Fairly linear in nature, the concept of a customer going through the four stages of Attention, Interest, Desire, and Action, seemed fair. Especially when the only source of information was usually a sales representative who would walk the customer via these stages.
You and I know that it is not the case anymore. With the digital revolution in place, customers are as empowered as the companies if not more, highly informed, and have multiple touchpoints via which they can gather information, get influenced, or jump to a purchase decision.
This complexity makes it crucial for businesses to study and respond to customer behavior throughout the funnel, to provide better value and experience. That explains why companies that don’t have a proper CRM system in place struggles with gaining market shares! Modern problems require modern solutions.
If you are working with a modern customer funnel set up in traditional systems, you will be simply doubling the load of your organization’s work and also miss out on various important insights!
If you are working with a traditional funnel with any system, ditch it immediately! Listed are the reasons that should be able to convince you!
[/ohio_text]Your customer likes to jump, not glide!
Unlike your traditional linear funnels, with everyone going digital, consumers have started showing behaviour of jumping between stages. Sometimes a single advertisement and well-crafted landing page can convert into sales, despite being the first interaction with that particular brand name!
It is a curve, not a line.
Unlike your linear funnels, the focus is no more on pushing the customer till the final stage where the purchase is made. Instead, the end-user is involved in proper communication and the intent is to help them through their problem-solving process. This involves understanding your customer’s needs and figuring out how your product fulfils them while taking regular feedbacks to ensure a superior customer experience.
Moldable
Real-time insights translate to real-time actions! Actions can be taken at any stage of the customer funnel to improve the experience and eliminate any grievances faced by the targeted audience. Analytics plays an important role in moulding the funnel and creating a smoother conversion flow.
Higher Transparency
Consumers are more aware than ever, they demand transparency as their right. They need to know how a company functions, what are its values, how does it manage its carbon footprint, what kind of partners are involved throughout the supply chain, and are major compliances met? The authenticity in operations and transparency in communication helps companies build trust in the eyes of the public.
Aye, there mate!
A traditional funnel leaves little to zero scope for closed conversations between a firm and its customers. It doesn’t leave much space for community development as well. Remember, you never get attached to a brand, you get attached to the personification of a brand. Smart distribution of well-curated content on all your online (and offline) platforms help build the tone and personality of your brand, it defines the way you want to be perceived!
Mirror and Automate
Using CRM software you can mirror your actual sales funnel and learn trends. Eventually, the goal is to automate the process of closing sales and keep the sales team updated with customer behaviours and needs. This helps in driving hire sales and improving efficiency through each stage of the funnel.
Implementing changes in your organizational processes looks like a heavy task when one focuses on the cost factors, but ultimately a business can drive higher profits while minimizing tech-related costs by adopting smart Digital Infrastructure.