The new customer journey: When should you create digital customer journeys?
Things aren't they way they used to be. The customer's journey from consideration to purchase used to take place per the old purchasing funnel model. As we all know, a funnel is wide at the top and narrow at the bottom, and it described the road to purchase. Consumers had a number of products to choose between, and these were removed one by one until one winner remained, the one they chose. We have largely departed from this model since many of today's digital customers simply do not behave the way they used to in the good old analogue days.
Does only digital matter?
How we communicate obviously depends on what we are selling, the target groups we want to reach and what context the communication needs to fit in with. When we build brands, we need to consider the entire customer journey. It is important to be present at the touchpoints where you can meet the customer . But where are the touchpoints in the customer journey of today? Are they only on digital surfaces? If yes, how should we conduct ourselves if we are to reach the target groups that don't hang about the same "funnels" they used to? Today's customers are not particularly loyal. If something better turns up, they turn on their heels and march in a different direction.
”One Bad Apple Don’t Change the Whole Bunch, Girl,” sang the Osmonds in the early '70s. Today, it would perhaps need no more than an extremely rotten Apple product for the company to have a big problem explaining itself to its usually loyal followers, investors, and other implicated parties. Because if Apple had suddenly not been able to deliver its innovative and continuous updates, their fans would have quickly been on social media saying how disappointed they were - and would have fluttered on to the next flower. Because there are always new flowers blooming in the flowerbed. Some materials that used to work exclusively on paper also work well digitally.
The brochure is not dead
New media dominates in many areas but not all. Take the brochure, for example. It may eventually bite the dust but, in the meantime, it works well in a number of contexts. What is new is that you can now often find the same brochure in both analogue and digital versions. When you browse through a brochure on the computer, you aren't harming the rain forests, but the same pamphlet is almost always available in paper format. Some materials that used to work exclusively on paper also work well digitally.
The colour chart you get in a paint shop is an example of a brochure that an iPad cannot quite measure up to. When it comes to brochures, there is probably an age difference among the recipients, but it's not just the older generation who like having something solid to browse through. Soon we will perhaps also get some nostalgists in this area, just like we did with LPs. The LP was a potential dodo for a long time, forecast for certain death in our digital universe. In a remarkable way, it has dragged itself back onto the shelves. Nor is there any reason to believe that Narvesen (Norway's largest convenience chain) will stop stocking paper products any time soon. Even although many issues are on a downward spiral, there are others that are in the best of health.
But what will happen to newspapers, magazines, and brochures when someone manages to standardise "the intelligent paper?" We'll have products that in some way feel like the old paper products but where the content is continually replaced. Then you may not buy a new newspaper but recharge your old one or get it automatically updated. Time will show whether that product has the right to live, so let us instead stick to the technology we actually have today.
What does digital mean for the customer journey?
The funnel model requires a relatively easy to follow universe where "the usual suspects" are eliminated one by one until only one remains. But today's customer base studies comparison websites like Kelkoo and Momondo. Consumers read what satisfied and dissatisfied users report online and they like to hear what friends and acquaintances have to say about the matter. In other words, they operate in channels the brands themselves have no control over. So what do we do to reach these digital jugglers? Many branding experts point out how easy it is to spend your money in the wrong place and at the wrong time. Here are a few things it may be worthwhile taking into the equation:
The path-to-purchase is shorter
People often obtain information more quickly than they used to and they are exposed to exactly what they want, not necessarily what you want. But there is a lot you can do to be in the right place at the right time. If you have a smart family car, it helps to know which families have an addition to the family on the way. Whether we are talking about a big or small purchase, the selection process can go quicker than it used to. When it comes to places where people are searching for information, your website is essential, since it is the only universe you have complete control over.
Follow the customer journey
Devise a customer journey strategy based on the Customer Decision Journey (CDJ). It may be the case that it is not right spending a load of money on the entire "media line" of TV, radio, the Internet, and newspapers. It may instead be more rewarding thinking about how to reach the various touchpoints along the customer's journey to a decision. According to David C. Edelman's article in the Harvard Business Review, between 70 and 90 percent of advertising and promotion aimed at consumers takes place in what he calls the consider and buy stages. It turns out, on the other hand, that customers are most easily influenced during the evaluation stage and what he calls the "enjoy-advocate-bond stages." That is to say, when the customer enjoys the product, acts as an advocate for it and bonds with it. It turns out that 60% of the customers who bought facial skin care products did online research on them after they had purchased the product. Edelman & Co's theory is that quoting and illustrating others' praise for your product may be worth more than banner advertising, search buy services or viral videos.
Once the customer has made the purchase, the sale starts in earnest
In days of yore, the sale was over and done with once the contract was signed. Then a line was drawn under it, and it was time to put it behind you and move on to the next customer. This is no longer the case. This is often where it begins. Because it is after the purchase has been completed that fans and followers, marketers, and adversaries arise. The customer can be your best friend, your most eager ambassador or your worst enemy. They can influence the market, influence your product in the right direction or be responsible for repeat purchases but they can also subject you to animosity and ensure you get a bad press. Put a lot of effort into existing customers, particularly the brand new ones, so that they want to continue playing on the same team as you and telling the world about your splendid product. Try to remain in contact and keep a continuous, but not too clinging, dialogue going with customers.
A customer journey strategy can consist of three parts:
Understand the customer journey .
Find out which touchpoints to prioritise and how to utilise these in the best possible manner.
Allocate your resources in line with this. This job may require redefining the roles and relationships in your organisation.