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Why You Need to Be on Hand BEFORE your Customer Looks for You
The Sprocket Report
Are you aware of how modern buying habits are clashing with traditional branding practices? Here’s a tree removal story to explain what we mean.
Earlier this year, one of our teammates had an ailing tree that didn’t make it through last winter. Knowing the tree would probably need to be removed, they had already started watching for recommendations in online groups and keeping an eye on which companies worked in the neighborhood. The plan was to assemble all the data and once the research was completed, make an informed decision on which company to hire.
What actually transpired is that there happened to be a truck outside one afternoon and a snap decision was made. Which exactly illustrates today’s yin and yang of marketing decisions: brand awareness and convenience.
Especially during these COVID-influenced months, buyers prioritize convenience when making a purchase. Amazon Prime has been trading on this feature for years already and other companies such as Walmart+ are jumping on the bandwagon. It’s just SO easy to buy when particulars like your credit card and address are already loaded into the system.
Merchant data is also showing that convenience trumps brand loyalty. Consumers don’t have the patience to wait or the motivation to jump through tiresome hoops. They’d rather just choose the first thing offered and move on with their increasingly complicated lives.
But it’s not as simple as convenience vs. branding. The two really do work together. To continue the tree-removal story, the “snap” decision was made because the brand had already been established. The tree company’s name had shown up in online referrals. The company had previously worked in the neighborhood. And earlier in the day, they had distributed leave-behinds on every door.
The marketing worked exactly as it should: From brand awareness to brand familiarity to brand trust. The buy decision was made on impulse and the tree came down that afternoon, but those previous marketing “touches” allowed the impulse to happen.
Whether normalcy returns or not, consumers have become awfully comfortable with convenience, so savvy companies are currently concentrating on improvements to their sales processes. At the same time, marketing continues – on social media, by email, in print and every other method – in order to generate brand awareness and familiarity before the consumer decides to make a purchase.
How are you preparing your prospective customers for that snap decision? The Sprocket team is ready to improve your website interface and SEO as well as help with your social media marketing. Give us a call to discuss how we can help!
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Kate Gingold
I have been writing a blog with web marketing tips and techniques every other week since 2003. In addition to blogging and client content writing, I write books and a blog on local history.
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I have been writing a blog with web marketing tips and techniques every other week since 2003. In addition to blogging and client content writing, I write books and a blog on local history.
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