Customer Insights

How to understand impulsive customers

Want to boost sales? Engage impulsive customers and win more business. Get tips and tools to help you attract them and make it easy for them to buy from you.

impulsive customer impulsive customer

What are impulsive customers like?

Impulsive customers can make a buying decision in an instant, provided that the conditions are right. They like to be correct; and feel their point of view is the one that matters. They don't need much convincing to make a purchase and don't require a relationship or sales pitch to buy if they believe the offer is good for them.

What they require is a clear and easy way to make a purchase, and quick and concise help, should they ever have the need to contact you.

See our top business tips on maximising the impulsive purchasing trend:

Visa Thumb Impulse

Customer engagement tools

Organise your social medial channels to broadcast the deals and offers your impulsive customers are searching for, put easy, seamless payment solutions in place, and build a stronger website presence to increase the likelihood of impulsive purchases – see some of our suggested tools and services to win their business and boost sales.

Squarespace

Squarespace is an all-in-one platform provider giving you everything you need to make your website stand out.

Traits of impulsive customers

impulsive customer image
  • Confident
  • Deal driven
  • Motivated by value
  • See direct benefit

I want to be able to do what I want, when I want.

Sarah, impulsive customer

How to get the attention of impulsive customers

  • Ensure you have an active brand presence across search and social media - be seen where customers are looking.
  • Send email newsletters with appealing images. Write blog posts featuring the latest news about your service or the products on offer in your store - no matter if it’s online or on the high street.
  • For key customers, look at what they’ve bought before and use it to create tailored special offers. Grab their attention by using social media and email to send out event-based offers or discount deals.

Help them purchase

  • Capitalise on their spontaneity by making it quick and simple to purchase from you.
  • Think about the shortest path from your message to the checkout – online or in-store.
  • Online, give customers choices about how they pay.
  • Ensure your products and/or services have clear descriptions, images and ‘how to use’ guides.
  • Use ‘You might also like’ suggestions to highlight any accompanying products or services to boost sales. For example, list add-on products often bought by people making a similar purchase.

How you will lose them

  • An awkward purchase process spoils their buying moment.
  • The detail they need to buy then and there isn’t available.
  • Your website is hard to navigate.

Other customer types

cautious customer

Cautious Customer

"I want the facts, so that I can make an informed decision."

About cautious customers >

social

Social Customers

"Communities are important to me and so is your opinion - but I also want to have my say."

About social customers >

loyal global ecomm

Loyal Customer

"I like sticking with the same brands and companies because I know I can trust them."

About loyal customers >

Tools and services for your business

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