Elevating the Customer’s Journey: The Consideration Phase

The customer’s journey are the stages a customer takes during the buying process. There are five stages in the journey: discovery, consideration, convert, retention, and loyalty & advocacy. This post will focus on the consideration phase of the journey. This phase is the first stage where an offer should be introduced.

To learn about the journey as a whole, check out my post: Stages of the Customer Journey.

About the Consideration Phase of the Customer’s Journey

The primary focus of the consideration phase is to increase the association of your brand with the solution to the customer’s need. They have done research on their problem and are aware of solutions. They know the value your business can have on their life.

You’ve caught their attention, but they may still be weighing the options. This is a key phase to set yourself apart from the competition. If your customer does not have a good experience (low quality and underdeveloped touchpoints) you may lose their interest.

You will learn about the consideration phase, your responsibility during the stage as a brand, and specific action items you can take to elevate your customer’s experience.

About the Customer

During the consideration phase, the customer recognizes their problem and has researched potential solutions. Customer problems are not always negative aspects in their life, but rather can be fulfilling a need or want. Focus on framing your business as the guide to help them achieve their desired result. At the consideration phase, your customer is evaluating the various solutions to their problem. You want your offer stand out among the competition and position your business as the primary choice for your customer.

Action Item: Consider the value your product or service brings to your customer’s lives. Think deeper than the practical problem being solved. Imagine their problem as an evil you are trying to vanquish from the world.

Your Brand’s Goals, Responsibilities, & Opportunities

During the consideration phase, your primary goal is to entice your customer to consider your goods and services as the primary option to solve their problem. You want the customer to take a closer look at your offers and position your business as a serious option. Focus on engaging with the customer, and above all, be prompt, friendly, and helpful in all communication.

Action Item: Understand your brand’s positioning and being able to explain it clearly to your audience is a key factor of your brand. Your brand’s position is the differentiation your business brings to the market. It define what makes your business unique and why customer’s should choose to work with you. To create your brand position statement, use this formula:

Your Brand’s Position = To (target audience), (your brand) is the brand of (your industry/niche) that (unique benefit/promise) because (why should they believe.)

For example, take a look at Coca-Cola’s brand positioning statement,

For individuals looking for high-quality beverages, Coca-Cola offers a wide range of the most refreshing options — each creates a positive experience for customers when they enjoy a Coca-Cola brand drink. Unlike other beverage options, Coca-Cola products inspire happiness and make a positive difference in customers’ lives, and the brand is intensely focused on the needs of consumers and customers.

The Coca-Cola Company

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Key Performance indicators (KPIs) are measurements to evaluate your business’ success. In the consideration phase, you want to continue to track engagement rate, but also begin to track website clicks, click through rate, and the cost per click. You can use KPIs to evaluate your current marketing strategy and make improvements.

Action Item: If you have not already added Google Analytics and Google Search Console to your website to track click rates, now is the time to do it! Tracking this data is extremely important to optimize your marketing and branding efforts. For detailed tutorials, check out these articles: Set-up Google Analytics & Set-up Google Search Console.

Touchpoints

Touchpoints are the key to creating an experiential brand. The touchpoints for the consideration phase increase dramatically compared to the discovery phase. During the consideration phase, touchpoints should be used to share the offers and the key differentiators of your business with your audience.

If you are a service based business, a sales page is key for potential customers to understand the value you provide. You will want to continue focusing on engagement opportunities to develop the relationship with your customers, but begin to include offers for your services or products. The touchpoints for the consideration phase include: sales/discovery calls, email newsletter series, offering samples or demos, and creating service guides.

Action Item: During the consideration phase, you want to position your business as the guide to help the customer solve their problem. Your touchpoints should focus on making the customer the hero of the story and not your brand. When creating your touchpoints, keep your customer at the center of the copy, and not your brand.