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Capture incremental revenue by eliminating "confused customers" through usability testing and site optimization.
Now that customers are able to answer their questions about the product, it is important to understand where they become confused in the sales process. For example, button placement may be confusing, or certain verbiage may turn the user off. With each change made in this step, results should be carefully tracked and measured.
The magnifying glass should not only be on aspects of the site, but also in advertising programs and internal processes. This oftentimes is where one can capture incremental revenue as little things are cleaned up as they're uncovered. By this step focusing on learning details about the consumer, this step can often segue to the next through the discovery of "the big idea" that leads to a brand strategy.
Tactics to employ in this step:
- Advanced site analytics
- Marketing dashboards
- Site-wide usability testing
- Feedback tools
- Enhanced or improved site software, such as an improved shopping cart, store locator, etc.
Step 4: Create intangible benefits through branding
Create perceived value, brand personality and other intangible benefits.
People want to feel good about the products they buy and the companies they support. When people sit on the fence between purchasing one product over another, the product that wins that battle is the brand with which a customer best aligns. Winning this battle consistently is when a product's market share can really explode.
The customer may often create "an excuse" to tell people why they selected the product, such as price or convenience; however, underlying that excuse may be the reality that they liked the color orange, the guy in the commercial was funny, or a neighbor will covet this product. By digging into the psychographics of the consumer and understanding the real motivation for purchasing a product, a marketer can play to the buyer's id while providing "an excuse" through one of the other marketing Ps.
Tactics to employ in this step:
- Qualitative research
- Brand-oriented banner ads
- Broadcast
- Print media
- Viral or guerilla tactics
- Blogs, podcasts
Step 5: Retain customers and create fans by crafting the experience
Get to know your customer and their friends by supporting their needs and facilitating their experience with your product or service.
Now that you understand your brand and what truly drives people to purchase your product, you can begin to craft "the experience." That experience should permeate throughout the organization and into every consumer touch-point. It should be consistent and measurable.
There are a number of notable brands that have effectively created a customer experience enhanced by the web. Each of those brands experience a vibrant community of followers and promoters who carry the experience torch for the company and their products. They deal with support issues on behalf of the company, they forward information on to friends and they provide a constant flow of information to the company.
In this step, the marketing strategy has become much more complex and influences all aspects of the company, internal and external. At this point, the company should be not only marketing products, but managing a brand, as well. However, because of today's web, there is a third skill required: reputation management. Consumers now have a heightened ability to manipulate your brand image through such an open and immediate forum.
This is an era where users can easily create their own commercials (good or bad) for your product, blog about experiences with your company or develop websites to associate themselves with your company. The best thing you can do if you reach this step is to cultivate the good and monitor the bad.
Tactics to employ in this step:
- Customer lifecycle management
- Affinity and loyalty programs
- Customer forums
- Brand reputation management monitoring
- Branding guidelines
Conclusion
With these steps that I've outlined, I am not trying to make the case that the web has fundamentally changed marketing nor fundamentally changed business. I am simply proposing that the web be at the core of a marketing strategy (and business strategy), rather than an item to check off the list. "Website… check."
In my mind, the web has forever changed the marketing process, toolset and its direct accountability to the success of the business. The web has also closed the gap on consumers' access to companies, other consumers and information. Marketers who observe and respond to these changes can accelerate a marketing program through the steps I've outlined above.
Again, there is a lot to fill in on the skeleton I've produced above, but then, that is the joy of marketing: putting a skin on those bones.
Reid Carr is president of Red Door Interactive. Read full bio.
