Today, most customers engage in cross-channel marketing. They begin getting to know about specific products and services from one platform to the end buying in a completely different platform.
This phenomenon is because now we are all endowed with multiple platforms and devices which we use on a daily basis. So, they play a significant role in buying and selling products as well.
Hence, the need to capture the user buying journey.
First, We’ll Understand What is Customer Buying Journey?
Customer buying journey is a holistic experience of a customer while they interact with your brand to buy a product/service.
Understanding user journey is very important for brands because it shows which channels are performing well and the pain points which didn’t drive conversions for the brand. Finally, by ensuring that brands take necessary steps to build effective strategies.
How is Customer Buying Journey Represented?
Of course, it’s a valid question to ask! Where will you capture the whole customer buying journey? The answer is simple – customer journey map.
A customer journey map is a graphical representation of a customer’s journey with a brand through various touch points.
All the interactions of the customer journey are marked in this map. And, it also displays the various stages of a customer journey.
What Are the Various Stages in a Customer Journey?
There must be a starting point and the end point in the customer journey as well. Yes, each stage of user journey represents how your customer interacts with the brand.
There are 6 prominent stages in a customer journey. They are:
1.Awareness of Brand
At first, customers need to know that a certain brand exists and it offers these many products. So, when a customer gets introduced to a brand then this stage is called brand awareness. It marks the first stage in the customer journey.
2.Consideration
Now that your customer knows about your brand, he/she will get this thought about making a purchase from your brand. That’s why it is the consideration stage.
3.Research
Of course, your customer won’t buy without getting to know your brand better. Your customer will explore your website/app, check the products you offer and also verify by reading the reviews given by the existing customers. Here mainly customers try to know about your brand through different sources.
4.Purchase
Here comes the action point when a customer decides to make a purchase. Customers are now fully convinced that your brand is worthy of purchase and he/she also likes the products/services offered. Finally, make a purchase decision.
Wait, it doesn’t end with purchase. We need to see what happens in the post-purchase stage as well.
5.Customer Experience
It is very crucial for your brand to create a good impression on your customers. You should ensure that your customers had a smooth experience while interacting with your brand.
6.Loyalty Expansion
Customers who shop once should come back again and that’s when your business will progress. You need loyal customers to maintain your brand’s stability. Hence, you should ensure that loyal expansion happens through your customers.
Understanding these stages in the customer journey will help you fix the loopholes in your marketing/advertising strategy. Therefore ensuring the progress of your company.
Why Mapping the Customer Journey is Necessary?
Customer experience is one of the most essential aspects which you need to consider when you are building your strategy. But creating a seamless experience is not possible without deeper understanding of customers.
Hence, you need to know how your customers are interacting with your brand and which touch points they are reaching before making a purchase are. Or why they are not buying some products after reaching certain touch points.
To get a clear picture of your customer journey, you need a map which can showcase all your customer’s interaction points and even the pain points.
A customer journey map gives a holistic view of your user’s journey with your brand. Thereby, allowing you to find out whether your customers are showing interest towards your brand and are converting. Additionally, you can find out where your customers are in stages of customer journey and act accordingly.
Suppose, if they are in the ‘Awareness’ Stage then you can plan your strategy in such a way that the customer will reach the consideration and research stage. Finally, helping customers reach the purchase stage.
When you get a complete picture of what your customers are looking for then you can plan your marketing strategy accordingly. Finally, leading to more clicks and conversions.
That’s why a customer journey map is most important in building meaningful relationships with your customers.
Furthermore, we’ll see what are the advantages you can derive from the customer journey maps.
Benefits of Customer Journey Map:
Get Better Understanding of Customers
Customer journey maps help you understand the customers better. As the map will showcase all the touch points and the customer’s movement through multiple channels and touch points. This will allow you to understand the behavior of customers and response towards the campaigns.
Allows You to Fix All the Loopholes in the Strategy
When the complete journey is captured then it will also showcase the gaps in the strategy. Therefore helping you fix the pain points which the customers are facing while interacting with your brand.
Helps You Tailor Personalized Ads
As you will get to know more about the customer’s journey and get better insights about customers. You can personalize your campaigns even better, thus helps in boosting your sales.
Conclusion
Thanks to digital marketing that today brands are able to deliver as per the preference of customers. By mapping the customer journey and understanding user behaviors, you can make sure that you create customer-centric marketing strategies.
