Consumer psychology · Data · AI search
Marketing,
reverse-
engineered.
We work out how your buyers think, what they search, and how Google and AI decide who to show. Then we put your budget where the pattern points.
Dan Picken, founderYou deal with me directly, start to finish.One search, four worries. Answer all four and you win the sale.
The follow-up searches are illustrations of the kinds of searches each worry leads to.
Brands I've worked on
- [LOGO: Wesfarmers]
E-commerce
This hub is on its way. Until then, the free audit is built around your business specifically.
How people really buy
Buyers don't follow funnels.
They play pinball.
Google, then ChatGPT, then an Instagram ad, then the reviews. Every bounce is a signal. We map them, then make sure you're there, saying the right thing, at each one.
- GoogleSearches the problem, not your name.Relevance signal
- ChatGPTAsks for a shortlist of who to trust.AI legibility
- InstagramSees an ad between two friends' posts.Pattern interrupt
- ReviewsChecks what people like them say.Trust architecture
- RedditLooks for the honest version.Emotional activation
- Your websiteCompares, hesitates, nearly leaves.Message match
- EnquiryDecides, because every bounce pointed the same way.Conversion trigger
Get found. Get chosen.
Prove it worked.
Every service we offer does one of three jobs. Most businesses need help with one before the others.
Get found
Show up when people search, on Google and in AI answers.SEO · AI search · Local SEO · Content strategyGet chosen
Ads and pages that say the right thing at the right moment.Google Ads · Meta · LinkedIn · Landing pagesProve it worked
Know which spend is actually making you money.Tracking · Reporting · Cause testingBehind all three: strategy and buyer research. All services
Why people
actually buy.
The psychology libraryPeople don't decide like spreadsheets. They take mental shortcuts. Know which shortcut your buyer is using and you know what to say, what to show, and what to leave out.
Social proof
We copy people like us, especially when we're unsure.Backfires when: reviews feel vague or come from people nothing like the buyer.Try this: show reviews from customers in the same suburb or industry as the visitor.Loss aversion
Losing something hurts more than gaining the same thing feels good.Backfires when: it tips into fear-mongering.Try this: test 'stop losing leads' against 'get more leads'.Anchoring
The first number people see sets what feels like a fair price.Backfires when: the anchor is obviously made up.Try this: show your most complete package first, not last.Choice overload
Too many options and many people choose nothing at all.Backfires when: you cut so far that people can't find what fits.Try this: three clear options, with one marked as most popular.Risk reversal
People avoid a bad outcome more than they chase a good one.Backfires when: the guarantee has so much fine print nobody believes it.Try this: put your guarantee or returns policy next to the buy button.Message match
When the page doesn't match what the ad promised, people feel lost and leave.Backfires when: one generic page serves every ad.Try this: make the landing page headline repeat the ad's main promise.The 8 signals
Every page sends
8 signals.
Before anyone reads a word, your page is already telling them whether to stay. We score every page on the same 8 signals, from the first second to whether AI can quote it.
- 1Pattern interruptDoes it stop the scroll in the first second?8/10
- 2Emotional activationDoes it make them feel the problem?5/10
- 3Relevance signalDoes it look like it is for people like them?6/10
- 4Message matchDoes it say what the ad or search promised?3/10
- 5Trust architectureIs there proof, from people like them?7/10
- 6Friction removalIs the next step easy and obvious?4/10
- 7Conversion triggerIs there a real reason to act now?2/10
- 8AI legibilityCan ChatGPT and Google's AI read and quote it?3/10
Example scores for an example page. Yours will be different.
Data. Behaviour.
Relationships.
Three ways we look at every market. Smart under the hood, plain English on top.
Data
What people actually do.
Search terms, clicks, reviews and sales. Not opinions, not best practice.
Behaviour
Why they do it.
Every search comes with a state of mind: panicked, comparing, or ready to buy.
Relationships
How it all connects.
Which searches lead to which, and which message moves people to the next step.
All three, in one example
The search
'running shoes for flat feet'
State of mind
Comparing. Worried about buying the wrong thing online.
What to say
'Free returns if they don't fit.' Not 'New season range.'
The periodic table
of marketing.
Everything we know, as elements. Industries, methods, buyer psychology and free tools. Pick one and see what it connects to.
- Industries
- Methods
- Psychology
- Free tools
Pick an element to see what it connects to.
How to
start.
Three steps. Take the first one free, and only move on if it's useful.
A free audit
Pick one: your Google Ads account, or how you show up in Google and AI search. A person looks, not a bot. You keep it either way.Get my free auditStep 2 · One-offThe Market Blueprint
Your Search Relationship Map, Buyer State Map and a 90-day plan. Yours to run yourself, or with us.[YOUR PRICE]Step 3 · MonthlyWe run it
Search, paid, or both. Every month: what changed, why, and the next test.From [YOUR PRICE] a monthProbably not
a fit if...
- You want the cheapest option going.
- You want results without changing anything on your site.
- You'd rather not see the numbers when something isn't working.
From the
blog.
All articlesHow ChatGPT decides which businesses to recommend
ReadGoogle Ads · [READ TIME] · [DATE]Why your Google Ads look better than they are
ReadPsychology · [READ TIME] · [DATE]The search before the search: write for the problem, not the service
ReadData · [READ TIME] · [DATE]Your longest searches are your best ad copy
ReadNo articles on that topic yet.
Who you'd work with
You deal with me,
not an account manager.
I'm Dan. I run SEO and paid media for e-commerce and lead generation businesses, directly and for agencies.
More about me