It’s a peculiar concept, the customer journey. Where does it start and where does it end? Does it begin when you buy something and become a customer, and finish when you decide to take your custom elsewhere? And, does how you’re treated and managed in the meantime determine the success of that customer journey?
That kind of works, but today there’s so much marketing noise everywhere it’s very easy to be lured into a community without actually paying any money at the door.
Content in the retail world is a good example. Target people who show an interest in certain products and supply content that will appeal to them – whether it’s videos, promotional material or informative articles.
I’m a classic case study of this. I get sent all kinds of content from companies I’ve never bought anything from. So, before the journey even begins I make assumptions about the service I’m likely to receive. Looks can be deceiving though.
Just before Christmas I paid my admission and became a customer of a company I’ve held in pretty high regard for a while. Strong advertising, great reputation (as far as I was concerned) and engaging content on a not-too-regular basis.
The strange thing was, it was only once my journey (based on the aforementioned definition) began that the wheels started to come off.
The moment I was in, it was like another company took over. Goodbye, enticing content with fresh ideas. Hello, daily intrusive emails with promotions and offers I have no interest in. Everything was going swimmingly until I became a customer. I had become a catfish of the retail world.
As someone who is constantly engaged in discussions about the customer journey, for me this has become more of an interesting project than anything genuinely upsetting. Is this a one-off example? Or a classic case of a business that works so hard to win custom that it loses sight of the customer journey?
I’ve gone from being a person with real interests to a mere number with the potential to make another number go up.
Ironically, just as I was about to become a repeat customer, I was cut off. Once upon a time a senior figure at one of our automotive clients told me that each new customer is worth £1m when you consider a lifetime of spending, referrals, etc. I don’t think I would have spent £1m, but I guess they’ll never find out.
I wonder what this strategy is based on. Maybe I’m not giving them enough credit. Perhaps there are revealing statistics that show new customers like to be squeezed for more money at every opportunity. There must be, otherwise they wouldn’t do it, right?
Never underestimate the fragility of the foundation that many massive businesses have beneath the simplest of content strategies.
What have we learnt? The journey starts a long time before the purchase. And please, make the party inside as fun as it looks from the window. Otherwise, the consumer just feels short-changed.
To find out how GoldSand Digital can help you with your content marketing strategy, get in touch by dropping us an email at info@goldsanddigital.com or calling 020 7287 9233.