with behavioural science can protect brand investment and maintain their position as a top choice for consumers.
• For challenger brands, supercharging ad copy can help level the playing field and enable them to win a greater share of clicks
• The same factors that inspire shopper confidence also drive consideration: marketers who invest in anticipating and answering the information needs of consumers may be rewarded with increased purchase consideration.
• People’s preference for specific products and services is stronger than it is for retailers. Completely invented retailers with supercharged propositions were able to attract large numbers of shoppers away from their first-choice and second-choice retailers. 

Sourced from Google