Marketing 360® Guest Post- Understand Your Customer’s Journey.

From awareness to consideration and eventually to action, you need to understand what’s going on during each stage and what you can do to guide leads through it.

Most of the time, people aren’t ready to convert the first time they’re introduced to a new brand. In order to guide people through the sales process, here’s what businesses need to know.

Stage 1: Awareness

Before you can build trust with a consumer or win them over as a lead, they have to know that you exist. Visibility is a key first step in growing a successful brand, and these days, there are lots of ways to build that visibility online. 

Here are a few key ways to build a visible brand online:

SEO

Most of the time, the search for a new product or service happens on a search engine, like Google or Bing. And in most of those searches, the user won’t look past the first page of search results — or even the first few listings. 

Ranking high in relevant searches means getting in front of more leads who are actively searching for what you have to offer. Not only are organic leads high quality but they’re also low cost, an unstoppable combination in small business marketing. To get them, you need SEO (search engine optimization). 

Social media

People use social media for more than just looking at the latest pictures of their nieces and nephews or catching up with old friends. More and more, social media has become the premier place for people to find new brands and search for local businesses. 

Building a strong presence on the right social media platforms is a must for any business. These days, social media is not only where people go to discover new brands and local businesses, but it’s also where people are spending most of their time online. 

Digital advertising

Digital advertising is a key complement to an organic marketing strategy, whether it be on a search engine, like Google, or a social media platform, like Facebook. 

Organic visibility takes time and consistency, but smart digital advertising can help you drive visibility right now. Plus, you can maximize your visibility and your budget by targeting the right audience with your ads. 

Stage 2: Consideration

Getting in front of the right audience is just the first step. It’s not enough to increase your visibility with leads; you also need to give them a reason to choose you. That requires trust and consideration. 

Here are a couple of ways to build trust and consideration in your brand:

Content marketing

When you create content for your website, blog, social media platforms and beyond, it not only helps you increase your visibility on all of these channels, but also gives you a chance to demonstrate your value to potential leads and customers. 

No matter what kind of content you’re creating, it’s important to keep your leads and customers in mind. If you’re creating content that provides value (as opposed to content that promotes your brand), you build trust and give consumers a reason to consider your brand. 

Reputation management

Regardless of whether someone finds your brand in an ad, on Instagram, in a Google search or even from a personal recommendation, most of the time, people will read your reviews before booking an appointment or purchasing a product.

What you say about your own brand doesn’t mean much compared to what your customers have to say about you. If you don’t have many reviews, or you have a low average star rating, the best way to start building a strong reputation is simply to ask your customers to write reviews.

Stage 3: Action

Increasing your visibility gets you in front of the right audience, and building trust gives people a reason to choose you. The next step is encouraging them to take action and convert. 

Here are a couple of ways to encourage people to take action:

Conversion-based website

If someone is really serious about shopping with you or booking a service, most of the time, they’re going to want to check out your website before making the final decision. That means that you need a website that’s built to convert.

How you design your website plays a direct role in how many people convert into leads when they visit you online. A professional, modern website that loads quickly and offers valuable information, and direct contact through a chatbot with live chat capability, will encourage visitors to take action. 

Retargeting

Sometimes, even if someone is interested in what you’re offering, they’re not ready to convert just yet. Maybe they want to save up some money, or maybe they’re still researching. Whatever the reason, you need to get in front of them again in order to earn their business. 

Retargeting ads are only visible to people who have already interacted with your brand in some way, like visiting your website, clicking on an ad or watching a video on social media. With retargeting, you ensure that your brand stays top of mind with the right people. 

From driving visibility with SEO and digital advertising, to building a strong reputation and developing a conversion-based website with chatbot and live chat capability, Marketing 360® can help you win throughout every step of the sales process. Learn more.

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