Ways to Take Advantage of Your New Customer Journey
So, this week we address a fundamental question: what is the New Customer Journey and why is it so important?
Ultimately, it is about understanding your customers in the digital age. It’s about adapting to the changing way that they are behaving, and it’s about your company acknowledging that the journey they take from initial interest in your products and services to the point of purchase has changed radically in the last five years.
This journey used to be relatively predictable and linear; the supplier took control, pushing out information and promotion to generate leads. But in our hyper-connected world, it’s the buyer who’s in charge. Increasingly, your prospects put their faith in online sources – peer review sites, social media and online comparison tools – rather than your sales reps. In fact, 80% of consumers seek peer referrals before making a purchase.[1]
So when customers do reach out to you, 70% of their journey to purchase is complete. What’s more, they expect high levels of personalisation and engagement in the way that you support their decision-making, not a pushy sales response. It’s imperative that your sales and marketing team embraces this trend towards engagement rather than promotion, drawing prospects to you by delivering content and advice of genuine value as opposed to the ‘hard sell’.
Next week we’ll shed light on the practical steps that companies can take to map out their customer journeys as a basis for business growth.
[1] http://www.business2community.com/marketing/numbers-dont-lie-2016-nielsen-study-revealed-referrals-01477256#4dUOrtwdzPIqfFGF.97
