The traditional marketing funnel view of customer engagement is becoming outdated. The concept of AIDA ( ‘Awareness > Interest > Desire > Action’) was popular in the pre-internet era when companies had more leverage over the consumer. The internet has given customers the power these days, so the funnel should transition to a ‘flywheel’ with the customer at the center - from where the energy radiates.
A brand’s success doesn’t just depend on the number of customers it gains. But its ability to deliver a positive experience across the customer’s buying journey.
Each time the customer provides value, the speed of the company’s marketing flywheel increases, which then helps attract more customers as the wheel gains momentum. Although the flywheel needs the effort to get going, once it reaches a certain point, it starts to drive itself.
They may all be pet owners, but when they approach the internet, they have different needs depending on their pet type or situation. If you’re not providing the information they need, they’ll get it from someone else.
A kitten owner has different needs in raising and feeding their pet than an adult cat. They seek information and support tailored to their pet's current life stage.
As such, the statistics and charts you are used to seeing aren’t as vital:
Here’s another way to look at personalization and the internet, using the analogy of a college library:
The library isn’t organized by age, gender, or which state the student lived in before coming to college. The people visiting the library aren’t just students (‘pet owners’) but depending on their studies, they might look for a history book (‘kitten’), but on another day/different year of study, they might look in the geography section (‘sick cat’). Google search works the same way: you won’t end up in the geography section if you’re looking for a history book.
We believe it’s more relevant, practical, and compliant to focus on the persona(s) by specific categories/segments such as ‘kitten owners’ and ‘adult cat owners’. Personas are commonly used in UX and service design to represent a user group with common characteristics and behavioral expectations. CX (customer experience) may have even evolved from UX (user experience).
Your customer - is a real person
A deeper understanding of personas and accompanying visualization is more practical and can be understood across functions. Your audience becomes a single reader, making personalization and consistency possible.
This is hugely beneficial because although the marketing flywheel is a great model, applying it to the real world requires an aligned and coordinated effort internally and with external partners such as digital and service design agencies. Otherwise, you won’t generate the energy your flywheel needs.
If you’d like to learn more about how we go further, please read our article, “Moving marketing from 4P's to 4E's”.
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