The buyer’s journey has changed because of the use of the internet. Before a customer decides to pay for a product or service, they often conduct extensive research on the web. Companies face the difficult challenge of presenting their products and finding the right customers, so providing better content is essential to compete.
Reaching Customers through Content
The web is essentially at everyone’s fingertips, but this doesn’t mean it is easy to find answers to common questions or solutions to typical problems. On the contrary, conducting research for a specific topic is usually cumbersome and time-consuming. Often, effectively researching a particular issue requires looking up multiple keyword variants, all leading to a mound of different websites to sort through and tons of information to analyze.
Therefore, companies face difficulty presenting their offering to the right customers. Finding that ideal customer in a ready-to-purchase state is challenging because products and services can easily get lost in the crowd. Under these circumstances, advertising wouldn’t provide the results it once did.
The need for a content discovery Software as a Service (SaaS), with an intuitive, data-based engine as its backbone, becomes extremely valuable. It is so for both the customer with a particular need and the brand trying to reach customers ready to purchase.
The consumer’s purchase decision comes with a lengthy online search
Before customers decide to pay for a product or service, they often conduct extensive research. In addition to clicking on ads and reviewing social media posts, they often utilize a search engine to find information online. Usually, they’re not looking for a product but a solution to their problem.
Unfortunately, search engine results are commonly too broad to help someone solve a specific problem.
Specific Information and Criteria
Providing better and more thorough product information is an important differentiator to compete because customers have become very specific in their needs. For example, instead of broadly looking for «beauty cream,» many people search for a particular product or service that fulfills many criteria.
A customer may want a 100% organic beauty cream that contains certain anti-aging ingredients and doesn’t contain allergens. Or perhaps it is fundamental for the buyer that the product was not tested on animals, or fits within a price range, etc.
Additionally, they are commonly solution-driven when looking for a product. Thus, along with the specific criteria mentioned above, they will probably search for how to look younger or reduce wrinkles.
Increasing the number of search criteria and becoming more solution-oriented is only one piece of the puzzle for brands to reach consumers’ pockets. Consumers are more likely to take advice from sources other than the brand itself.
The Need for a Credible Information Source
If a business wants to sell products and services, someone else must positively talk about them. A brand gains credibility when someone else suggests its products or services to solve its particular problem. This information must come from an independent source that is considered a trustworthy and unbiased subject-matter expert on products and services. That’s where a content discovery service comes into play.
54% [of consumers] regularly employ two or more channels before purchasing.
Oracle Consumer Review
By utilizing intuitive, data-based logic, a content discovery engine can help direct customers towards specific products and services that match their exact needs. For example, a content discovery service for the beauty industry would ask relevant and specific questions to determine how to both solve customers’ problems and match their precise criteria. Then, an intelligent engine searches available content online and finds a product or solution that meets their needs.
Which Content Qualifies?
Much of the content found on the internet is in written form. It can be anything related to the industry, including products and services, for example, beauty products, mystery books, specialty coffee products, educational programs, recycling services, country music, Italian restaurants, etc.
How Content Discovery Works
Content discovery services can tie to any specific industry. Customers will start their search by answering relevant questions designed to fulfill their personalized needs. Then, this engine conducts an intuitive examination of the content on the web and displays products or services results that match the customer’s specific criteria.
The service takes on stages 2 through 4 of the consumer’s decision-making process. It allows consumers to perform in-depth searches and shares all products or services that meet their exact needs. It also makes them feel comforted that their purchase meets all their requirements.
Customers perspective
The engine serves as a trusted and convenient central repository on a specific topic from a consumer perspective. It allows them to identify products and services that meet their needs. Taking it a step further will enable them to compare their intelligently matched results across various dimensions, such as price and brand, before purchasing.
Once the customers identify the best-fit solution, they are ready to purchase. Instead of spending excessive funds on advertising with low click-to-purchase rates, companies buying a content discovery service can feel reassured that customers coming their way have already done their homework and are ready to purchase.
