An Unexpected Customer Journey

You’ve probably heard of the hero’s journey. If you haven’t, you’ve definitely seen it. Your favorite character goes on a quest to find himself and touches on a series of familiar landmarks along the way: the initial struggle, the introduction of the villain, the lowest low, and then victory. How does that apply to a customer journey?

The path to consumer loyalty works in much the same way.

There are no villains along the way, but you do have to guide consumers over a series of hurdles to get them to their destination, which is your shopping cart.

When you break down the path into eight accessible steps, you can craft your advertising campaigns and consumer interactions to more effectively generate sales.

What does the customer journey look like?

Step 1: Build Brand Awareness

Before you can sell anything, you need to build up your brand awareness. This is where ToFu marketing comes into play. Your advertisements need to reach out to untapped audiences and generate real-time relationships.

Step 2: Encourage Consumer Interaction

Once you have consumers’ attention, you need to grow their interest. Have a conversation with your audience through social media or reach out to them via email. Conversation lets consumers know that they can trust you to keep their best interests in mind.

Step 3: Ask for a Commitment

It’s the third date, and you’re ready to go steady. At this stage, you should have a newsletter or subscription-based loyalty program at the ready.

You need to offer your consumer audience something of value – business reports, free samples, or webinar access – to encourage them to subscribe to your business. This small commitment will put you in regular contact with consumers and remind them of your value.

Step 4: Sell That Sale

Finally, after a bit of wooing, push forward a sale. Offer your consumers a deal through your newsletter that they can’t refuse. Make sure the sale is a low-risk one; your consumer may have committed, but he or she likely won’t be ready for a significant financial investment.

Step 5: Build Excitement About Your Product

With a purchase made, you need to foster excitement about your product. Encourage consumers to post reviews of their purchases. Make sure that, should there be anything wrong with the product, your customer service team responds to consumer needs quickly and effectively.

Encouraging social proof helps build a valuable foundation in your customer journey.

Step 6: Rinse and Repeat

If you make the framework of a sale positive, you’ll make consumers more comfortable with your business. With that comfort comes excitement to purchase more of your products in the future. Additional sales boost your revenue, attribute authority to your business, and boost your SERP ranking to build audience reach.

Step 7: Spread the Word

Satisfied consumers are more likely to recommend your business to their friends. Consumers, in general, are also more likely to purchase a product that their friends recommend to them than they are one at random. Naturally, then, you’ll want your happy consumers to spread the word about your business.

Here’s where testimonials come in handy. Build a strong review network, and you’ll be able to reach a broader audience.

Step 8: Generate Influence(rs)

If you notice one or two consumers who are in love with your brand, why not bring them into the fold? Almost half of consumers online today trust influencer recommendations, whether those influencers have 1,000 followers or a million.

Reward your consumers’ interest in your products with a position on your team. Not only will your business seem more relatable, but you’ll also be building consumer loyalty as you go.

Conclusion

Is your company in need of help Digital Marketing? MV3 Marketing Agency has numerous Marketing experts ready to assist you. Contact MV3 Marketing to jump-start your business.

Image attribution: Monster Ztudio – stock.adobe.com