Digital engagement is continually evolving and changing. (Well that's an understatement, isn't it?)
And so, if you’re not staying up-to-speed on consumer research, behaviors, and trends, you could be falling further and further behind. But have no worry! Consider these three components in your Digital Engagement strategy, and you'll be able to keep yourself in the fast lane:
Micro-Moments
The impetus for change in consumer behavior, Mobile has changed the game. Case-in-point? Micro-Moments. Micro-Moments are the moments when someone--a consumer, for instance--uses a mobile device to get what is desired or needed at that very moment. The catch? Micro-moments are contextual. They are virtually immediate. And, they spur decisions. If you aren’t considering micro-moments in your digital engagement strategy, let alone your digital marketing plans, then you are likely falling behind.
Channel Persistence
Channel persistence is what omni-channel was supposed to address. It’s an ability for a consumer to engage across channels without losing context of the scenes and situations that shape behaviors.
For example, let’s say you and I both are buying airline tickets. You plan to travel in a couple months, so you start shopping on your laptop but you get interrupted and stop. You pick it up days later on your phone to finish the transaction. Me? I am in the airport, and my flight was cancelled! I am in the app, trying to get information and book one of many flights—I don’t care which one; I just want to get home— while waiting in line at a service desk. And when I get to the front? The service agent has all the information I have begun to enter in the app. Both of us are buying tickets. But our situations are dramatically different, resulting in different behaviors, expectations, and potential frustrations.
On the technology side, and like Inception—the Leonardo DiCaprio movie from a few years back—channel persistence allows you to embed a channel in a channel. Consider a customer using a mobile app to buy your product. They are accessing the app through a mobile device, but is this the preferred channel? Tough to tell when they are using the mobile app for self-service, but then branch out to do other things from within the app—for example, clicking on reviews or doing research on a mobile web page that “extends” the app, or starting a chat or full blown messaging conversation from within the app when they have a product question.
The Customer Journey
If you’ve been focused on CX, marketing, or sales for any length of time, you already know the customer journey. Customer journeys are not new. But, they have changed so much, that it’s time to take their pulse again.
Many still think the customer journey is linear. It’s not. They may consider it to have a long tail. That’s not always the case. In fact, the customer journey for certain things can take place over short moments...micro moments! The constant evolution and improvements to technology in combination with changing consumer behaviors mean that what you knew of your customer journeys 18 months ago is likely ancient history. Make the effort to map out these journeys, understanding that there no longer is likely to be an aggregate you can use for all customers.
Business today happens at a breakneck pace. What we speak of today could be considered common in months, if not weeks! To keep up, stay up-to-date on how digital engagement is changing. Then, make sure to apply that knowledge to how your organization engages with your prospects and customers.
