In the world of e-commerce content marketing, the buyer’s journey is an important piece. What is the buyer’s journey, though? Well, it’s how a customer comes to buy your product. This can be a very complicated process to understand since all buyers are different, and today’s buyers tend to do quite a bit of research before purchasing. Did they see ads? Look at reviews? Look at your competitors? Read your blog? There are many twists and turns on this journey. Understanding it, though, can help you better target your marketing efforts on things that are working to educate potential customers while getting you sales.
Understand the Buyer’s Journey
When it comes to determining your content marketing plans and goals, which content to generate, and how to implement it, you’ll want to match the buyer’s journey with your content marketing funnel. This will be very helpful in guiding you through your strategy.
The Top of the Content Funnel
At the top of the content funnel, you’ll find content centered around awareness. This is a great opportunity to start catching a wide variety of viewers and visitors with your content. This includes content such as:
- Blog posts
- Quizzes
- Infographics
- Social posts
- Downloadable assets
- Intro and New Product Videos
Content at the top of the funnel should be focused on building brand awareness at this stage of the buyer’s journey. The content should be educational and often serves as a great way to establish your brand and create a touchpoint for potential customers. Content at the top of the funnel is typically used to create interest and curiosity in what you do.
The Middle of the Content Funnel
In the middle of the content funnel, you’ll find information that is focused on evaluation. At this point in the funnel, a page visitor or customer is starting to consider looking at your brand and products as a solution to the challenge they’re facing. This is a great place to start presenting content that will help them to have a deeper understanding of your products and what you have to offer. Content in the middle of the funnel often includes:
- Blog posts
- Education resources (fit and sizing guides, product style guides, etc.)
- Quizzes
- Special offers
- Collecting Email
- Videos (product reels and highlights)
- Product Descriptions
Use these resources to tactically teach and inform customers about what your products and services are capable of. Present yourself as a valuable resource that they can’t pass up. Whether you’re presenting the opportunity for a new customer discount or you’re offering free downloads that pertain to your brand and products, this vital aspect of the funnel is one that is deserving of your time and energy.
The Bottom of the Content Funnel
At the bottom of the content funnel, you’ll find content that is centered around conversion. Your goal with the bottom-of-funnel content is to get that transaction and turn the visitor into a customer. You’ll notice that this is the most narrow part of the funnel- this is because you’ve filtered out all of the other visitors that aren’t ready to take the plunge and you’re left with those that are right on the cusp of making the purchase. Content at the bottom of the funnel typically consists of:
- Social proof (customer testimonials, reviews, etc.)
- Comparison/spec sheets
- Product videos
- Landing page copy
- Email workflows
You might throw in some customer reviews that share a positive experience with your brand and product, or you may consider putting together a comparison sheet to show how your product measures up to competitors in your field. However, if you decide to manage your strategy for this part of the funnel, know that giving your customer that extra little push could be just the thing to get them to make a purchase and that this is the perfect spot in your content funnel to incorporate this information.
Understanding the top, middle, and bottom parts of the funnel is key to spending your time and money more effectively on your customer journey. This will hopefully help you attract more customers, more efficiently as you fine-tune. If you’d like a hand, though, set up a consultation with our experienced team of experts. We’d love to see if we’d be a good fit to help you grow your business with an efficient and effective customer journey.
Looking for more content marketing tips to help you grow your e-commerce business? Check out these posts:
- What is Content Marketing & Why Is It Important For Your Ecommerce Business?
- How To Create A Content Marketing Strategy For Your Ecommerce Business
- Why & How To Perform a Content Audit For Your Ecommerce Business
- How to Document Your Content Marketing Strategy For Your Ecommerce Business
- How To Build a Content Calendar For Your Ecommerce Business
- Where Will You Share & Distribute The Content For Your Ecommerce Business?
- How to Optimize Your Ecommerce Content For The Best SEO Rankings
- How To Perform a Content Analysis & Reporting For Your Ecommerce Business
- How To Scale Your Ecommerce Content Marketing
Greg is the founder and CEO of Stryde and a seasoned digital marketer who has worked with thousands of businesses, large and small, to generate more revenue via online marketing strategy and execution. Greg has written hundreds of blog posts as well as spoken at many events about online marketing strategy. You can follow Greg on Twitter and connect with him on LinkedIn.
