3 Ways The Buyer’s Purchase Path Is Changing Headed Into 2018

November 16, 2017

by Virtucom Group Team

“Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.”

President John F. Kennedy spoke these words more than 50 years ago, but embracing change is just as important today. Marketers who maintain the status quo and employ the same old strategies time and time again are doomed to failure. But in order to adapt to changing conditions, you first have to identify what the points of change are.

Path to purchase research confirms it: the buyer’s journey has changed and will continue to change in 2018. Stay one step ahead of your competitors by reading on to learn 3 ways the buyer’s path to purchase is evolving, and what your marketing team can do about it.

1. Technology is expanding the way we access information and changing the flow of the buyer’s journey.

Picture this: you’re a marketing executive in the 90s. Your marketing budget and strategy are clearly defined. Maybe a TV commercial, a print ad in a popular magazine and an outdoor billboard. Before the technology boom, there were only a handful of advertising channels to pursue.

Now, as a marketer in 2017, the sheer volume of advertising platforms to choose from are dizzying in their scope. From social media sites, live video streams and webinars to podcasts, ebooks and infographics – the list is seemingly endless.

According to Forbes, 33% of millennials rely heavily on blogs as a research tool before they make a purchase, compared to less than 3% who use traditional media sources, like TV and magazines. Additionally, Deloite Insights reported in 2015 that 81% of consumers surveyed stated that personal recommendations played a major part in the purchasing decision, with 61% of those recommendations coming from within social media circles.

As a modern-day marketer, how should you approach this trend toward digital information gathering?

  • With so many digital voices – literally billions – it can quickly begin to feel like a yelling match. Don’t let your competitors’ voices drown you out. So how can you cut through the noise and make sure your unique voice is heard? Locate your niche audience. Don’t try to target everyone – instead narrow your parameters to include only those who would genuinely be interested in and benefit from your content. Once you’ve identified who your niche audience is, make sure to sell yourself, not your products.
  • It’s no longer realistic to target every channel. Your department would go broke – quickly. You need to pinpoint the platforms that make sense for your business. Where do your customers go to acquire information? To answer this question, start building or fine-tuning your buyer personas. Well-crafted buyer personas supported by data are the key to identifying which publishing platforms are worth your time and investment, and which are just screaming into the void.

When traditional media reigned supreme, the buyer’s journey resembled a straight path. With the inundation of technology came the winding, circuitous buyer’s journey – no longer a linear, straightforward process.

Consumers are presented with information at every turn, and because of this heightened information accessibility, they can jump back to previous stages in the purchase path multiple times and even consider several buyers’ journey stages at once. The path to purchase is getting longer, and a conversion may happen several months (or more) after the initial attraction. Visitors to your site are no longer rushing to checkout – they’re conducting extensive amounts of research, weighing the pros and cons and seeking the input of their peers and industry influencers before they decide to buy.

Because of these changes, today’s marketers should focus on the educational aspects of their content more than ever and place emphasis on the awareness and consideration stages, since this is where prospective buyers devote most of their time.

2. Millennials are now the ones making the business decisions.

If you had to conjure up an image of a “company decision maker”, what would he or she look like? Did the executive in the corner suite come to mind? If so, you’d be mistaken.

You may be surprised that nearly half of all B2B researchers are millennials (people aged 18 to 34). This figure is only going to rise in the coming years. Whereas important business decisions used to sit solely on the shoulders of top personnel, now, mid-level employees have seats at the table and voices in the purchasing decisions.

So how should you adjust your inbound marketing strategy to tailor your messaging to this younger population of decision makers?

  • Ditch the corporate speak and embrace the human side of your business.

When a millennial is deciding whether or not to spend money for their business, it’s not just about cold, hard figures or the bottom line. Millennials make purchasing decisions based on values. According to Guided Selling, more than half of all millennials think brands that they associate with reflect who they are and speak to their own value system. In order to capture a millennial’s attention – and thus, earn their business – your brand needs to relate to them with authentic, people-first content.

  • Stay active on your social media platforms.

62% of millennials say that if a brand engages with them on social networks, they’re more likely to become a loyal customer, per Agency Ascend. It’s not just enough to have social media accounts. It’s not even enough to publish content regularly on these social media accounts. Make sure you’re encouraging a dialogue – respond to each comment or question on Facebook and personally thank each new Twitter follower.

  • Highlight your company culture.

According to the same Agency Ascend research, 75% of millennials say that it’s fairly or very important that a company gives back to society in some way. If you present yourselves as only interested in turning a profit, you’re going to turn off many of your target buyers. Does your team volunteer at a soup kitchen during the holidays? Does your company host public events to raise funds for a reputable charity? Be sure to feature your involvement through blog posts or landing pages devoted to your company culture.

3. Your sales team is less important now, while your marketing team is more important.

The sales associate with the telephone used to be crown prince. Outbound strategies and cold-calling were heavily relied on. But consider this: how likely are you to answer your cell phone if the call is from an unknown number?

Not very likely?

HubSpot compiled a SlideShare on social selling stats and they included data from Keller Research Center, which showed that cold-calling only has a 2.5% success rate.

So if reaching out directly to the customer is no longer working, are customers still reaching out to sales representatives?

Nope – or at least not until very late in the game. Per Godfrey, B2B buyers actually complete 50-80% of their buyer’s journey before reaching out to a member of the sales team. Many sources even estimate this figure as close to 90%. Furthermore, 77% of B2B buyers said they wouldn’t even speak to a salesperson until they had conducted their own research.

Contacting a sales associate is coming much later in the purchase process, and only after a buyer has thoroughly researched the subject independently. On average, B2B researchers conduct 12 searches before settling on a specific brand’s website. By the time they make it to the decision stage, they have already answered many of their original questions through careful, conscientious research.

So what can your company do in the face of declining outbound marketing? Focus on inbound marketing.

If you invest in the awareness and consideration stages of the buyer’s journey, and publish content that speaks to consumers in these stages, you’ll be able to answer their questions and concerns preemptively and present your value to them early on.

It’s hard to keep up with all of the changes and forecasted trends within the content marketing scene. Luckily, you don’t have to go at it alone. Consider outsourcing your content production needs to our firm by choosing one of our affordable monthly digital content packages. We’ll keep a watchful eye on any industry changes for you, and make sure your blog posts and other content reflect the current atmosphere.

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