Anatomy of a Customer

​Lets face it, our phone counts as our computer, alarm clock, dictionary, research tool, shopping cart, communication tool, social outlet, and even our dating life. In just 1 minute, 3 million searches are made on Google and 1 million people logged into Facebook. (hootsuite 2019)

If you’re in marketing you know that the way we market products has also changed in the last 10 years. Customers now get the majority of their views about brands online. People spend between 12-20 hours of research online on a major product before buying. The online research they do can be anything from customer reviews, videos, blogs, etc.
 
So what will be the best way to reach people in 2020? What are customers really looking for before they buy a product?
 
Here are 3 main things that customers in the digital age want:
1.Transparency
2. Ease
3. Value

Let me explain.

Transparency:

this means that with so many companies out there killing it on social media, you need to step up your game in regards to what you post and what your ads look like. People want to feel connected to your business before they make a purchase. They want to see your real business, your real employees, and customers really using your products. They want honest reviews of the product, and they aren’t looking for perfection in your format or product. But does it solve the problem they have effectively? Are you relatable enough in your social style or is it stuffy and staged photography and perfect video? People want realness. Transparency can also be user generated content from real customers. Here are some examples of companies that are winning at transparency:

(GoPro Instagram)

Airbnb Instagram

Ease:

​whether you agree with how fast paced we’ve all gotten is beside the point. Customers need to be able to find you fast, or they will move on to your competition. You need to be on the first page of Google, and when they are directed to your website it needs to be user friendly, with clear ways to get in contact with you or buy your product if you are an ecommerce site. Think Amazon. They also want to be able to ask you questions on your social media and get a response quickly. Like within 15 minutes quickly. Every. Time. If you have comments on your social media, reply to them. Quickly. Even the negative ones. If people DM you, reply quickly. If you don’t know the answer to their question right then, simply reply and tell them you need more time to find the answer. This is better than saying nothing. People want to feel heard. If you are a small business and don’t have time to respond to everyone, then get someone in or outside your company to handle this. You wont regret it. 

(Nike Twitter)                                                                          (Starbucks Facebook)

Value:

While about 20-40% of your content can be about your actual product or service you are selling, a good 60-80% of the content you share and create should be useful to your customer even if they don’t buy something that day. Say you sell cookware. Instead of posting “buy now! Best cook ware!” make it a point to share useful recipes and cute ways to stack your cookware, cleaning hacks to clean your cookware, etc. People want value and they want to know that you are an expert in the field. Blogs, step by step videos, how to’s and tutorials are also good ways to provide value. Memes that are appropriate and related to your field are also good ways to provide value to customers, because you are providing comedic value. This is a step that a lot of businesses miss. They are much different online then if you walked into their business. Marketing doesn’t have to be stuffy and sales pitchy.
If you get your following down, people will be more willing to stay around for the helpful info and wont mind when you also tell them about a product you sell when you make it 80% helpful, 20% selling. Here are some businesses that are great at providing value. Check out these businesses that get it: 

(Airbnb Instagram)

(Taco Bell Twitter)

Author

Janeka Ausmus is the Marketing Director for SMS Marketing Group. She has been with the company for 7 years and has a background in Agriculture, Counseling, Writing & Tech.