Here are the 3 Stages of the Buyer’s Journey, and what you need to keep in mind during each stage.
1. Awareness Stage
During the Awareness Stage, a potential buyer is aware that they have a challenge or problem, and are trying to determine exactly what that may be. They are perhaps researching online, and come across a blog post or social media share from your company, and start to realize they may have a need for your product or service. Maybe they’re searching around about why their swimming pool keeps growing slime during high summer usage, or why they may not be sleeping well at night.
Thus, content should be created during this Awareness Stage that helps to address some common questions and challenges that people may come across and want to solve.
For example, maybe you need to write a checklist on best things to do to prepare for a good sleep at night.
2. Consideration Stage
Once a person hits the Consideration Stage of the Buyer’s Journey, they are at the point where they are considering the different options that exist to help solve their clearly defined problem or overcome their challenge. They may be looking at ways that they can come to a resolution on their own with more information and instructional steps to do so, or to hire someone that can help them achieve this instead.
Essentially, at this stage, a person needs more information to figure out the best solution for them. This may include viewing YouTube How-To videos or listening to various podcasts, attending Webinars that help resolve issues, and comparing various options that are available.
For example, they could find a video that shows step-by-step how to keep a swimming pool clean. Or they may seek out a podcast that teaches them 10 Ways to make sure that you are able to get a better sleep.
3. Decision Stage
At the Decision Stage, a person has decided how to solve their issue, and now just needs to finalize the specific vendor or product that they will go with. As a result, they would be comparing various companies and products, looking at case studies and testimonials, and trying out actual demos to come up with enough information to make an informed purchase decision that will satisfy their needs.
After this point, the buyer would actually make the final purchase!
Summary
To summarize, the 3 Stages of the Buyer’s Journey include:
- Awareness Stage
- Consideration Stage
- Decision Stage
Keep in mind that 57% of a prospect’s buying decision is complete before that prospect’s first contact with a supplier. As a result, in order to engage potential buyers and hopefully have them decide to purchase from you, you’ll need to produce valuable and relevant content for each and every stage of the Buyer’s Journey.
The goal will be to provide enough information that will help during their research and decision making process.
Now that you understand more about this journey and what you need to keep in mind, make sure to check out our recent blog posts covering useful inbound marketing tips to address each of these stages.
