If you are a salesperson, I know that you can agree that buyers are complicated. They reschedule your meetings, they abandon carts, and sometimes it’s hard for them to make a decision.
But what if there was a process that all buyers could go through to get them to make a purchase? Wait there is! It’s called the buyer’s journey and in this blog, I’m going to discuss to you what the buyer’s journey is, how it can benefit you and ways to implement the buyer’s journey in your business.
What is the Buyer’s Journey?
The Buyer’s Journey is a process that buyers go through that takes them from a prospect to a customer. It’s a relationship-building journey. This process will earn the trust of your buyers. When customers are looking to solve a problem of theirs they tend to ask questions. Don’t worry questions are a good thing! Questions mean that the prospect is interested. It’s our job to answer those questions correctly so they move further through the process. Also, it’s important to realize that buyers are on a quest for information.
What are the stages of the Buyer’s Journey?
There are three stages of the buyer’s journey. These stages include Awareness, Engagement, and Conversion. 1. Awareness Stage- the buyer is aware of the solutions that your company provides.
- Engagement Stage- you and the buyer have an interaction with each other.
- Conversion Stage- when a prospect becomes a customer by purchasing a product from you.
I’m now going to go through each stage of the buyer’s journey in more detail and show you what kind of content you should use in that respective stage.
Awareness
Your buyer doesn’t know you or what you do. This stage is where you introduce yourself to them. You shouldn’t be so salesly in this stage. Remember it\’s about providing information. When a big brand such as Walmart started people didn’t know who they were or what they do automatically. They had to introduce themselves to buyers and make them aware that they are a grocery store. After countless years of doing that their brand is a household name.
Questions to ask yourself in the Awareness Stage.
Asking yourself these questions will help you put yourself in your buyer’s shoes to better understand who they are so you can know how to interact with them. – What are their goals?
- How do they learn information about how they can reach their goals?
- What happens if the buyer doesn’t accomplish this goal?
- What doubts does the buyer have about reaching this goal?
Content for the Awareness Stage
- Blogs
- Social Media Posts
- Videos
- Infographics
- Audio Podcasts
- eBooks
Examples of Awareness Content
This is an Ad from Scentbird. This Ad lets customers know that Scentbird has skincare products that create soft skin.
This is a screenshot from a video that we created so people can know who we are and what we do.
Click here to watch it.
Engagement
At this point in the buyer’s journey, your prospective buyers know who you are but they haven’t engaged with you yet. In this stage, they are shopping around for ways to solve their problems or accomplish their goals. Your company could be one of the solutions that they are looking over. But it’s time to stand out from your competition and make your first interaction with your customer.
Questions to ask yourself in the Engagement Stage
- What kinds of solutions do buyers look at?
- How do they learn more about these solutions?
- How do they pick which solution to use?
Content for the Engagement Stage
- Lead Magnets
- Social media Posts
- Case Studies
- Guides
- eBooks
- Blogs
- Webinar/Event
- Quizzes
Engagement Content Examples
This is a pop up from a blog on https://www.cupandleaf.com/. They offered a short quiz that I could take to find the perfect tea for me. To receive the results I would have to give them my email, in which they will use to sell me on products after the quiz.
The Beard Club gives us a blog to read to get users to get engage with them by going to their website and reading a blog.
Conversion
You have now gained some trust from your buyer. Now they need a little push to make that final move and make that purchase. They have decided how they would like to solve their problem and now it’s time for you to give them the final reason to say yes to you. When your customer finally makes their first purchase and your product solves their problem a few things can happen. They could refer people to you, and/or buy more from you. ## Questions to ask yourself in the Conversion Stage
- What do the buyers look for in each solution?
- What makes me stand out to my buyer? What do they not like about what I offer?
- Do they need to try the product before they buy it?
- What do they need to make a purchase?
Content for Conversion Stage
- Demo/Free Trial
- Testimonials
- Comparison/ Spec Sheet
- Webinar/Events
- Mini-Class
- Low Dollar Offers
Conversion Content Examples
Shopify offers a free trial for their customers. So they can get a feel for the product to decide whether they will buy it or not. They don’t even ask for credit card information so the buyer knows it isn’t a commitment until they decide to buy it.
This is part of a comparison sheet from Grammarly. It compares the benefits of free, premium, and business plans.
I have explained to you what the buyer journey is, how to use it, and what type of content to use in each stage. The buyer’s journey is a proven way to get your customers to the finish line. I hope this blog has given you the ability to guide your buyers on the journey to solving their problems.
