Setting the Stage: Marketing, Then and Now
Before the rise of digital marketing, marketers and business owners focused their efforts on “controlling the monologue”, ensuring that they had a differentiated brand position, the right brand message and optimal reach of their targeted segment/s. Brand communication with customers was unidirectional, with customer feedback and interaction being limited, and certainly not immediate. Marketers were more focused on competing for share-of-mind, with post-campaign sales performance being one of the few means to determine and measure the results of a marketing campaign. There was always “Direct Marketing” (or “Relationship Marketing”), which provided marketers with relatively higher degree of accuracy in terms of ROI and campaign measurement, but generally, consumer insights and feedback lay more in the realm of pre and post-campaign focus groups and qualitative research.
Today, it’s not that marketers are necessarily looking to achieve anything different. The right message, a differentiated position and optimal reach are still important criteria. However, what was previously a monologue in terms of brand communication – one controlled by marketers – is today a dialogue, and one that sees customers having a lot more influence and control over the brand conversation, and relationship.
Funnels, Journeys and Clicks
Where customers may have the ability to influence the dialogue, marketers have the ability to adjust and adapt to the needs and reactions of their customers and can do so almost immediately. Where brand positioning and differentiation previously weighted the marketing focus, today marketers and business owners think more in terms of “customer journeys” and “engagement”; and it is here where the emphasis for marketers must lie – or should it?
Marketing and sales funnels have been in existence since the 1800’s – so nothing really new here. Typical funnels start with “Awareness”, then “Engagement”, then “Discovery”, “Purchase” and finally “Retention” (or versions of this sequence). Although marketing funnels have been around for a while, with the level of engagement analytics that digital platforms provide today, it is now much easier to accurately gauge which aspect of the communications mix is working – or not working – well, and make adjustments accordingly. Terms like “TOFU”, “MOFU” and “BOFU” are key areas of focus, with conversion rates and “leads” being the preferred currency of marketers today.
While the digital realm has taken centre stage for the attention of marketers, it is only one – albeit arguably the most important – component of the overall journey.
Marketing Today – a Play in 3 Acts
Broadly speaking, the customer journey can be seen in 3 Acts.
Act 1 – is everything that takes place before and up to the moment of transaction (Online and offline Awareness – PR, brandbuilding, attraction, call-2-action ads, Lead acquisition, pitch presenting etc.)
Act 2 – is the actual transaction process and everything that immediately surrounds it of the transaction – the sales process, online purchase forms etc.) and finally,
Act 3 – everything that takes place (or should take place) after the transaction; that leads to customer retention, loyalty and repeat transactions (After sales service, follow-up, loyalty, testimonials, referral)
Today, the job of marketers is to understand these 3 Acts and to determine where the weak links are and, how to remedy them. It may commence with the brand itself, how it is positioned and promoted to an audience (i.e. Act 1). There may be problems or opportunities to identify at the point of transaction (Act 2), or, there may be issues once the sale transaction has taken place, in Act 3, where the customer experience is such that they do not wish to purchase again or remain a customer.
And herein lies the real focus….the customer, the “lead character” in this 3 Act Play.
The Customer Is the Lead Character in ALL 3 Acts!
With analytics and UX (the online user-experience) being such an important component of the marketing process, marketers today are driven solely by conversions and leads (do we care about impressions…really?). The customer’s experience is determined purely on click-through rates, page sessions, and bounce rates. We look to determine customer needs based primarily on the level and quality of their digital engagement. How often has a company seen success with a lead-gen campaign, only to lose on sales conversions when the sales team start engaging with a prospect face-to-face?
And it is here where the “supporting-role” of the marketer can and must be found in the 3 Act Play. To not only focus on just the digital component of the journey, but the entire journey – All 3 Acts.
Today a successful marketer or business owner needs to know where Act 1 starts, the details of Act 2 and how Act 3 ends. It isn’t just about click bait and lead capture. It isn’t just about automated inbound journeys, but what happens before and after. It’s about dissecting the complete journey, assessing each stage and identifying where the strengths and weaknesses are. Remember, your customer is the lead character in all 3 Acts.
It’s all About Act 3
Fortunately, through real time analytics, digital platforms provide the ability to gain insights into most of this journey, but it is the ability to understand what occurs before that initial “click”, before the customer prospect has decided to engage digitally, as well as once the converted lead is handed over to a real person where the real opportunity lies.
The successful marketer, business owner or salesperson of today is the one that builds their attention around Act 3. By planning the activities in Acts 1 and 2, with a view to ensuring a successful Act 3, will not only ensure an increase in sales, but will also create a real sustainable competitive advantage. It’s about starting with the end in mind – how you intend to conclude your 3rd Act – and then working back from there and to the opening of your 1st Act. It’s about knowing exactly who you ultimately want your customer to be and then working back to knowing how you want to position your brand and offering to attract the initial interest of this customer prospect. Using this approach will also assist in “de-cluttering” your awareness mix; knowing which digital and traditional elements to use to support and guide your customer through the 3 Acts.
As always, it must ultimately be the customer that informs the journey and the role of the marketer to adapt, and adapt quickly.
