Have you made a significant retail purchase lately? As a rule, I avoid the shops, as I am a busy business owner and my time is precious. As a video producer, I’d like to share a recent purchase experience where I found myself smack bang in the buyer journey experience. I enjoyed this purchase process for two very different reasons.
The first reason was because I needed to update some of my tools of trade, and the second reason was because I experienced the third step in the buyer journey, which I often share with clients when we talk video strategy.
Like most people, my shopping habits have changed in recent years with the internet being the first place I began my research. Knowing my industry and the companies that supply the gear I was after, I first looked at these brand’s websites online. One item was a tripod, which can vary so much in price from the cheap or rather more domestic style, to the whiz bang commercial brands. I have a choice brand we use so I started researching the companies that supply this brand. Value for money was also a consideration, so I looked at the new versus pre-loved online options available online for sale.
After many, many hours of online research I made the choice of the model and the place I was going to buy it from. What’s critical here, in the context of why I am sharing this experience with you, is how I made that final decision. What is it that influenced my choices and got me over the line and how does this relate to the buyer journey and your business?
Why Understanding the Buyer Journey is Important
There are three steps in the Buyer Journey including:
1. Why – The Importance of Emotional Connection
2. How – Getting the Right People to Notice?!
3. What – The Final Rational Decision to Buy / Act (AKA conversion!)
I like to visualise the three steps in the buyer journey as a timeline. While there are not specific dates, there is a natural order that shows us when a client travels that road, creating a visual that helps my clients understand the need to plan appropriate and relevant content for each step.
Back to my story . . .
The buyer journey has three key steps, and I was now in the final one. To get to the point of making a rational decision to purchase (also known affectionately by many business owners as the holy grail of ‘conversion’) there were a number of key factors at play.
As an active member of the Australian Institute of Professional Photography (AIPP), I am aware of who sponsors our association, and so, where I can, they will be my first choice, once I have done my research. Fortunately this sponsor also offers AIPP members a discount, which made the overall price better than other stores. Let’s bank that one as the first ‘win win’ and ‘tick’ encouraging me to purchase. I knew about this discount because I had discussed it with their General Manager in the past (so note, there was an established relationship there too) and so this discount meant that going to any other store was less enticing.
1. The Why
Reflecting on the buyer journey, let’s explore what that looks like for me. There was a need, but it does go a little deeper than that. This tripod is part of my tools of trade. The brand choice therefore was already implanted in my mind and I am emotionally connected to it. Whilst I looked at other brands that may have been ‘cheaper’, I do believe you get what you pay for and so opted for this particular brand because I trusted its durability and workmanship.
This emotional connection is such an important, and often overlooked, step in the development of meaningful content for organisations and represents a significant loss in impact if ignored. Please read Connecting With Your Staff & Membership to read more about the importance of this first step.
2. The How
Where I bought the tripod from was influenced by a few factors. Quite often the type of gear we need for Preface Films can be found in more specialist stores. Not all retail camera stores are well versed with camera gear and often whilst they many know about photography, video is another ball game. Being part of a membership organisation, I know who our sponsors are. I’ve met them at trade shows and they promote well at the major events that are hosted. They also promote well with both still and video imagery on Facebook and provide valuable content that they create and share.
I mention Facebook because it is one of a number of critical touch points and relates to the content choices of these businesses and brands to influence me in my buyer journey. As an example, another company we buy from is far less active on social media. They aren’t sponsors and so my exposure to them is much less frequent and only occurs when I require specific products and walk into their store. Interestingly, when I did look at their Facebook presence, I noticed they seem to only share other people’s content. I’m not saying that’s a bad thing but it’s interesting to observe. It’s a “Hmmmm” moment because I am not able to experience any original content or evidence that will help me feel more emotionally connected to this brand or business.
What These Observations Mean For Your Organisation
Reflecting once more on the buyer journey and the types of videos that attract conversion, it’s important to realise that B2B conversion type videos need to directly relate to the action you consider a ‘conversion’. That conversion can vary and may include a sale, signing up to a program, attending an event or may be adopting a new process.
In this final rational step in the buyer journey the video needs to directly communicate the details of the concept or idea you are wanting to ‘sell’, and address any questions or concerns your audience has as potential barriers to the ‘sale’.
Let’s take a look at two examples of this.
Case Study – Brave.net.au
Mike Mills is a Web Developer and collaborates with Preface Films because he values the powerful role video plays in communicating meaningfully to his clients. For his video strategy, we’ve create a brand story, FAQs and testimonials. It has become a well-rounded plan that has given him various content to allow his buyer to travel along the buyer journey to the final step of conversion.
This video is a testimonial. Most people are familiar with this style of production because of the value of a client speaking openly and authentically about your business. Our goal in each testimonial is to encourage the client to share why their client’s love them as well as to focus on a service or product that is specific to their need and solves the ideal client or stakeholder’s problem. In doing this, other potential buyers, who are experiencing the same pain, can clearly identify with the problem and understand the solution. This helps them make a rational purchase decision or take the final action required for the desired conversion.
Case Study – The Digital Show
Events are an extraordinary beast that promote your current event and look to the next. When the CEO of The Melbourne Fashion Festival was interviewed on radio recently, with just two weeks to go before this major international event, he confessed that he and his team were already 6 months into planning the 2018 event.
When you run an event it is your stakeholders (e.g. trades and sponsors) who look to get as much publicity and public attendance as possible. Their measure is attendance and sales which gives them a gauge as to the success of the event and whether they want to be involved in the next one.
The Digital Show is a NFP organisation who facilitates educational presentations with a trade show. In this case study the buyers are consumers or business owners looking to upgrade their equipment and explore what’s new. We approached this promotion by focusing on key sponsors who spoke about their products as well as the educational content to help the audience understand they could come and buy gear as well as have the opportunity to learn from well-known industry professionals in the art of photography.
How Can We Help You?
We understand that a strategic video plan is important to the success of your business. Every business wants that conversion and our job is to understand and find your video solution.
Thanks for reading my blog. My name is Rochelle and I create stunning Melbourne corporate cinematography with my team at Preface Films. I’m the one in the middle.
Preface Films is a new kind of creative resource. We are a team of multifaceted, curious, skilled specialists who are highly practiced in the art of “getting our hands dirty”. We believe in a small, multi-disciplined team approach that allows for clarity of vision and efficiency not seen in larger, hierarchical models.
Collectively, our core team has over 4.5 decades of experience working for a diverse range of industries – everything from Food & Drink, Sports & Fashion to Arts & Architecture.
Knowing that experts in an area an asset to our team, we contract the best people to surrounds us to create that ‘perfect’ film!
Our team has consistently created strategically sound, award winning work and is widely recognised for the work we do.