What are Category Entry Points (CEP) in Marketing?

What are Category Entry Points (CEP) in Marketing?

In order to hit your sales targets, understanding category entry points (CEPs) is crucial, even if you have the best product or service available. CEPs are the hints that individuals use to access their memories when faced with a buying situation. When thinking of purchasing a product or service, the memory that comes to mind is where the search to fulfill the need will start – that’s a category entry point. Differentiating your product or service from competitors is key in this process. By focusing on providing customers with a personalized, friendly, and helpful experience, you can create a natural association and brand differentiation. It's important to research your target audience and determine which CEPs will be most effective for them.

But what's behind the Pinterest craze? How did it grow from just 40,000 users to 3.2 million in just one year? Many super-users of Pinterest have shared their thoughts on why they use the platform and what makes it so appealing to them.

For Kary Delaria, Pinterest is a diversion from her work routine. She sees it as the equivalent of flipping through a magazine, providing her with a visual insight into the more personal and creative side of individuals in her network. She finds that Pinterest is a quiet place, with no pressure to reply or comment, allowing her to casually observe and get ideas that feed her personal life.

Similarly, Mariam Shahab uses Pinterest as a silent community to collect and organize pictures and links of things and ideas that she likes. She finds it much easier to filter her many interests on Pinterest compared to other social media platforms. Pinterest is low-maintenance and doesn't require active participation, making it perfect for visually-oriented minds that like to collect and curate ideas.

Mikinzie Stuart also uses Pinterest to curate things that interest her, whether it's fashion inspiration, DIY projects, or recipes. She sees Pinterest as a hybrid of Tumblr and Delicious, and enjoys the fact that it's not as directly social as other social networking sites. Pinterest allows her to share her interests with others and discover new ideas.

Kristin Greeley sees Pinterest as a way to discover another aspect of social media. She appreciates the ability to pick and choose what she wants to see by following specific people and boards. She also finds it to be a great way to archive things online for future reference. Pinterest allows her to tailor her experience to be exactly what she wants.

Laura Scholz uses Pinterest as an online inspiration board, allowing her to catalog everything that inspires her. She finds it to be a great way to relax and get inspired, without the pressure of balancing personal and professional. She can share with lots of different people without revealing personal information.

For Lauren Gray, Pinterest makes her want to be more creative and fashionable. She sees it as a way to learn a different lifestyle and envision a future she desires. She spends a lot of time looking at all the amazing places she could visit, the clothes she would want to wear, and the wedding pictures of a wedding she desires. Pinterest allows her to imagine an improvement to her own life.

Drew Hawkins uses Pinterest as a source of creative inspiration for client work and to visually organize things he finds online. He believes that people don't like to read as much anymore and Pinterest offers a story-telling capability using different boards. He appreciates the lack of sharing fatigue on Pinterest and enjoys being able to focus on the parts of other users' activity that he likes.

Mary Woestehoff uses Pinterest to add photos that provide inspiration for her own photography and save recipes she wants to try later. She enjoys the endless amount of new content to look at on Pinterest.

Julia Prior initially started using Pinterest to gather Christmas gift ideas and ideas for her friend's wedding. Now she uses it to bookmark her favorite websites, infographics, articles, pictures, and recipes. She finds it interesting to see what other people are pinning, especially if she only knows them through other social networks. Pinterest's bookmarklet makes it a great bookmarking tool for her.

Sasha Westin started using Pinterest as a business outlet for picks and it has evolved into a business/personal brand platform for her. She enjoys seeing what others have pinned and often finds herself on Pinterest when she is shopping online or reading something. She appreciates the quiet and ad-free environment of Pinterest.

Jenny Schmitt uses Pinterest as a place to put visual bookmarks of things on the web that interest her. She describes it as "visual snacking" and believes that the personal and visual elements of Pinterest make it engaging. It's a place for her to create visual bookmarks, plan ideas, and gain insights into what visually resonates with other people.

Julie Kucinski uses Pinterest because it's fun, useful, and allows her to easily keep track of beautiful things. She appreciates the lack of conversation on Pinterest and enjoys the visual aspect of the platform.

Julia Cantor started using Pinterest as a bookmarking tool to keep track of images for work and client presentations. She has also used it to help furnish her new apartment and share humor with friends. She finds Pinterest to be a useful and fun platform.

Melissa Lawhorn enjoys the wide range of people she can interact with on Pinterest. She finds that there isn't much commenting happening on her pins, so she doesn't feel the burden of keeping up with conversation. Pinterest allows her to pin anything she likes and interact with a diverse group of people.

Meghan Wilker uses Pinterest to pin fashion and style inspiration for herself and as a way to share products she likes with others. She finds that Pinterest provides a quiet place without ads or distractions. She enjoys scrolling through what others have been pinning and finds that a single pin is worth 71.4 tweets in terms of impact.

From these insights, it's clear that Pinterest's appeal lies in its visual nature, personalization, and ability to provide a quiet and low-pressure environment. So, what actionable advice can we take from these super-users?

1. Understand and utilize the visual nature of Pinterest: Pinterest is a platform that thrives on visuals, so make sure to create eye-catching and visually appealing content. Use high-quality images and consider creating infographics or other visual content that can be easily shared and pinned.

2. Personalize your content: Take the time to research your target audience and determine what interests and inspires them. Tailor your pins and boards to their preferences and create a natural association between your brand and their interests. This will help differentiate your brand from competitors and create a more engaging experience for users.

3. Embrace the quiet and low-pressure environment: Unlike other social media platforms, Pinterest doesn't require constant interaction and conversation. Use this to your advantage by providing valuable and inspiring content that users can save and refer back to. Focus on creating a relaxing and enjoyable experience for users, rather than trying to constantly engage or sell to them.

In conclusion, understanding category entry points in marketing can be the key to hitting your sales targets. By differentiating your brand and creating a natural association with your target audience's interests, you can effectively utilize platforms like Pinterest to engage and inspire users. Remember to embrace the visual nature of Pinterest, personalize your content, and create a quiet and low-pressure environment for users.