Micro-moments: discover what your user wants at every moment of their journey
Where are you when your customer needs you most? Micro-moments are a new way of looking at shopping journeys that consider the wide range of possibilities that the digital realm offers.
The consumer journey has been fragmented with the consolidation of the digital marketplace and the mobile experience boom. Since then, we have witnessed a fundamental transformation in consumption.
Digital transformation has immensely impacted the way we consume and the purchasing process. Micro-moments are Google’s take on the changes in consumer behavior and purchase journeys.
With this change, new concepts emerged, such as omnichannel and hyper-personalization. The buzzword to look out for here is “convenience.”
What are micro-moments?
We can define micro-moments as macro-phases throughout a consumer’s shopping journey, from the moment of interest in knowing more about a particular product, service or solution, to the moment of making the purchase.
The resemblance to marketing and sales funnels is no coincidence.
In 2011, Google defined the online decision-making moment as the Zero Moment of Truth or ZMOT, for short. The ZMOT takes place between when your customer is stimulated to gain more information and the moment when they’ve made their decision to purchase.
These micro-moments presuppose the fragmentation of the consumer journey, driven by mobile experiences – which unstructured this journey.
What are these purchase moments/micro-purchase moments?
“I want to know more.”
This Micro-Moment occurs when the customer is looking for more information — which does not necessarily indicate that they intend to make a purchase decision.
“I want to go there.”
This Micro-Moment refers to the intention to get somewhere, either by looking up an address or using google maps to find out how to get there.
This also includes the seach or nearby establishments, such as directions to nearby restaurants or supermarkets. Here we can witness the massive benefit of geo-marketing and advertising strategies.
“I want to do this.”
When we want to learn how to do something, Google is the first place we turn to find straightforward explanations.
Especially when we don’t have anyone to ask for help, that’s when we turn to the internet.
It is worth noting that, for this type of Micro-Moment, people also turn to videos more often than text, the famous “do it yourself” brand of content. After all, YouTube is the second largest search engine on the Internet (but don’t forget, Google owns it).
“I want to buy this.”
When the user makes a search inquiry that displays the intention to buy, it usually contains the name of the product or service and points to specifics, like price. A lot of people will also compare these prices on various websites, like Amazon or eBay.
Micro-moments and omnichannel
Omnichannel is a strategy for integrating a company’s sales and relation channels, offering a fluid shopping experience. This symbiosis is a crucial factor to ensure customer satisfaction.
This means that omnichannel is how your company will be present in each of these micro-moments.
An omnichannel strategy, among other goals, aims to:
- Ensure digital presence.
- Collect inputs to enrich the customer’s interaction history with the brand.
- Track customer needs.
- Diversify and expand contact points for different media.
- Allow a cross-checking of data that helps draw more detailed customer profiles, helping to increase sales and loyalty.
One of the legacies of omnichannel strategies is laying the groundwork for implementing data-driven business intelligence, ensuring input richness, and allowing you to gather input at every point along the purchasing journey.
Talking about micro-moments is talking about the purchasing journey
The purchasing journey includes all the paths a potential customer takes before actually becoming one. These are steps that all buyers go through, most of the time without even knowing they are.
Knowing your micro-moments is about understanding the paths that lead to your product.
It is necessary to understand the user’s journey, understand their economic and social scenario, which causes they defend, among other characteristics. All to create a strategy that speaks to your audience to nudges them towards that purchase moment. Your interactions during these micro-moments should feel less like signs pointing out the way and more like the bend of the path.
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