Maslow's Pyramid: what it is and how to apply it in marketing

Have you ever thought about how needs can be related to the search for problem solving in our environment? Abraham Maslow in 1954 developed five key needs and presented it graphically as a pyramid, which is based on the individual's priorities and how these relate to the environment around them to understand how needs are related to the pursuit of satisfying them through priorities and quantity of demand. 

This hierarchy is first developed to help explain the connection between basic human needs and people's deepest desires. 

This is explained in the form of a pyramid in which there are basic needs that form the base of the pyramid and which occupy a large space in the life of the person, where there are commonly those related to food and rest. In the next step, we can find those that have to do with security, health and finances of the person, factors that directly affect the quality of life of the person. 

How does this theory relate to my business? 

The content that people consume daily is directly related to their daily needs, and therefore, you can find in which priority in the pyramid is your product and how you can relate it to the need of your buyer persona. We commonly confuse the benefits of consuming our brand with the real needs of the consumer and it leads us to think that we are not really achieving sales through the promotion of it. 

In the segmentation process that is carried out to obtain more qualified prospects, we often use criteria such as demographics, social classes, locations, geography and so on. From that we get a specific picture of who they are, where they live, what they do, where they travel and even what places they frequent. You can understand a little more about how your buyer persona affects your business process in the following content: How does a Buyer Persona affect the Sales Process? 

An important point to consider is that it is possible that the level or the needs and desires of your buyer persona may not be the same, especially due to changes in the environments they may experience. For example, if I market mid-range cars, my buyer persona may want a late-model car, but what they really need is a vehicle that fits their monthly maintenance budget and works for them to get around without much luxury, so it helps them to get one that fits their needs. Recommend uses for the car, show the variety of low-cost spare parts, show them how to repair it themselves, and create useful content for that person so that when they have a need, they can fill it with your help. 

When these differences in needs exist, it is essential to ask the question: What hurts our target audience? And how can we help them to solve the problem? We must always work with the needs beyond the ideals, because in the scale of priorities of the person, it is mainly the basic needs that are satisfied, before those that are contemplated at the top of the pyramid. 

Searching for the resolution of the problem: 

The person knows that he has a problem and knows that he needs answers, but he does not know what the answer to his problem is, however, he is highly likely to go in search of means where he could have obtained answers to problems before. So nowadays it would be very natural for you to describe your problem to an internet search engine hoping to get information from other people who have had your same problem. And this is where the crucial factor lies. 

For example: it is well known that the arrival of a new member to the family represents happiness and celebration, however, it entails a learning process that is not always truly clear for all new parents, therefore, looking for information on the internet becomes quite common when faced with the need to solve primary problems such as the wellbeing of the child. In this case, an incredibly good recommendation as a health professional is to place a quick help guide for Colic in Infants with a downloadable form. With this simple step we can help many parents to solve a problem that is simple at first sight but complex when it comes to putting it into practice. At the end of the book please put your details and call to actions to schedule a session if you need more in-depth advice on a particular topic. 

Would you like to learn more about how to build a successful buyer persona with the help of the right questions?   

How do we become our customer's advisor beyond a salesperson? 

Never think about the result of the sale, nor try to convince the prospect of the benefits of your product or service from the outset, but rather, take care to help the person get their need solved as quickly as possible. Remember that the lower your prospect's need is, the more assertive you need to be with your content.