Micro-Moments in Marketing
“I want it now.” This may sound like something a child would say, but it’s also what customers are saying today. They want instant gratification and make decisions faster than ever.
More and more smartphones are allowing this behaviour to change. Whether smartphone users are researching products or looking for directions, they are not only increasing their expectations about speed in general but are often eager to accomplish their tasks.
These moments “I want to know”, “I want to work”, “I want to go” and “I want to buy” are what Google calls “micro-moments”. Google launched these micro-moments in 2015, and Jay Baer mentioned that “mapping customer micro-moments” is one of the seven most exciting content marketing trends of 2017.
A key component of micro-moments is adjusting your marketing strategy. It is important to provide information at the very beginning of the user journey, answer any possible questions, gain their loyalty and build the foundation for future sales.
When people spontaneously turn to their devices (now increasingly smartphones) in response to the needs of learning, doing, discovering, watching, or buying things, micro-movements occur. When they make decisions and choose preferences, they are always full of intentions. At the moment, consumer expectations are higher than ever. The powerful computers we carry with us teach us to expect brands to deliver immediately what we ask for when requested. We want the right things and we want them now.
As our reliance on smartphones increases, consumer travel is divided into hundreds of real-time micro-movements to accommodate intent.
When we act as needed at this point, our expectations are high and our patience is low. This is why the quality, relevance, and usefulness of marketing are more important than ever before. In these micro-moments, as our preferences and purchases gradually take shape, those brands that consistently work best in meeting customer needs (especially on mobile devices) will enjoy a huge competitive advantage.
There are still plenty of undiscovered opportunities to take advantage of marketing for micro-moments — make sure your brand shows up whenever a customer requests it.
“Winning the moments that matter is about getting a crack at the consumer’s business. If you’re not present and effective in these moments, you risk losing customers.” ~ Sasha Strauss
To thrive in the digital world, retailers need to study their customers every minute, every day. We need to be prepared to respond to micro-moments when customers need something important to them. “The challenge is to identify opportunities to win the customer and create long-lasting relationships,” says SageBerry’s Dennis. “If you give them real satisfaction you will give yourself an advantage and differentiation in an increasingly competitive and noisy market. “
In these micro-moments, being present and being useful to consumers is worth more now than ever. These moments are more common when hearts, minds, and money are won or lost. Use them to smartly improve your business and win the hearts of many consumers!
Conclusion
Be there
- Identify your Moments
- Understand your Share of Intent
Be Useful
- Tap into Your Audience’s Passions
- Create Snackable, Educational Content
- Use Location Signals
- Provide How-To Video Content
- Empower Purchases on All Channels and Devices
Be Quick
- Eliminate Steps
- Anticipate Needs
- Load like Lightening
Connect the Dots
- Measure Across Screens
- Measure Across Channels
- Nix Team Silos
