The buyer’s journey describes the path a stranger takes from knowing nothing about your brand to becoming not only a satisfied customer but one who will sing your praises to friends, family, colleagues, neighbors, followers, and fans. Your role? Tour guide: Leading them, prompting them to go farther. You’re with them. Every step of the way. 

But today’s consumers are independent travelers. They’re going to do most of this journey on their own. They will complete most (in some cases, all) of the buyer’s journey without reaching out or talking with a salesperson or representative from your company. This does not mean, however, that they aren’t engaging with your brand. They most certainly are. They are hitting key milestones and taking the right turns at critical junctures via your website content. 

Creating quality content isn’t just important. It’s imperative.  

Long Live the King 

Back in the dark ages, a sage once said, “Content is king.” Actually, it was Bill Gates, in 1996. But still… That was a while ago. Even then, though, Gates and other thought leaders recognized the role that online content would play in establishing an authoritative brand, in building trust, in generating high quality traffic, and in converting prospects into customers. 

Content generates about three times as many leads as outbound marketing (this is also called “push marketing,” and involves methods like print and TV ads, email marketing, etc.) – and it costs at 62% less than these techniques. 

But that’s not the whole story… Just a promising beginning! The fact is, to hit that level of ROI, your content must land just right. Valuable, story-based content that resonates and supports your brand and reaches your potential clients where they are in the buyer’s journey are critical in achieving success. 

(Quick Refresher: The buyer’s journey consists of three distinct phases: Awareness, Consideration, and Decision. Get more info here.) 

Creating Quality Website Content 

If we think about the pillars of quality website content, it looks like this: 

1. Authoritative, relevant, story-based content. Stories engage audiences effectively, help to build trust, and put a face to your company. Telling your brand story empowers you to create an emotional bond with customers. Remember, people buy on emotion and justify with logic! Give them reason to believe.

2. Relatable triggers that tie back to your brand. A trigger is a marketing message that is delivered after a specific event has occurred. This could be that a potential lead has downloaded your ebook, booked a consultation, submitted a form, abandoned a cart, or has not interacted or completed a CTA within a specified period of time. The right message follows up and, ideally, pushes them down your conversion funnel.

3. Content delivered to the right people at the right time. If you understand where people are in their buyer’s journey, you can create website content that resonates with them. That fills their needs. That prompts them to continue towards your brand’s solutions.

If you have existing content, take stock. You will likely be able to repurpose and tweak it to align with your new strategy. A simple twist in language and CTA, for example, can turn a blog into an awareness stage powerhouse. 

Content That Guides Your Prospects Forward 

Consumers have different needs – different questions that need answering – depending on where they are in the buyer’s journey. Tailoring content does not necessarily mean more work; it means using what you have more effectively. 

With this in mind, there are content types that work optimally for the awareness, consideration, and decision stages. Let’s take a look: 

When you meet people where they are, you can go much farther together. 

Where Are You? 

At a guess, we’d say you’re in the Consideration stage. You know you need to create quality website content to accelerate your marketing strategy and win business. You’re researching options and potential solutions. Keep digging in: Check out our informative guide, 9 Steps to Effective Marketing in the Design and Construction Industry and learn how Haven can help – and why you can trust us with your brand name.