When people reach the top of your purchase funnel, they are in the “See” category. The “See” category contains your largest qualified audience, but these people don’t need your product or aren’t aware that they need it. During this stage, you want to build awareness around your product and its benefits.

You have one main goal during this stage. You want to push people to the “Think” stage so they will be a step closer to buying.
While some companies incorporate countless marketing strategies during this stage, you only really need two. Social media marketing and pay-per-click (PPC) display ads will do all the work for you.

Social media is an excellent starting point. Eighty-eight percent of 18-29-year-olds and 78 percent of 30-49-year-olds use social media. It’s not just for the younger and middle-aged crowd either. Sixty-four percent of Americans between the ages of 50-64 are on social media, and 37 percent of people 65 and older use one or more social media channels.

You know the audience is there, so now it’s time to shine. Use social media to show off your products and your brand. Just make sure your brand message is cohesive across all channels.

Also, you need to define your target audience before you begin posting. Once you define your audience, you’ll know which social media channel works best for your brand.

Next, you need to add PPC display ads into the mix. Display ads are an incredibly powerful marketing tool. People take these ads in, even when they are distracted by something else. That means you can develop brand recognition even when people do not actively read or click on your ads.

During the “See” stage, people become aware of your brand and offerings. Then, they move into the “Think” stage. This is when people conduct research. During this stage, it is normal for people to move throughout the loop and then come back. To ensure they come back to the “Think” stage, you need to position yourself as an authority and send people to your website.

For 71 percent of the consumers, the research stage begins with a search engine. The majority of people read online reviews before pulling the trigger, and videos are also very popular.

When you put all this together, you can see how educated consumers are these days. People don’t fall for the hard sell anymore. Instead, they gather information and make a decision.

During this stage of the funnel, you need to use SEO, video marketing, PPC search ads, and email marketing.

The “Do” stage is located at the bottom of the funnel. This is where prospects turn into customers. You need to create content that causes people to take action.

SEO, PPC, and email are all effective strategies during this stage of the buying process. With each of these strategies, the language you use is very important.

Let’s say you are ready to buy a computer. You check out a few and then two salespeople walk up to you.

The first says, “Let’s go over the prices and extras you can get with this computer.”

The second one says, “Let me go over the features of these computers with you.”

You’re ready to make a purchase, so you will go with the first salesperson. You are past the point of learning about features, so you don’t want to waste your time.

The same is true for your customers. You need to create content and PPC ads that contain:

You have managed to bring someone all the way through the funnel and now you have a loyal customer. That means it’s time for the “Care” stage. During this stage, you will work to keep that customer.

Keeping customers is easier and cheaper than finding new ones, so take special care during this stage. If you do it correctly, that customer will go through the buying cycle over and over again.

Reaching out to customers is the key to building loyalty. Ask them for reviews and if they post on your social media channels, engage with them. Also, provide them with special offers. Give them a deal or a free gift on their birthday and give customer-only discounts. You can even offer them free advice and insider information.

Remember to personalize these communications. Consumers love personalized experiences and offers, and it’s a great way to make your customers feel special.

Putting It Together
You’ve taken a lot of information and you might wonder how you can put it all together. Let’s go back to the previous examples for need-based, want-based, and e-commerce services. In the previous example, you learned about awareness, consideration, purchase, and the loyalty loop. This time, let’s go through the examples using the internet marketing strategies necessary for each stage. The internet marketing strategies are in red.

You are almost ready to execute your plan. First, you need to get everything together. Start by opening up an Excel file. Create an asset list that includes your landing pages, blog posts, white papers, case studies, ad creatives, and everything else that you consider a marketing asset.

Then, create another column to list the stages of the buyer’s journey. Write the stage next to each asset. Keep in mind that some assets can serve more than one stage of the journey.

Next, add another column and include the strategies and platforms that you will use for each asset. Let’s say you have infographics listed as an asset. Those work great on social media. On the other hand, case studies perform well for PPC ads and email marketing.
After you have your list, fill in any holes with additional assets. Then, create a content distribution calendar.

Once everything is mapped out, it’ll be time to create your plan. Use your marketing materials to reach people at every stage of the buyer’s journey. Then, continue to follow them into the loyalty stage and back through the loop.