How to apply Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs to your online business

“I suppose it is tempting, if the only tool you have is a hammer, to treat everything as if it were a nail.” — Abraham Maslow

Running a business can be tricky and competing in the online sphere with giants like Amazon around the corner is a different deal altogether. The only way to stay ahead is to read as much as you can and apply your condensed knowledge to become a successful business owner. We want to highlight a tool you can use- a well known and established measure of human psychology- to construct your online business around.

In 1943, Abraham Maslow published a paper titled “A Theory of Human Motivation” wherein he proposed a Hierarchy of Needs

A gist:

• Physiological needs include basic necessities like food, water, shelter, sleep
• Safety needs include personal and financial security and health and well being
• Belongingness and love needs encompass friendships, intimacy and family
• Esteem needs progress from dignity, independence and a sense of achievement to attaining prestige and respect in the society
• Self actualization is about achieving one’s full potential or as Abraham said and we quote “Whatever a man can be, he must be.” It could be with respect to parenting or seeking happiness or using one’s talents to their full potential or achieving la di da goals- it’s a personal calling.

When the lowest layer of needs is satisfied, we move on to the next level of needs. Needless to say, failures in a person’s life might push one down by a layer or two. The movement towards self actualization is certainly not a unidirectional one. The lowest 4 needs are deficiency needs which means, once they are satisfied, we desire to move to the next level. The top most level of needs is the “growth” need and engaging in this layer increases one’s thirst to grow/be better.

So far, this hierarchy might not be making sense when it comes to running an online business.

Oh, but it does…

How we can draw an analogy to the online retail market

Two ways actually:

• The market you choose and your advertising efforts
• How to design your site and engage with customers using this hierarchy

Market and advertising efforts

There are goods that can satisfy each level of needs and the demand for most of these goods is shared by a large pool of common customers. As you move up the levels of hierarchy, the customer base is bound to become narrower. You will proceed to communities of like minded people and have a smaller customer base. Here we discuss not just from the perspective of your business, but also your own needs as a business owner.

• Physiological needs- Bound to have the largest customer base, this niche can include products related to food, apparel and home appliances etc.
  Sample advert: Since this level is a means to survival, promising an elevated experience for survival is a good way to advertise. KFC’s “Life tastes better with KFC” did just that.
  As a business owner with this level of needs, your aim is to earn a certain profit to keep going.
• Safety needs- Home security solutions, safety equipment, travel safety gear etc are some example products that fall under this niche.
  Sample advert: People’s Security Company’s promise to its customers through their slogan “Always on guard” asserts assurance in customers’ minds about their safety.
  As a business owner, this level for you means having a mitigation plan in place to protect against financial failures.
• Belongingness and love needs- Products that show affection for a loved one, products for people’s pets and for their kids fall under this niche.
  Sample advert: Pepsi’s “You are the Pepsi generation” struck a chord with people by introducing a sense of community.
  As a business owner, the sense of belongingness comes from a growing customer base. You need to position your brand and market it well enough for that to happen.
• Esteem needs- Products under skin care, body care or fitness supplements and fitness related products all fall under this niche.
  Sample advert: Dove’s “Campaign for real beauty” received a highly positive response by promoting self worth and self esteem across all races, shapes and sizes of women.
  As a business owner, your needs at this level are satisfied when you have a loyal customer base. Are you engaging with them socially? Are you providing personalised experiences to them to establish a strong bond?
• Self actualization- Products that focus on people’s talents and hobbies such as musical products, sports products, products under the spiritual category all fall under this niche.
  Sample advert: The US Army’s “Be all you can be” promises a self fulfilling and life enriching experience by joining them.
  As a business owner, this level means working towards constantly improving your business by adopting latest technologies or enhancing your customer experience online.

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Designing your site around this hierarchy

Your customers’ experience and needs can also be sorted into Maslow’s hierarchy. The design of your site and your engagement efforts should revolve around these aspects to provide the best possible customer experience

• Physiological needs- Users are on your site for a reason. Do you have a good product catalogue to cater to specific needs? Are your product images clear enough for users to judge the book by its cover? The look and feel of your site should be conducive to grabbing a user’s attention- make your site easy to navigate. Do you have a smooth checkout process? These are the basic needs for any user to show interest in your site and complete a purchase.
• Safety needs- Customers need to be able to trust a site before making a purchase. Are you using security badges on your site? Is your payment gateway secure?
• Belongingness and love needs- Personalise your customer experience through social media. Share images of customers using your products, send them personalised mails or notes on special occasions such as birthdays.
• Esteem needs- People tend to follow “hot trends” to feel more worthy. They tend to follow what their peers and influencers do. Have the product review feature on your site like fashion brand Shein does to enforce the peer community effect

• Self actualization- This is the state where your customers promote your brand through word of mouth because of the awesome relationship you fostered with them. For them to reach this state, you need to actively engage with them on social media channels, provide great customer support and also utilise cross and up selling opportunities by recommending products useful to them.

Conclusion

The flow from one level to another is not unidirectional in the examples we mentioned above, much like the original Hierarchy of Needs. Consistent effort at your end as a business owner will ensure a wholesome customer experience and help both you and your customers reach Zen.. err… Self actualization.