No one likes missing out, whether it's a social gathering or a good deal. Contrary to belief, feeling like you’re ‘missing out’ can happen at any age - in kids and adults alike.
We’ve coined this feeling as FOMO (Fear of Missing Out). But this is just a modern word for an ancient phenomenon.
Marketing psychology knows precisely how to tug on our emotional strings to drive content and attract leads, and FOMO is an excellent example of this. FOMO marketing does, however, have many guises that operate on the same emotions in different ways.
So what is exactly is FOMO marketing and what's the best way to use it?
FOMO
FOMO is about prompting your audience to take advantage of a good opportunity before it’s too late. It increases the attractiveness of the product tenfold. Some examples of FOMO marketing might include:
- Social media FOMO marketing (driven by influencers, for example)
- Time-pressured marketing (e.g. basket countdowns or 'limited time only' deals)
- Limited edition products or service
Influencer FOMO
Fear of Missing Out is a type of marketing that plays on the built-in fabrics of our social behaviour.
If it’s in our genetic makeup to follow crowds of similar people – then it explains why influencer marketing just works.
But where celebrity endorsement idolises the product or service, influencer marketing brings it much closer to home. It places the buyer persona onto a pedestal, bridging the gap between the consumer and seller. It places the influencer into a middle ground where they are product representatives living in the same world as your buyer persona.
Influencer marketing sparks a response from those wanting to fit into the trends within these particular worlds of interest. If there is enough of a crowd following for this content, FOMO is created which effectively attracts new leads or builds up a follow base.
The Countdown FOMO
The countdown method of FOMO marketing creates a sense of urgency to encourage your customer to purchase immediately.
Think of Booking.com's sneaky ‘Only one room at this price left!', or online retailers adding a moving timer onto their customer basket.
The countdown concept is everywhere. It’s an extension of the age-old saying, ‘Once it’s gone, it’s gone.’ Creating a countdown instantly glorifies the products or service. It then becomes twice as attractive as it was before. It establishes a sense of urgency that we absolutely must have the product right now before it's too late. And it’s effective.
FOMO and Automation
FOMO marketing is smart, but automation software is even smarter. Mix the two together, and you've got a marketing technique that will easily double your conversions. They're two tools that can be easily combined. Using automation can be used at any stage of the customer journey, for all types of customer.
For example, you can manipulate automation to reach out to prospects with 'new customer discounts for a limited time only' content. In the same way, use AI to target customers who have added to their basket, but abandoned it as an incomplete purchase. Manipulate your automation to generate your FOMO marketing, so that you can focus on running your business.
How to use automation for FOMO marketing:
- Identify which tasks you can automate. Think repetitive content marketing emails or social content schedules.
- Design your FOMO content for the correct type of buyer persona, to suit the correct stages of the customer journey
- Choose an automation tool for your budget and CRM
- Establish automation workflows, to target your FOMO content at the correct leads/prospects/customers.
- Track and monitor your workflows to make sure they're working properly. Over time, you can see what works and what doesn't - and make tweaks accordingly.
By using automation and FOMO marketing, you can streamline your business processes and increase your sales and revenue.
An Effective & Reliable Strategy
While some forms of FOMO are more obvious, it tends to subtly seep into most forms of marketing.
It accounts for 60% of sales (LinkedIn, 2022) and we need it more and more in the competitive market. Using it wisely gets companies ahead. So to avoid falling behind on this effective tactic, equip your business with FOMO marketing tactics. You'll see the results almost instantaneously, and more importantly - you won't be missing out on a good strategy.
