“When would I use behavioural economics in my business?” This is one of the questions I get most often.
In my experience there are typically four points at which clients are triggered to seek behavioural economics solutions.
Research and development can be formal, like when a research firm is commissioned to explore a particular issue, or the business undertakes a product development process.
R&D can also be informal, where you are brainstorming ideas and want to inject a fresh perspective on your product or service, marketing approach or value proposition.
In the R&D phase things are conceptual and exploratory, which makes it an ideal time to run your assumptions about what customers want and how they are likely to respond up against behavioural science.
You will benefit from behavioural economics when you find yourself thinking:
At the other end of the development cycle, clients often engage me when they are about to hit the metaphorical button on a piece of work (e.g. going live with a website or EDM, sending a letter to customers, releasing a product or launching a marketing campaign), but just want to ensure it is optimised before it’s too late. As the saying goes, there is no second chance to make a first impression.
This is pre-deployment: the point where things are in the finishing stages – say, 90% ready to go and you just want a final check. The good news is even at this late stage behavioural economics can make a difference by vetting the initiative against points of resistance and tinkering with the malleable elements such as language, imagery and context.
There is another small window for applied behavioural economics at the post-deployment stage, where you’ve released something that hasn’t worked the way you expected (e.g. product take-up lower than required). Here we can use behavioural economics solutions to troubleshoot what’s happening, in order to zone in on where corrective action is most urgently required.
You will benefit from behavioural economics solutions when you find yourself thinking:
‘Business-as-usual’ is a funny beast because ‘usual’ often means frustration, inefficiency and missed opportunities. In this bucket I include clients who have turned to behavioural economics in moments of crisis, when you’ve finally realised something is just not right. It might be missing out on too many pitches, or completing a fraught strategic prioritisation process where, once again, the business has ended up with more priorities than you can handle.
You will benefit from behavioural economics solutions when you find yourself thinking:
The desire to develop team skills is another trigger for clients. Often it coincides with finding yourself in a new job or role, or planning your training budget for the year. But why behavioural economics particularly? Often my clients have read a book, watched a TED talk, or seen me in the media or presenting at a conference. The key is your curiosity has been sparked about what behavioural economics can mean for you.
You will benefit from behavioural economics solutions when you find yourself thinking:
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Bri Williams is an authority on behavioural economics applied to everyday business and personal effectiveness.
