{"id":10497,"date":"2021-03-30T21:43:17","date_gmt":"2021-03-30T21:43:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/somametrics.com\/clone\/?p=10497"},"modified":"2021-03-30T21:43:17","modified_gmt":"2021-03-30T21:43:17","slug":"the-role-of-content-in-the-buyers-journey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/somametrics.com\/clone\/the-role-of-content-in-the-buyers-journey\/","title":{"rendered":"The Role of Content in the Buyer’s Journey"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Buyers Aren\u2019t Just Buying Your Product<\/span><\/h2>

When buyers purchase solutions for their companies\u2019 problems, they know that they\u2019re not just buying a product \u2014 they are also buying the company offering the product. If they don\u2019t feel comfortable with the company, they\u2019re not going to buy the product \u2014\u00a0it\u2019s as simple as that.<\/span><\/p>

In the past, salespeople could effectively build their company\u2019s reputation with clients through conversations over the phone or at in-person events, like trade shows and conferences. But this is becoming more difficult\u2014buyers are speaking with company representatives much later in the process. On average, today\u2019s B2B buyers are over 70% of the way through the decision-making process <\/span>before engaging with a sales representative<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>

This means that the majority of buyers\u2019 perceptions of your company rests on what they can find online. As buyers scroll through the content you\u2019ve posted, they get a sense of your company\u2019s values and what you can provide for them. This is a key step in the buying process, and it is up to you to design the content experience that will draw buyers in and demonstrate your company\u2019s value.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

The Role of Content in the Buyer\u2019s Journey<\/span><\/h2>

Successful B2B marketers know they must design their content experience with the buyer\u2019s journey in mind. However, as the following infographic from Gartner demonstrates, <\/span>the buyer\u2019s journey is not a straight line<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"B2B-buying-journey\"\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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As you can see, buyers take many twists and turns before arriving at their final decision. This makes intuitive sense \u2014 buyers want to make sure that they\u2019ve thoroughly considered every option before committing to one product.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

As a marketer, your job is to simplify this journey. You want to make it as straightforward as possible for your prospects to find your company, read your content, and meet with your salespeople. This involves creating the <\/span>buyer\u2019s content experience with sales in mind<\/b>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

Strategies for Architecting the Buyer\u2019s Content Experience<\/span><\/h2>

As you design your buyer\u2019s content experience, keep in mind that buyers need to be convinced to purchase on both a <\/span>logical and an intuitive level<\/span><\/a>. Not only do buyers need to hear the rational reasons to purchase your product, but they also need to believe in your company on a deeper level.<\/span><\/p>

This is a lot for your content to accomplish, and it requires a well-thought-out content experience. You should start by aligning your objectives with your buyers\u2019 objectives throughout their journey. After all, you both want the same thing \u2014 the right solution to the buyer\u2019s problem.<\/span><\/p>

To start, 71.7% of buyers begin their journey by <\/span>searching online for solutions<\/span><\/a>. During this phase, you should make it as easy as possible for buyers to access your Demand Generation content, which is content that increases brand awareness and drives buyers to your website. Make sure there are as few barriers to your Demand Gen content as possible so buyers can use that information in the exploratory phases of their journey.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

As buyers begin to narrow down their options, they want more highly specialized content that is relevant to their needs. At this stage, you should provide buyers with Lead Generation content, a type of content that is valuable enough for a prospective client to fill out a contact information form to access it. This high-quality content will establish your company as a thought leader in the industry, and strengthen your reputation with potential buyers.<\/span><\/p>

The Creative Content River\u2122<\/b><\/p>

Now that you\u2019ve architected your buyer\u2019s content experience, it\u2019s time to actually produce the content you need to reach buyers. Instead of doing it all in-house, you can easily fast-track your company\u2019s growth by outsourcing content production through SOMAmetrics\u2019 Creative Content River\u2122.<\/span><\/p>

Generating compelling content in-house is an expensive, fixed-cost endeavor that drains your resources each year. But the Creative Content River\u2122 provides you with all the content you need, for less than half of what it would cost to do in-house. A flexible, scalable subscription to the Creative Content River\u2122\u00a0gives you the freedom to focus on the big picture, while still receiving the high-quality content you need to reach today\u2019s buyers through your Demand Gen and Lead Gen campaigns.<\/span><\/p>

For more information about what the Creative Content River\u2122 can do for your marketing efforts, <\/span>download this white paper<\/b><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Buyers Aren\u2019t Just Buying Your Product When buyers purchase solutions for their companies\u2019 problems, they know that they\u2019re not just buying a product \u2014 they are also buying the company offering the product. If they don\u2019t feel comfortable with the company, they\u2019re not going to buy the product \u2014 it\u2019s as simple as that. In the … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":10503,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"generate_page_header":""},"categories":[3208,30,3234],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe Role of Content in the Buyer's Journey - SOMAmetrics<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"When buyers purchase solutions for their companies\u2019 problems, they know that they\u2019re not just buying a product \u2014 they are also buying the company offering the product.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/somametrics.com\/clone\/the-role-of-content-in-the-buyers-journey\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Role of Content in the Buyer's Journey - SOMAmetrics\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"When buyers purchase solutions for their companies\u2019 problems, they know that they\u2019re not just buying a product \u2014 they are also buying the company offering the product.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/somametrics.com\/clone\/the-role-of-content-in-the-buyers-journey\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"SOMAmetrics\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/SOMAmetrics\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-03-30T21:43:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/somametrics.com\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/buyers-journey-scaled.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2048\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1152\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@eskidt\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@eskidt\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Eskinder Assefa\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/somametrics.com\/clone\/#organization\",\"name\":\"SOMAMetrics\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/somametrics.com\/clone\/\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/SOMAmetrics\/\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/somametrics?trk=ppro_cprof\",\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/eskidt\"],\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/somametrics.com\/clone\/#logo\",\"inLanguage\":\"en\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/somametrics.com\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/SOMAmetrics-Logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"http:\/\/somametrics.com\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/SOMAmetrics-Logo.png\",\"width\":1605,\"height\":226,\"caption\":\"SOMAMetrics\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/somametrics.com\/clone\/#logo\"}},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/somametrics.com\/clone\/#website\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/somametrics.com\/clone\/\",\"name\":\"SOMAmetrics\",\"description\":\"Drive Predictable Revenue Growth\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/somametrics.com\/clone\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"http:\/\/somametrics.com\/clone\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en\"},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/somametrics.com\/clone\/the-role-of-content-in-the-buyers-journey\/#primaryimage\",\"inLanguage\":\"en\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/somametrics.com\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/buyers-journey-scaled.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"http:\/\/somametrics.com\/clone\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/buyers-journey-scaled.jpg\",\"width\":2048,\"height\":1152},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/somametrics.com\/clone\/the-role-of-content-in-the-buyers-journey\/#webpage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/somametrics.com\/clone\/the-role-of-content-in-the-buyers-journey\/\",\"name\":\"The Role of Content in the Buyer's Journey - 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