Imagine that it’s a lazy Sunday evening and you are standing in your kitchen, deciding what to make for dinner. If you want to make a new recipe, what are you most likely to do? The first response of many people is to pull out a smartphone or tablet and to do a quick search for a solution online, drawing from resources like Youtube and Google for inspiration.
Marketers refer to these daily, real-time questions that lead consumers to get solutions from searches on their phones and tablets as Micro-Moments1. These Micro-Moments are rapidly changing the way that brands think about how and when they are reaching potential customers.
It’s no secret that our mobile devices have dramatically shifted the landscape of how we process and utilize information in our day-to-day lives. Smartphones allow us the instant gratification of our impulses, leading to immediate action when we are making decisions and trying to learn something new. It makes sense, then, that marketers are starting to pay attention to and define these moments in their mobile strategies.
A focus on in-the-moment decisions means that “consumer expectations are high and their patience is low.”1 Learning how to best help your potential customers through these moments with ease, transparency, and clarity is an invaluable tool, as whoever best meets that customer’s needs in real time will win their business.
Consider some of the following statistics:- 82% of smartphone users have used their phone to make a decision while buying something in a store and 1 out of 10 of those polled made a different purchase decision than they had initially planned.2
- 91% of smartphone users research information on their phones directly in the middle of a task.3
- 62% of smartphone users are more likely to take immediate action towards resolving an unexpected problem because they have a smartphone.2
- More than 100 million hours of “how-to” content has been watched on Youtube so far this year.4
Those were just a few examples of how frequently consumers can be counted on to consult their devices and how powerful that focusing on harnessing these moments can be from a marketing perspective. The folks at Google have deconstructed these moments, breaking them down into specific types to help you gain clarity in assisting your customers:
“I-Want-To-Know” Moments: When your customers search on their devices for instant, applicable information4- “I-Want-To-Go” Moments: When consumers search for nearby events and businesses.4
- “I-Want-To-Do” Moments: When consumers use their devices to get inspiration and instructions for a specific task.4
- “I-Want-To-Buy” Moments: When people consult their phones while making a purchase decision.4
“I-Want-To-Know” Moments: When your customers search on their devices for instant, applicable information4
Marketers who take advantage and think through how these types of moments apply to their businesses have a great advantage in the marketplace. For example, let’s say that your company deals in cookware and you see possible “I-Want-To- Do” moments in which future customers might be searching the Internet for videos on cooking.
You could use this micro-moment to your advantage by creating cooking instructional videos featuring your products, giving your future customers the inspiration that they were looking for and promoting your brand at the same time.
To illustrate, here’s an example from 360 Cookware, a company that did just that. They offer an entire series of recipe and cooking ideas, all featuring their products: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2uIUSHR_nc. Collectively, their YouTube channel has received almost 368,000 views, the vast majority of which were gained from their cooking videos. Compare that to Fissler, a competing company, whose videos only feature their products and have pulled in only 55,000 views. Given just that one simple illustration, it’s easy to see how powerful it is to tap into the moments that your potential viewers and clients are having.
Individual moments are the new kings of mobile marketing. Spend some time to strategize how best to help customers through these moments and you’ll be ahead of the game…and your competition.
References:
- https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/micromoments/
- https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/articles/how-micromoments-are-changing-rules.html
- http://blogs.wsj.com/cmo/2015/04/08/outside-voices-why-mobile-advertising-may-be-all-about-micro-targeting-moments/
- https://think.storage.googleapis.com/docs/4-new-moments-every-marketer-should-know.pdf