The AIDA model describes the decision-making process of a customer. The model is over a century old, but its principles are still relevant today. Read how the model can be adapted to reflect the digital means by which customers now shop. First proposed by an early advocate of advertising, E. St. Elmo Lewis, in 1898, the AIDA model is perhaps the most well-known psychological marketing model amongst marketers and non-marketers alike. ‘AIDA’ is an acronym that stands for:
- Attention – catching the attention of consumers, creating affiliation with your brand
- Interest – giving consumers enough reason to research your brand further
- Desire – encouraging the consumers to move from being aware of your brand to wanting your product or service
- Action – establishing a direct connection between your company and the consumer
The AIDA model offers a useful means by which to understand the psychological process that a consumer undergoes when deciding to make a purchase. By considering the experience of the consumer at every juncture, marketers can narrow their target market. In doing so, there is potential to increase sales proportionate to investment in marketing.
New Challenges for Marketers
Consumers today consume in a very different way to the consumers of the early 20th century. Lewis discussed ‘traditional’ advertising as means of catching attention and garnering interest – newspapers and billboards would have offered the most opportunity for effective advertising. The latter stages of the process would have been achieved within brick and mortar stores, where personable salespeople were essential to tap into consumers’ desires and turn these desires into interactions and sales.
Marketing in today’s digital age extends well beyond billboards and brick and mortar stores. What is particularly evident is that the process today is less linear than it was before. A consumer might find themselves on a particular company’s webpage and experience interest and desire simultaneously. Or, a consumer might take action by signing up for a service out of curiosity before they know that they desire it. For the consumer, digital technology has reduced the costs of purchasing and has increased the level of choice. With choice comes greater complexity and increased competition for companies. This requires marketers to be more creative and more aware of their target market than ever before.
Re-conceptualizing the Model
As a result of new challenges digital technology presents, digital marketing is clearly very different to the kind of marketing that the AIDA model originally referred to. However, the model’s four stages can still be valuable to digital marketers. Rather than understand the four stages as sequential stages, digital marketers can interpret the stages as ‘areas of focus’ that are mutually supporting:
- Attention – digital marketers can leverage the increased consumer insights that are available as a result of digital data gathering to better target online marketing. This allows the value of attention to be maximized – attention from consumers that are more likely to be interested is more valuable that attentions from those who are less likely.
- Interest – distribute content that consumers want to engage with and share. With the right web presence, consumers can be constantly reminded of your brand, which will pique their interest.
- Desire – desire, like interest, can be influenced through the holistic online brand identity of the company. Because of the social aspect of digital marketing, consumers who share their desire through digital channels will further increase brand attention and interest.
- Action – encouraging action online is a question of establishing sufficient traction in the preceding three areas of focus. A desirable and interesting brand is one with which consumers will wish to take action.
It is clear that the AIDA model has enduring relevance despite changing times. Before all else, marketing will always be a question of conveying a product or service effectively to customers – the AIDA model can help whether we do this in the physical world or digitally.