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Last touch gets the glory

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Recently, while I signed up for a relatively pricey software package, the sales person insisted that I sign up with an email address I hadn’t used before when dealing with them.

It seemed like a funny request, but I gave him one of my nickname emails and went ahead with the purchase.

It wasn’t until afterward that I realised the truth about why he had asked this.

By using a unique email, he was able to claim the referral fee for my sale – rather than have it count to one of the previous salespeople I’d dealt with in my winding journey of demonstrations and questions before getting to this point.

It didn’t annoy me, rather I found it a little amusing.

But it made me think about something we don’t talk about much with statistics online: we’re not very good at tracking the pathway that leads to a sale.

Our Google Analytics referral tracking only show us the place a visitor has been to immediately prior to clicking through to our page. It doesn’t show what history they’ve had with us before, or how often they interact, or whether they’re a current client, or social media follower, or not.

This can distort our understanding of what is working for us, as the action immediately prior to someone hitting our website and getting in touch, is the one most prominently shown to us in the stats.

Earlier steps in a campaign, if they are tracked at all, are often aggregated statistically.

How can we stop the last touch getting all the glory?

The answer is two-fold.

Yes, there is software that helps. CRM and marketing automation software like Infusionsoft can help you track individual people who respond to your messages in different places.

But a better way to understand your audience is through getting to know them personally.

If you talk with enough members of your audience, often enough, you’ll hear them tell you about what they do and why they are seeing you.

Pay attention to who interacts with you in different places, and find the similarities. Watch how they talk and what they are looking for.

Above all, ask. Then listen for the story of the entire journey.

 

How to create a sense of “Reveal”

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Reality TV is ripe with programs that build a story around their characters as the season progresses.

Whether it’s home renovators, singers or amateur chefs, these shows all have two things in common when telling a story that keeps us watching.

Firstly, they set up tension between characters as they put people into unlikely scenarios of competition or team companionship. Stakes are high and pressure is on, and this provides drama that keeps the audience entertained.

Emotion is powerful.

I’m not suggesting you have a cook-off with your competitors. But you can show that you fight for a worthy cause, report progress, and build a team of people that believe in a common vision.

Creating drama in your brand story is a powerful way of connecting with your audience.

The second thing reality tv does is build a sense of “Reveal”.

The nights that get the highest viewer numbers, and are by far the most intense to watch, are the nights where we finally see the results of the previous episodes.

The story unfolds, the relationships simmer. The suspense is undeniably drawn out, with commentary and adverts – until, finally, the new room, or the last challenge, or the best meal, is finally revealed.

Why is this so compelling?

And, importantly, how can we create the same experience for our clients?

If you run events, then a “launch sequence” is a contrived way of building suspense and revealing your offer.

This works as a tactic, but I’m talking about something deeper and more important than that.

How can you make your clients yearn to hear more from you, to find the final piece of the puzzle, to hear the end of the story?

Create a story arc with your brand messages. Tell people where you have come from. Show them the results they will achieve. Guide them through the terrain they’ll see on their journey.

Use real humans as examples, complete with names and faces and experiences.

Your brand story can be as large or small as you need, and the more you think of it as a “story”, the more compelling you will be able to make it.

And you, and your clients, will live happily ever after.

Are you ready to serve?

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The power of the digital marketing revolution is that it brings you in touch with so many people, so easily.

If you get it right, your message can be seen by thousands, even millions of people.

And if they feel a connection with your unique voice – well, that’s gold. You could end up with more enquiries than you know what to do with.

Actually, I mean that semi-seriously.

Some people get too many enquiries.

It’s a problem that the rest of the business world looks at with envy, but it is a problem nonetheless.

If you were to see your clients double, could you keep up? What about triple? Or grow by 10x?

Growing your client base comes with the responsibility of giving them all your best service.

Without a clear plan of how to grow the delivery side of your business, all those new enquiries will end up underserviced and unhappy.

This is why a marketing strategy that suits you and your business is required – so that you can set targets and plan accordingly. Your systems and capabilities need to grow along with your client base. Your marketing strategy must be integrated within a complete business growth plan.

At the end of the day, it’s not how many people have heard of your brand that matters. It’s how many people have experienced the great services you provide.