A linear customer journey is no longer a reality. Consumers and brands now communicate constantly, fragmenting the path to purchase as never before. Instead of having a few persuasive
interactions with a brand, consumers have many small interactions that, together, are plentiful and powerful.
Google recently dubbed every tiny interaction consumers have with brands as
“‘micro-moments,’ the new battle ground for
brands.” We’ve labeled the same interactions “atomic moments of truth.” No matter what you decide to call them, these moments are forever changing the way consumers
interact with brands, creating new opportunities and presenting new challenges.
Google offered five ways marketers can take action on these moments. Let’s apply these ideas to the email
channel:
Make a moments map. Not every moment is going to be an ideal moment for email, so it is important to define each moment in the customer journey, understanding
each moment’s relationship to other moments, culminating in a desired conclusion. Once these moments have been mapped and defined, then and only then can you determine which parts of the
conversation are best supported and amplified by email.
Understand customer needs in-the-moment. Think about how consumers’ needs may change in the exact moment
you are trying to reach them, and adjust your strategy accordingly. Consider a customer who is researching a variety of products on your Web site, creating a real-time digest (and potentially a
comparative matrix) that you can deliver via email. This gives you a chance to provide something that is meaningful, but also something consumers can reference again and again without having to
recreate their search.
Use context to deliver the right experience. Because consumers have more access to your brand and emails than ever before, context is increasingly
important in delivering the most appropriate brand experience in that moment. Time of day, location and device can all change what the appropriate content is for your email
message.
Optimize across the journey. Consumers move seamlessly between devices and often are using multiple screens as they go about their day. They expect a consistent
customer experience throughout their fragmented journey. To optimize the experience, start by putting the mobile customer first. Think about every aspect of engaging with email on a mobile
device and account for it.
Measure every moment that matters. As the customer journey becomes more fragmented, so will the story that your email data tells. It
isn’t realistic to expect you will measure every moment, but do identify the metrics that truly inform your efforts, and measure those.
The way we market to our customers is evolving, and
the way we leverage each channel needs to evolve as well. Email will remain a critical part of those micro-moments with customers. That means that we can’t just keep doing to the same ‘ol
thing. Start looking at micro-moments and see what they mean to your program.