Path-to-Purchase

7 Elements Of Customer Understanding The C-Suite Must Master

Changes in customer and buying behaviors continue to rock the very foundations of many industries.  According to recent surveys by PWC, Forrester, IBM, and McKinsey, disruptive trends in customer and buying behaviors are expected to continue over the next five years.  Many organizations are undergoing digital transformations in order to improve customer interactions, engagement, and …

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Mapping Buying Experiences: Creating Growth Through Aligning With Buyer Goals

Engaging new buyers and repeat customers are the lifeline to achieving growth.  While the context of these fundamental challenges has changed via digital technologies, they nevertheless are constant pressures.  Recent surveys of CEOs by IBM, PWC, and KPMG all point to major concerns and priorities in expanding the lifeline to growth. Creating distinctive and engaging …

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How B2B CMOs Can Achieve Customer-Centric Marketing With Buyer Personas

A recent survey by B2B Marketing, in conjunction with the UK-based agency Tomorrow People, indicated only 38% of marketers considered their content to be “very customer-centric.”  This mirrors findings of other surveys related to content marketing and customer-centric marketing, which consistently hovers in the 35- 40% range of “very customer-centric” or “very effective content marketing.” …

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Beyond Buyer Profiling To Buyer Personification

Segmentation has been a staple of business marketing and sales for several decades.  The concept of breaking down a potential market or industry into smaller target segments is a standard technique taught in business schools and used by many organizations.  Beginning in the 1980’s and 1990’s, we began to see a shift to individualism.  The …

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3 Ways CMOs Can Achieve Deeper Insights Into The Customer Journey

As CMOs look ahead, gaining greater clarity into how buying behaviors are changing is becoming one of their most important aims.  Never more pressing as digital channels expand and become more immersed in the conduct of commerce.  At the same time, the ability of marketing to influence and support the entire customer lifecycle continues to …

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Goals Are At The Heart Of Customer Experience And Engagement

When discussions have turned to the importance of customer experience today, it is easy to quickly think of customer experience (CX) as a touchpoint improvement phenomenon.  Garnering up images of consumers, as well as, B2B buyers happily skipping along a mythical journey to the end of a rainbow.  Coming upon particular resting points and encountering …

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The 3 Types Of Buying Scenarios Every B2B CMO Must Know

The complexities of the evolving and robust global digital economy are introducing new sets of goals and problems for B2B organizations.  Long-tenured B2B companies are seeking ways to adapt and to remain sustainable.  While nimble and digital technology savvy firms are either grabbing larger chunks of market share at a faster rate or are creating …

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Intervention: Buyer Personas Are Not A Product Requirements Document

Product centricity is still kicking dust up in the perfect storm of changing buyer behaviors and transforming digital technologies. The dust up so thick, most organizations believe they may be responding to this perfect storm, yet, everything they do does scream products. A good case in point is what organizations believe they need to do …

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How To Gain Deep Insights Into New Customer Buying Behaviors

The digital economy continues to evolve at a fast clip.  New technologies are being introduced nearly every month.   Startups are ascending while long tenured organizations suddenly find themselves on shaky grounds.  New services and product introductions are falling flat.   Making the pursuit of understanding why customers are buying or not buying most difficult for many …

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State Of Buyer Personas 2015 (Survey Results)

It is now nearly fourteen years since the first-ever buyer persona development methodology was first created specifically for sales and marketing. For trivia and history buffs, Harcourt Education in 2002, a division of Reed Elsevier at the time, was the first organization to ever use research-based buyer personas for marketing and sales. How far we …

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