Customer Relationship Status: “It’s Complicated”

Is your marketing budget on shaky ground these days? Many marketing leaders across North America are seeing budgets fall from 11% to only 6.4% of company revenue. 

If that sounds familiar, it's time to get even smarter with our marketing investments. Time to look beyond the balance sheet (is there a "beyond there?) and dig out solutions with a more strategic approach.

Making a smart, strategic investment will mean a deeper understanding of your buyers and their journey to conversion. So, now might be a good time to revisit what the buyer journey really is… and what it’s not. 

Here’s the Deal: It’s Not Tactical

Surprise! The buyer journey is not just a “tactical” checkpoint in an overall strategy. 

It’s not as simple as that. 

At each stage of the buyer journey, an individual prospective buyer knows more and more about you—and learns more and more about what they need. Even if all your buyers were the same demographic “type,” they may still come to your business at different stages of need. Maybe some aren’t even aware of your business. Others are already researching how you solve their problem. Hopefully, some are already engaging with you at some level.  

So, by understanding the range of moments along a buyer’s journey, you can select the stage in that journey where marketing investment makes the most sense. For most small businesses, we can't feed the beast with marketing dollars at each and every possible moment.

Where To Invest in the Buyer’s Journey

The different stages of the buyer’s journey dictate—at a foundational level—where to put your marketing spend. Ask yourself: which stage of the buyer’s journey is the most cost-effective way to move the needle? Invest marketing resources there. So, let's consider the options...

You Want Awareness? It’s Hard 

Everyone wants it. Everyone needs it. But, not every company can afford it. Awareness is everyone’s preferred strategy, but it takes time, money, patience, and grit. Be realistic about awareness timetables and whether it maps to your revenue objectives.

Your buyer’s first step happens before they know about you. In the awareness stage, the buyer realizes she has a problem. She starts looking for information and resources to help her understand the problem she's trying to solve. Where are you showing up to solve that?

The hard answer is: everywhere. In the page titles on your website, in your social media, and even in obviously meaningless awards or pay-to-play sponsorships. The decision process can be driven by your growth goals and budget, where you can focus on the most important drivers before investing in ‘all the things.”

Consideration is About Reputation

During the consideration phase, your buyer already understands their problem. Now they’re researching possible solutions to that problem.

For B2B, you’ll likely want to manage your reputation through your business community. Think: networking, LinkedIn, and free assets that make you look smart. This is the part of the journey where buyers get to know you. 

Where else can you offer something for your already-aware audience to think about? Content, my friends. See my previous newsletter article describing the merits of repurposing content for different audiences.

Engagement Means Knowing Each Other

Why are you even spending resources on engaging new leads? To get the right people to your sales team. Engagement tactics can be used to build a nurture database for deeper engagement down the funnel. Or, they can deliver highly-qualified leads to your sales team. 

Decide which, so you build the right program for the outcome you need with the budget you have.

The engagement stage is where sales and marketing dance together. At what point is an engaged prospect ready for a sales contact? What else do they need to get there?

Once your buyer is aware of her problem and possible solutions, she may start to engage with your business. Maybe she'll click on a post, fill out a form, agree to a demo, or take a survey. Then, based on what you know about your audience, you’ll have to intuit intent; when the urge to act is primed for a more personal touch.

Get More Granular

Of course, you can dig into a certain part of the buyer’s journey. Let’s say you need to do a better job nurturing because you can’t afford to invest heavily on generating new leads. So, you’ll probably want to prioritize initiatives that engage and nurture existing leads.

When a buyer is aware of your business offering as a possible solution, and she's actively engaging with you, it’s now your responsibility to follow through and grow the relationship. Build trust. Answer questions. This can happen as part of the marketing channel, or the sales process, depending on your true understanding of how decisions are made in your sector.

Put Your Money Where It Matters

Marketing is a tool for creating revenue, right? Yes… as long as you can focus on a specific audience and place in the buyer journey. 

The hard truth is, there are risks to investing in a particular moment. Consider manpower and budget bandwidth. Do you have the resources to invest in generating new leads at the awareness stage? Can you afford paid channels?

That’s why it’s important to start building a smart, unique marketing strategy. You don’t want to waste time and money on unproven strategies or a risky roadmap based on random acts of marketing. 

Next up:  Using MarTech Tools to Optimize Marketing ROI

Watch the Webinar: How to Avoid Random Acts of Marketing

About Ilene Rosenthal

As a fractional CMO, I help ambitious leadership teams say bye-bye to the waste and risk inherent in most marketing plans.

My clients are ambitious B2B CEOs who have marketing and sales teams in place but are still frustrated with the return on their marketing investment.

I also run the Marketing Strategy Lab for small businesses.  

After 16 years in leadership roles on enterprise brands at Y&R, I’m the CEO of White Space Marketing Group, a marketing strategy consultancy established in 2012.

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White Space Marketing Group