The ‘messy middle’ and how to get customers out of it

There are many things in life where you’re expected to make a mess.

Like eating a plate of chicken wings without a bib or taking the dog for a walk in the forest after a week of torrential downpours.

However, your sales and marketing funnel doesn’t always have to make a mess for your business.

Never heard of the messy middle? In this article I’ll explain what it is and how to clean up the customer decision-making process.

What is the messy middle?

The messy middle is the part of the sales funnel where customers are aware of your brand but haven’t made a decision to buy.

The term was coined by Google (who else?) in 2020, but the process has been around for years.

In our fantasies, the sales process is a linear one. Customers understand that they need to buy a product, do some research, realise your business sells what they need, and then go on to buy it. Job done.

However in reality, things are a lot more complicated, and customers often cycle back and forth between exploration and evaluation. That’s what makes this part of the process so messy.

Let’s say your customer wants to buy a coat. They do their research, look at comparison websites, and narrow their choices down to a few coats that seem promising.

They look at the reviews of the coats they like but are disappointed with the poor reviews. So they go back to the drawing board and start researching again. They choose a few more coats they want to look at in more detail.

Then, a friend wades into the conversation and tells them that they have a coat from brand X that they love. So the customer goes back and researches coats from that particular brand.

Not long after, they see a television ad from a fashion retailer, spot a coat they like, and add that retailer into the mix.

Lather, rinse, and repeat until the customer finally buys a coat that ticks all the right boxes.

As a general rule of thumb, the more expensive your product is, the messier the middle, as customers want to be 100% confident the product is right for them before they buy.

Why it’s so important to get a handle on the messy middle

The problem with the messy middle is that you can lose potential sales.

A customer could be nearly ready to buy from you, only to change their mind at the last minute.

However, the messy middle can be advantageous for your business too. By making people aware that your product or service is a viable alternative, you can steer them away from buying from a competitor.

How to guide customers out of the messy middle

The purchasing landscape is more competitive than it’s ever been. With every product or service you sell, you’re competing against multiple competitors and a wide range of variables.

That means that if you want to appeal to prospective customers, you need to think like them.

Here are my top tips for getting customers out of the messy middle and onto your website.

1. Be omnipresent

The Baader-Meinhof phenomenon, or frequency illusion, is when you think something occurs more frequently because you’ve been made aware of it. Like when a friend mentions a song by a band, and you start to hear it all the time.

You can use this to your advantage by using as many marketing channels as possible – this encourages customers to remember your brand and buy your products and services.

You don’t have to stick to digital channels either. Direct mail and out-of-home advertising can be cost-effective ways to get customers to pay attention to you, especially if your competitors aren’t using them.

Of course, I’m not advising that you establish a presence on every channel – if your customers don’t use Bluesky or Threads, you don’t want to waste time and energy posting there.

Research the channels your target audience uses and pick the ones that will drive the best return on investment.

2. Use social proof

Recommendations from friends, family, even trusted strangers, can spur us on to make a purchase.

A staggering 93% of shoppers read at least one online review before buying, with the majority reading considerably more.

Reviews, ratings, and customer feedback are integral to helping customers make a speedy decision. The more detailed, the better!

Encourage existing customers to leave reviews and place them anywhere prospective customers might find them helpful – not just on product pages, but comparison articles and blog posts too.

You can even use structured data to showcase your reviews in the search engine results, grabbing shoppers’ attention early in the sales funnel.

3. Call on the fear of missing out

It’s in your best interests to pull prospective customers out of the messy middle as soon as you can. Using the fear of missing out (FOMO) to create a sense of urgency can yield surprising results.

60% of shoppers admit that FOMO has influenced their buying patterns, with most purchases taking place within 24 hours.

Limited time offers, countdown timers, exit pop-ups, and implying scarcity can tell customers that the longer they research your product or service, the less likely it is to stick around.

Of course, while FOMO can work wonders when done right, it depends on your target audience. Some customers might find it tacky or not appreciate you press-ganging them into a sale.

4. Be authoritative and trustworthy

Trust is everything in a transaction – especially when the sales process is complicated, or the product or service is expensive.

Nearly a third of customers say trust is a prerequisite for buying from a business, with 62% advising that they’ll pay more for a product from a trustworthy brand.

Another bonus of proving your trustworthiness? It can give you a boost in the search engine results, improving your visibility!

You can show that you’re trustworthy by showing off your expertise, citing your sources, and getting high-quality backlinks from authoritative sites.

5. Sweeten the deal

When the products and services on offer come across as extremely samey, an incentive can tempt customers into making a fast decision.

Consider offering free delivery, a discount code, or a gift.

It’s important to check out your competitors to see what they offer – you don’t want to promise free delivery on all purchases if everyone in your industry is doing the same!

6. Speed up the process

We’ve already talked about how FOMO can help push your prospective customers into a sale. If FOMO isn’t your thing, there are still tactics you can employ to nudge your customers into buying your products or services.

Google talks about ‘category heuristics’ – content that helps customers make snap decisions. For example, creating visual comparison charts, summarising key features, and using schema markup and Google Ads assets to provide more data in the search engine results.

Removing stumbling blocks on your website also helps. You don’t want a prospective customer to land on your site only to be hit with a 404 page or an overly convoluted checkout process.

Clean up your marketing with Xigen

It doesn’t matter how slick your marketing is; you’ll inevitably get some customers who waver in the middle of the sales funnel.

However, providing consistent, unique, and trustworthy marketing can reduce the risk of shoppers not buying your product or service.

Need some help creating middle-of-the-funnel content that gives prospective customers that all-important nudge towards your business? Drop me a DM and let’s talk digital marketing strategies.