You worked late and now you are starving. You pick up your phone to look for a nearby restaurant where you can go for dinner. You hear about a new movie release from your spouse and pick up your phone to see if it is available at any movie theaters in your area. You learn of a friend's passing and pick up your phone to order flowers for the funeral.
These moments when you reach for your mobile device in order to meet an immediate need are called micro moments. Google first identified them in 2015, but they are becoming increasingly common and important for marketers today. Here is a closer look at micro moments and their ability to impact digital marketing.
Micro Moments: Definition
The first place to start in understanding micro moments and their impact on digital marketing is to understand what, exactly, they are. Google defines them as moments when consumers have one or more of the following needs:
- I want to know
- I want to do
- I want to go
- I want to buy
Consumers then fulfill these needs by using their mobile devices to look up solutions. For example, they look up information on a medical procedure their doctor just mentioned at their visit. They look up date ideas after asking someone out. They look up a gift idea their child just requested.
These micro moments are defined by speed and urgency. Consumers want to meet these needs right now. This is why the use of mobile devices has risen by 20 percent in the last year, but the time spent on each session has dropped 18 percent. People want answers, but they do not want to spend a lot of time getting those answers.
As a result, micro moments are also very rich opportunities for marketers. In these moments, relevant information can easily lead to conversions from consumers, who are going to go with the first company to give them what they are looking for.
Micro Moments: Impact
Micro moments impact the consumer and their buying experience in three distinct ways:
Consumers want their needs met immediately.
The consumer wants to eat now. They want to know when that movie comes out now. They don't want to wait, and they don't know why they should wait when they have the power of the Internet at their fingertips. Marketers have 10 seconds or less to get their attention in these moments.
Consumers are not brand loyal.
About 90 percent of consumers have no particular brand in mind when they go looking for answers in the middle of a micro moment. A third of them have purchased from a brand other than the one they expected to buy from because they were able to get their needs met by that other brand more quickly. In micro moments, consumers care about results, not about who delivers them.
Consumers do not follow a linear buying path.
That consumer who forgot about the work function they need to attend tonight will buy an outfit from the first business that can prove itself capable of delivering the right outfit at the right price immediately. They will not go through the traditional marketing funnel. They will go straight to purchasing what they need. This non linear way of doing business means marketers must now think on their feet when planning their digital marketing strategies.
Micro Moments: Marketing Approach
These patterns offer unique opportunities present certain challenges to marketers. Businesses need to begin identifying and targeting these micro moments as part of their digital marketing campaigns. If they do so successfully, the rewards are rich: An abundance of new customers who are willing and eager to convert on the spot. If they neglect micro moments, they risk losing out on the profits that these moments represent.
Identifying and targeting these micro moments for your target audiences does require some work and creativity. You have to be willing to move beyond the traditional marketing funnel and your set habits of promoting yourself.
Successfully achieving these goals will require the assistance of a digital marketing company like Distinct Web Design. To get you started though, here are a few ideas for reaching your audiences at micro moments.
- Deliver ads and content when and where your target audience is having their micro moments.
- Create content that targets the needs and questions consumers have during their micro moments.
- Simplify the purchase process, especially through mobile devices.
- Create marketing across all channels.
- Ensure the mobile optimization of your site.
- Claim all available local business listings and take other steps to make sure your business is visible on local searches.
All of these strategies require you to know your target audience. That means that you must research your audience before implementing digital marketing strategies focused on their micro moments. Deep research and creative marketing can open up micro moments to your business.
If you need help with developing a digital marketing strategy that focuses on micro moments, reach out to Distinct Web Design. We can help you research, create, and implement strategies that meet consumers where they are.
