When potential clients visit your website or blog pages, they will not all be at the same buying process stage. From the initial awareness stage to being ready to purchase, content plays a vital role in leading potential buyers to choose your IT or tech business over your competitors’. Does your content offer what your clients and potential clients need when they need it?
Content mapping
The first step in providing the right content for potential customers at each buying process stage is content mapping. Content mapping means understanding the buying cycle: the path from awareness to evaluation and purchase — and even beyond to satisfaction and advocacy. You need to understand the pathways potential buyers take to become purchasers so you can provide content to lead them down their paths.
Awareness
Potential customers must first be aware of why they need your products or services. Most will discover your content through search engines and social media platforms, so make sure you use strong search engine optimization (SEO) keywords on your site and ensure you’re active on social media networks. Once a potential customer visits your site, provide basic information to help her or him understand how your highly qualified IT company team members can offer better organizational operations, more efficient working environments, and better decision-making processes. Typically, the best content for this stage includes blog posts, white papers, eBooks, educational videos, and tip sheets. At this point, you don’t want your content to be overly promotional or technical.
Evaluation
At this buying cycle stage, you need to provide content that tells your leads how you can provide the products and services they need and provide them better than the competition. Good, solid landing pages and an About Us page on your website are important to let your potential customers know who you are and what you can provide. Case studies, white papers, IT association research papers, product data sheets, demo videos, comparison charts, and testimonials from satisfied customers that help you stand above the competition are helpful.
Purchase
This is where you guide your prospects to purchase your products or services. From your evaluation content, offer incentives such as free trials, limited-time discounts, live demos, consultations, and pricing estimates. If you haven’t yet captured contact information from your leads, do so now. This will allow you to send follow-up emails to buyers or marketing emails to prospects who haven’t yet clicked the “buy” button.
But you’re not done
Your content persuaded your leads to make purchases, but your work isn’t over. You need to provide follow-up emails to ensure they’re happy, inquire as to whether they have questions, offer customer satisfaction surveys, as well as send FAQs and how-to information so they can get the most from their purchases. Satisfied customers are more likely to purchase additional or expanded services as well as spread the word to other potential customers.
