15December 2021
As a local business do you ever consider what stage your potential customer is at?
Let’s break down 5 key stages of a customer’s journey to help you understand the funnel process from awareness to retention.
Awareness stage:
The awareness stage is the start of the customer’s journey. This is when the consumer becomes aware of a problem they want to solve and perceives your product or services ad as a potential solution.
By focusing your online presence with visibility and recognition, it’s a critical stage for new products, your brand or adding benefits to an existing product.
Interest stage:
The interest stage is the next step when the consumer is looking for options to help solve their problem. The consumer may have a range of ideas in mind but needs more information and experience to help them make a decision. The information they are looking for can come from reading reviews, blog articles, social media posts, and online ads to help find a solution.
Consideration stage:
The consideration stage is when the consumer knows about your brand and thinks it might be a good fit for their needs or provides a solution. They may have other competitors in mind, but your business is in the mix. At this point, inbound strategies can be highly effective. If correctly used, by ensuring your brand or product appears in the consumer’s search results and social media feeds can be achieved.
Conversion stage:
At this stage the consumer is ready to buy your product or take action on your on your website. After doing their research and, based on their needs and motivations, the consumer has decided on a product or service as the best solution for their problem. The consumer has not yet paid for the product or service, and this is where the point of contact to drive the conversions is important. This can generally be achieved with targeting and re-targeting, promotional offers, and creating a sense of urgency.
Retention:
After the consumer has converted to a customer, the retention stage is often overlooked. It is a key stage for ensuring re-occurring revenue and building a group of active brand advocates.
Once the consumer has used the product and is satisfied, it is crucial to provide added value and create a real relationship. At this stage you have already convinced the consumer who thinks your product is a great fit for them.
However, you still need to keep them satisfied and create a desire to come back to your product or service. Building a relationship with your customers and providing additional value to them not only with your product, but with your brand experience and personality.
Here is a customer journey map to simplify the 5 main stages.
