have you ever thought about how to improve your content marketing strategy to your customers? Not all customers are at the same point, so you need to tailor all your content to the journey they are on with your company.
what is the buyer's journey?
Hubspot Academy defines the buyer's journey as the active research process a potential customer goes through before buying. We can understand this journey, because when we are going to make a decision - no matter how trivial - we need to weigh it up a little and evaluate the action and repercussions. We think of it as a journey, because every potential customer will be at different points along the way. No matter where the customer comes into contact with our company, we need to give them the opportunity to go through the journey until the purchase is made.
We define 3 main stages of your buyer personas' journey:
- Recognition: in this phase the prospect must identify the problem, needs or opportunity that needs to be solved and put a name to it.
- Consideration: the customer moves forward and defines the problem, which they are willing to research, understand and evaluate options that can solve their problems.
- Decision: finally, you have decided on a strategy to address your needs. You begin a comparison, by the customer, of the available options, suppliers and products that offer you a solution. You are ready to buy.
To build a lasting relationship with customers, it is necessary to identify the moment your customer is going through in order to help them through the buying process. Defining a buyer journey allows you to provide the information and tools for your prospects to complete the buying process. Starting your strategy planning, along with identifying your buyer personas' journey improves your Inbound Marketing strategy, increases your company's ability to attract customers, interaction and delight, and personalises the experiences your prospects have with your company. The key to making your customer journey work is interactions, which should be tailored to the stages of the buyer's journey.
Roles for your company's teams:
The business revolves around customer behaviour, the information they need and the problems they want to solve.
- The marketing team has the role of creating different content at each stage. Defining a good journey empowers the marketing team to plan the content. During the recognition stage, the company has the opportunity to position itself as a trusted source of information. It can be problem-based content based on the buyer persona, offering solutions, related to products and services. This type of content provides expertise and knowledge of the prospect's problems. Segmenting and nurturing leads can be achieved.
- The sales team must understand the customers and know how to address them in the process, with the objective of guiding them. Interaction between the company and the prospects must emerge. At the consideration stage, it is critical to provide personalised experiences that cultivate a meaningful relationship. Content can be created about the solutions customers have to their problems.
- The service team plays an important role in the decision stage. The prospect needs to confirm that the decision they are making is the right one. Content should be created that answers questions about your products or services. These can be informative documents so that customers can learn on their own. Positive feedback from other customers can have a positive impact.
There are factors that change the buyers journey, as it must be tailored to each company. The goal is to create a personalised experience that is useful, approachable and human. It often depends on the sector of the company your business is in, the business model, the products and services, the pricing and the audience you are reaching.
To create a consumer journey, as a company you need to know who your buyer personas are, and develop each stage according to the specific needs of your company and the purpose of your buyer personas. It should be based on personalised experiences, as it is an individual journey.
Content should match the experience you offer as a business, build trust and reinforce the customer-driven cycle. It also enhances the brand image of your business. Content can be provided in a variety of formats, such as: video, blog articles, web pages or webinars. Whatever format it is, it can be tailored to each stage of the customer journey to guide and support the customer through the purchase.
