Social Media and the Buyer’s Journey: How to Align the Two

Do you remember the first time you met your best friend or significant other? A first impression is difficult to reverse so it’s important to be strategic when meeting someone new. Social media is a key avenue for making that initial contact with potential buyers and the active research process they take leading up to a purchase. This process is called the buyer’s journey. Here are a few tips to align your social media strategy with your buyers as they transition from the awareness to consideration to decision stages.

1. First, listen

Social media monitoring is the  process of setting up streams to keep track of what your prospects are saying about your company and industry on social media. This can be a useful tool when mapping out your social media strategy and aligning it with your specific buyer’s journey. Hubspot offers an excellent monitoring tool which allows you to search for certain terms and also benchmark what your competitors and thought leaders are sharing.

2. Complete your profile

Before you start sharing content on social media, make sure your profile is completely filled out and you’re using an appealing image to catch your viewer’s attention and make that positive first impression. Be sure to include a link to your website and a description of what your company does. Some social platforms allow for a cover photo which a great asset to your profile. Choose one that’s both visually engaging but also relevant to your business and buyer personas.

3. Modify your content for buyer’s in each stage

Awareness stage

At the awareness stage, your customer has just realized they have a problem and may be using Google to look for a product or solution. This is a great opportunity to build trust with your buyers by sharing content that is both visually appealing and is equipped with a clear call-to-action. Examples of social media posts to share for customers in the awareness stage include:

• ebooks
• news articles
• blog posts

If you’re just getting your marketing strategy off the ground, you may not have a ton of offers lined up for each stage in the journey– that’s ok! You can use content from other websites as long as it’s relevant. As a rule of thumb, make sure the content you’re sharing for awareness stage buyers is purely educational and not promotional.

Even your terminology in your social posts can help engage buyers in the awareness stage. Try using terms like ‘troubleshoot’, ‘prevent’, ‘issue’ or ‘optimize’.

Consideration stage

Once you’ve built trust with your buyer, they enter the consideration stage. Now, they have named their problem and are considering the options available. Your buyer is now aware of your company or solution and it’s now time to engage your buyer, providing more content that nudges them along towards making a decision. Using social media, you can link to content offers like:

• an expert guide
• comparisons of products
• video

At this stage, you can begin to introduce your products or services but always considering the educational content. Words like ‘tool’, ‘provider’, or ‘solution’ will help buyers see the value in your solution.

Decision stage

Now that your buyers are engaged with your company or brand, they have entered the decision stage. They are narrowing down their search and ready to make a purchase. This is the best time to incentivize them by sharing a link to a landing page with a valuable offer. Examples include:

• free consultations
• giveaways
• case studies
• a free trial.

Conversion-driving words to use include ‘compare’, ‘review’, or ‘versus’.

Posting to social using measurable content sets you up for smooth sailing while your buyer’s progress through the journey. Using the buyer’s journey to map out your social media strategy can help you convert visitors into leads by providing relevant information for that buyer’s particular situation.

How do you differentiate posts on social for each stage in the buyer’s journey?