Training notes covering “consumer psychological triggers,” “competitor analysis,” “ten questions for customer insights,” “product awareness,” and “the three-layer logic of business communication.”
I. 8 Psychological Triggers in Consumer Behavior
| # | Trigger | Key |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sense of authority | Consumers are willing to trust experts (it saves time and feels more effective); people feel awe or admiration toward authority figures; make consumersbelievethat we are experts—“looking like one matters more than being one” |
| 2 | Reciprocity | Let others get something for free, creating a sense of indebtedness; when answering one person directly, bystanders are listening too, and the person who converts may not be the one being answered. |
| 3 | Trust | Time (people reveal their true nature over time) + frequency (increase contact frequency; even changing venues several times in one day counts). |
| 4 | Expectation | Give the other person something to look forward to. For example, a brand anniversary celebration or promotions for an annual event. |
| 5 | Affability | Make the other person feel that you’re approachable; show goodwill, not ill will. |
| 6 | Major events / sense of occasion | Major events create an atmosphere; a sense of occasion conveys “I value you”; add a sense of occasion when placing an order. |
| 7 | Group rituals | Being alone can feel lonely; a group creates an atmosphere. Encourage existing customers to speak up and help close deals with those who are still hesitating. |
| 8 | Scarcity | Limited quantities must be stated explicitly; scarcity should be linked to the customerLinkto them |
| 9 | Social proof | What customers buy shapes the kind of person they become. For example, “buying Xiao Guan Tea = being a high-end talent.” |
Example of linking scarcity to customer relevance：
- ❌ Irrelevant: a gift box that took three months to design
- ✅ Relevant: We visited many customers, explored their needs, and launched a 100-stick gift box.
II. 7 Ways to Learn About Competitors
- Find customers who have bought competing products and ask about their experience.
- In person: Talk about their experience after they’ve made a purchase.
- Become a competitor’s customer yourself (buy directly or help someone else buy).
- Get information from competitors’ advertising channels.
- Prepare questions and call competitors—sales information can be obtained through any channel.
- Make friends with people at competitors
- Talk to suppliers to learn about competitors
Why learn about competitors
Know yourself and your enemy. Focus on clarifying:
- Market rankings: Look at competitors’ rankings to identify gaps
- Customer rankings: Understand who we are competing with
- Comparison of strategies: Why we can win, why competitors can win, what strategies competitors use, and what strategies we can use to win
Work framework
| Dimension | Problem |
|---|---|
| Strengths | Packaging, gifts, price, styles, features |
| USP | Unique selling point / only-one point / why we are number one |
| Service | What is the experience like? How can we do better? |
| Price | How should low / high prices be explained respectively? |
| Weaknesses | What are the competitors’ weaknesses? How can we improve in this area? |
III. Ten Questions for Understanding Customers
- What problem keeps them wide awake at night, staring at the ceiling and unable to fall asleep? (They are weighed down by worries, unable to eat, tossing and turning, and unable to sleep well.)
- What are they afraid of? What makes them afraid?
- What are they angry about? Who are they angry with?
- What are the 3 things that frustrate and discourage them the most every day?
- What trends are currently emerging for them? What is about to happen in their business career or life?
- What do they most passionately hope for deep down? What do they secretly want more of?
- Do they have habitual biases when making decisions?
- Do they have their own speech patterns? What keywords and catchphrases do they commonly use?
- Who else is selling something similar? How do these competitors sell to them?
- Who else was selling something similar but failed? How did they fail?
IV. Understanding the Product
Product features (using a gift box as an example)
Packaging
- Large gift box + individually packaged small units
- Vivid imagery and a sense of context are essential (without them, the message is bland and cannot resonate)
- Anticipate users’ questions in advance (prepare all the wording for giving the gift)
- Single tube: Convenient to take on business trips
- Convey auspicious meaning; the gift box can also be used in everyday life (there should be examples showing how to use it)
Directions for use / guarantees
- Include specific scenarios and details (such as lower immunity during the seasonal transitions in spring and autumn)
- Storytelling: Relate to customers, provide an overall health solution, convey positive energy and values
- How to consume it is more important than the product(Health management: how to consume it + how to use it)
Customer service
- Secret formula from an experienced Chinese medicine practitioner
- After-sales customer service + professional customer service
The product itself
- Fresh: this year’s dried herbs, not old stock
- Sealing: provide multiple sealing options; a variety of gift boxes
- Location: Nagqu, Tibet, at 5,200 meters; what is the difference between high and low altitude?
Presentation dimensions: Shopping options + visual appeal + budget
Product benefits (derived from its features)
Classic examples:
| Brand | Benefit |
|---|---|
| Mercedes-Benz | Luxury |
| BMW | Handling |
| Volvo | Safety |
| Starbucks | The third place |
A method for distilling attention-grabbing benefits (11 questions)
- What problem can this product solve? Who is the target audience?
- How long has this product been sold? Why?
- What type of user or occasion is this product particularly suited for?
- Where do you typically see one of its functions or ingredients being used?
- What does this product not have that makes it better than similar products?
- What is this product a fusion or combination of?
- How does the user feel when using it?
- What works best when paired with this product?
- What tests were conducted during research and development?
- Why might you need multiple products like this?
- Why is its price reasonable?
The best selling focuses on benefits rather than the product—in the end, people slowly forget the product and remember only the benefits.
Assignment questions
- What obvious benefits does the product or service offer?
- Which benefit do other competitors not have? Which one is unique to you?
- What hidden benefits are there? For exampleEmotional value—It provides emotional support when no other effective medicine is available
- Write down 6–10 benefits, and identify the biggest one: USP (Unique Selling Proposition)
Advantages of an in-house team (examples)
- In-house livestreaming team: understands ad placement, knows how to sell, and has successful case studies; if you can do in-house livestreaming well, creator-led livestreaming is no problem either
- Supply chain: stable sources of goods, timely shipping, and professional customer service
The product’s image (brand symbol)
The feelings and aesthetic experience customers have after hearing about or seeing the product.
Example:
- Volvo = identity + safety
- Japanese cars = fuel-efficient (expressed in simple, easy-to-understand language)
＊＊’s brand symbols: Business entertaining can also be healthy / a sense of ceremony / a hangover cure for drinking occasions / cancer’s nemesis / "Help me up and let me try it."
Platforms and playbook
| Dimension | Content |
|---|---|
| Platforms | Douyin / WeChat Channels / Xiaohongshu |
| How to play | Standard livestreaming / people, products, and setting |
| Rules | The rules differ across platforms |
| Techniques | What techniques were used? |
| Risks | Platforms have already taken precautions against issues you could trigger—find first-hand sources |
Violations and common sense
- Political violationsAbsolutely off-limits
- Follow common sense: people move up, while water flows down.
5. Three things to include in your self-introduction
- Who am I?
- What can I do?
- What benefits I can bring you
6. Internal company processes
| Category | Key |
|---|---|
| Specific details | Who participates, the sequence, and monitoring |
| Deliverables | Commitments (timeline + level of completion), deliverables (forms), and operating instructions (user guides) |
7. Running a business
Product portfolio
- Re-engage existing customers: timing + frequency
- Develop new markets
- Launch new products
Differentiate offerings (tiered pricing)
- Airplanes: first class / economy class
- High-speed rail: first class / second class
8. Three underlying principles of business communication
1. Talk about what the other person is interested in. Say what needs to be said, not what you want to say.
Amplify desire overall, and amplify fear in specific situations.
2. Communicate honestly with customers
- Share personal details about your life
- Consciously break through three defenses:Emotional, ethical, and moral defenses
3. Empathize with clients and set yourself aside.
How:
- Explore the everyday lives of people in different industries to identify their pain points and needs
- Read widely; don't limit yourself
- Imagine someone in your mind—you are them
- Invite more people to talk about what they think of you.
- Exchange perspectives with others
- Try summarizing what others have told you and ask if you got it right
- Take notes: the customer's mood, thoughts, and catchphrases
Talk more about them, less about yourself:
- Listen 80% (Listen patiently)
- Ask questions 20% : Put yourself in the other person's shoes; ask about challenges, difficulties, and uncertainties
What I want to convey (5 points):
- Express my personality
- Learn to tell stories
- Share a sense of intimacy
- Occasionally share scenes during conversations (photos / videos)
- Express your views in a positive, confident way
The essence of empathy：
| Concept | Definition |
|---|---|
| Definition of Empathy | Enter the other person's world; put yourself in their shoes to understand their experience and empathize |
| The essence of empathy | One person sharing and experiencing another person’s emotions |
| The Motivation Behind Empathy | Seek understanding, not pleasure |
Ambiguous phrasing: The other person will interpret it to fit themselves. For example: "It feels like something about you has changed a little lately"—and they may volunteer, "You noticed! I’m wearing a new lipstick today."
9. The three-circle principle
The Golden Circle (Why-How-What)
1. 为什么要这么做（Why）
2. 如何做（How）
3. 做什么（What）Team communication must follow the 1-2-3 sequence, rather than jumping straight to 3—Many people start with 3 when doing things.
Three cornerstones of religion
- Doctrine / beliefs: Corporate culture
- Ritual: Worship
- Role models: Help ordinary people become exceptional
Three cornerstones that keep society running
- Good people are rewarded: Whoever contributes first wins first (right to know + right to implement)
- Success comes only through hard work and perseverance: Only hard work creates the opportunity to succeed
- Everyone is equal: Everyone has the same opportunities
The four circles of the market / customers
| Dimension | The four circles |
|---|---|
| Market | Entry-point market (poverty / moderate prosperity / middle class) → Base market (occupy the base) → Advantage market → Target market |
| Customers | Seed customers → Fan customers → Regular customers → Target customers |
The three circles of competition
| Circle | Intensity of competition | Key |
|---|---|---|
| Attributes | Large (most likely to have no barriers to entry) | Price and specifications |
| Services (applications) | Small | Talk more about applications and less about attributes; emphasize scenarios and vivid imagery; be like a doctor—the more skilled they are, the less they need to examine, and the rarer that becomes, the more valuable it is |
| Experience | Smaller | User experience |
X. The Seven Deadly Sins (and Personality Traits)
| Sin | Latin name | Personality | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lust | Asmodeus | Histrionic | Indulging desires, focusing only on physical gratification while neglecting emotional connection |
| Gluttony | Beelzebul | Borderline | Wasting food and becoming addicted to pleasure |
| Greed | Mammon | Antisocial | Desiring to possess more than is needed |
| Sloth | Belphegor | Avoidant | Escaping reality, lacking a sense of responsibility, and wasting time |
| Wrath | Satan | Aggressive | Hating others, becoming irrationally angry, and seeking revenge against people |
| Envy | Leviathan | Paranoid | Resenting others because they possess more |
| Pride | Lucifer | Narcissistic | The most serious, including disrespecting God and cruelty toward others |
XI. How to Make Others Feel That You Know Your Stuff
- Give a clear definition: Pin down the concept first
- Make a simple analogy: Get to the heart of the matter in one sentence; make the content very clear
- Use a brilliant metaphor: For example, “Reform and opening up cannot be like stepping on a watermelon rind”—strongly visual