What Is Purchase Intention? Purchase Intention In A Nutshell
Purchase intention is a measure of the strength of a consumer’s intention to perform a specific behavior or make a decision to purchase a product or service. Usually purchase intents are classified according to four types: informational (awareness), investigative intent (consideration), navigational (consideration/conversion), transaction intent (conversion).
Understanding purchase intentionPurchase intention is the willingness of a consumer to buy a product or service.
While the concept appears rather simplistic at first glance, it is important to note that purchase intention cannot be evaluated with a simple yes or no answer. In truth, many factors affect purchase intention such as consumer knowledge, product packaging, celebrity endorsement, or the general perception of a product among friends and relatives.
Purchase intention is the single most important customer metric in eCommerce, but many businesses build customer segments around a buyer persona and consider their work to be finished. In a study conducted by Google in 2015, it was found that marketers who focused on demographics and ignored purchase intention could be missing more than 70% of potential customers.
To illustrate this point, Google noted that 40% of baby-related products were purchased by people who lived in households without the babies they were purchasing for. These are individuals such as grandparents, birthday guests, and baby shower attendees, among others. However, the point here is that none of these individuals are the parents with the newborn baby.
Thus, it stands to reason that to neglect purchase intention is to neglect, in some cases, the majority of the target audience. Marketers who take the time to understand it will enjoy a host of benefits, including improved conversion rates, profit margins, customer lifetime value, brand equity, and marketing channel ROI.
The four types of customer purchase intentionFor online businesses, there are four types of customer purchase intention. In other words, every consumer lands on a website with a different goal in mind.
The four purchase intention types are as follows.
1 – Informational intent (awareness)Consumers in this stage are concerned with reading information to educate themselves on a topic. For example, a consumer searching for information on cosmetics that do not inflame sensitive skin may read an article that helps them understand how to solve their problem.
For the business, the goal is to create brand awareness and provide the consumer with educational resources that move them down the marketing funnel.
2 – Investigative intent (consideration)Consumers in the investigation stage are currently exploring their options via additional research. This may include comparison websites, product and brand reviews, and social listening.
Due to the sheer number of different products available today, consumers spend more time with an investigative intent than they do any other intent. As a result, the business must show the consumer value propositions that are relevant to them and clearly explain what sets their brand apart from competitors.
Consumer finance platform NerdWallet incorporates product comparisons and user reviews to make personalized product recommendations across multiple niche market segments.
3 – Navigational intent (consideration or conversion)Navigational intent means the consumer is visiting a specific website or a brand’s online store. Since they are seeking out a specific brand or website address, navigational intent is associated with higher purchase intent.
Businesses must keep the consumer on their platform at all costs or risk losing them to the competition. Product promotions and personalized messages or customer experiences can be effective strategies.
4 – Transactional intent (conversion)Transactional intent is the type most equate with actual purchase intent. These consumers have a propensity to purchase, which means they are interested in acquiring a product or service.
Conversion should be the aim of the game for all businesses at this stage. This can be facilitated via incentivized, time-limited, or personalized promotions. For example, many eCommerce retailers offer consumers a 10% discount in exchange for their email addresses. Others may promise free shipping if the order amount exceeds a certain threshold.
Key takeaways:Purchase intention is a measure of the strength of a consumer’s intention to perform a specific behavior or make a decision to purchase a product or service.Studies by Google have shown that focusing on customer demographics and ignoring purchase intention is to neglect, in some cases, the majority of a company’s target audience.There are four types of purchase intention which correlate with various stages of a marketing funnel. For eCommerce businesses, knowing which type of intent a website visitor displays is crucial in making them more motivated to buy.Main Free Guides:
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