Understanding how your customers feel along their journey with you, helps you to connect with them better.
There are five main stages in the customer journey, and in this article we discover that sales can be influenced by how customers feel about you and your business along their journey with you.
Awareness
This stage in the customer journey is already happening before they know about you. The customer realises they have a need and begin to research the solution.
How you grow awareness of your business in the market depends on your customer. Do they read newspapers, are they on social media, do they use a mobile device? A little bit of research into who your customers are and where they spend their time will help you be in the right place at the right time.
How they feel about you depends on the content you share. Do use need to use a lot of technical language, are you a myth-buster, are you funny or serious? Try to align your marketing persona to that of your ideal customer and that common ground will kick-start your relationship.
Consideration
You’ve been found, but the customer wants to know more about you, why they should buy from you and how you compare to others. This is the stage where proof is required.
Here is where testimonials and case studies come in useful. Display them on your Google My Business page, social media and website where you can.
If you don’t have testimonials yet, show up on social media regularly, commenting and replying to customers and your network; be helpful, share valuable content. Think about what influences your decision before you buy something.
Purchase
At this stage your customer will convert from a lead into a sale, so it needs to be easy for them. Do you need to ask for a lot of personal information, is your cookies placement easy to decline, is your privacy policy clear, do you accept online payments, can your customers purchase directly from social media, or do they have to visit your shop?
Being transparent about postage and delivery costs, managing your customers’ expectations and making the purchase stage as fair and simple as possible can only improve the way your customers feel about you.
Retention
Stage four is about your after sales activity and how you take care of your customers once they have paid. Email notifications should be useful, not intrusive, returns information should be available (and easy to carry out), and of course a thank you and details of how to contact you for help.
You now have an established relationship with your customer, but the trust can still be influenced. Ensure your customer service is excellent and not pushy.
Loyalty (or advocacy)
And now we see if your customers return to buy again, buy something extra, or even tell their friends to buy from you.
Influencing this stage can be done through developing and maintaining that after-sales care. Social media commenting, thanking and liking works very well, as does an anniversary card or thank you gift for a referral.
Every stage of the customer journey presents opportunities to develop a relationship that is built on trust. If your customer trusts you, they are more likely to become loyal advocates.
As a final tip, I encourage you to put yourself into the shoes of a potential customer and think about how you would like to be treated, and how you would want to feel about buying from you.
Mike Foster
The Entrepreneurs Mentor
