Mastering Micro-Moments

Mobile is transforming the marketing process from a linear process to a fragmented journey. Marketers at every digital marketing agency now need to guide the customer through the buying process by targeting them throughout the journey they decide to take. This yields micro-moments, a mindset that the consumer is in at an exact moment of their buying process. Consumers’ pivotal contact with brands is now in the form of fragmented micro-moments. Google has established 4 types of micro-moments:

I want to know

I want to go

I want to do

I want to buy

These moments are nothing more than mindsets and intentions of the consumer and they increase the need for IMC, omni channel marketing, and enhanced micro-moment targeting. Now let’s delve into each micro-moment.

The “I Want to Know Moment”

Consumers are learning and seeking information that provides an answer or solution rather than a sales page that encourages them to buy. It is about giving out free information to learners rather than selling your product/service. Optimize marketing efforts by helping the consumer find solutions to their problem by forming a relationship with them.

• This is where organic media posts fit perfectly into a social media agency’s advertising plan. Utilize blogs, lifestyle posts, question and answer forums, consumer reviews, etc.

Related: Why Awareness is an Important Step in The Buyers Journey 

Once consumers have entered the “I want to go” moment they are concerned with looking for a location. Location-based marketing has been made possible by digital tools which provide customers with directions, maps, and local businesses.

• Words like “near me,” “closest,” and “nearby” have become exceedingly prevalent in the billions of Google searches each year
• Google search interest in the phrase “near me” has increased 34X since 2011 and almost doubled since last year with a high majority of the searches coming from mobile.

Related: How Does Programmatic Advertising Work? 

The “I Want To Do” Micro-Moment Mindset

Consumers are looking for ideas, tips, how-tos. In return, give them content that promotes ACTION. Video how-tos across social media and various websites are popularizing DIY projects, changing the way learning happens, and encouraging new ideas.

• Tasty by Buzzfeed is an insane leader in targeting and providing the “I want to do” customer with content. Check out some of their statistics for reach. Some of their campaigns have exceeded the viewership of this years Superbowl commercials.

The “I Want to Buy” Moment

The “I want to buy” moment is what brands truly hope to see. Customers look for clues on what the best deal is and how to get it. This is the stage where coupons, special offers, and applications that allow for quick purchase are most impactful. The 24/7 shopping experience amplifies a consumer’s ability to purchase sooner than they ever intended. Find the places in your brand’s buying process that can be simplified and shortened to quicken the buyer’s journey- don’t give them any time to turn away from their purchase!

• Marketers at companies like Domino’s are dominating the competition in the “I want to buy” stage of marketing. They realized that in order to speed up the buying process, they needed to minimize clicks. AKA eliminate clicks. Their zero click app allows consumers to order a pizza (and receive a discount) just by opening the app or having Siri do that for you. Read more here.

According to Think with Google, ⅓ of smartphone users purchase from a brand they hadn’t originally intended to buy from solely because the brand provided information at the time the customer needed it. That means structuring a marketing plan around micro-moments actually works.

 It is all the more important to figure out the intent and mindset of consumers in specific moments in order to get top of mind awareness and improve conversion rate. Do so by targeting a segmented audience that will bring intent-driven traffic, creating a relationship with them, and rewarding their purchases.