Three times? Seven times?
When I started my personal training business back in 2003, we used to talk about a sales statistic which said a prospect needed to see your business three times before they would buy from you. Somewhere along the way over the next four or five years, that number jumped to seven. And then along came social media!
Since the introduction of Facebook and other social platforms, the way people do business has completely changed. The amount of information available has increased exponentially and the ease by which we can access that information increases every day.
This means the way businesses must position themselves to be seen has changed dramatically too. No longer will a prospect see you three times and then be ready to do business with you. In fact it’s likely they won’t notice you at all. Even if they do see you, because of how many pieces of information they are processing every day, they probably won’t even know they saw you.
According to Google:
· In 2009, the average consumer gathered 2-3 pieces of content before making a purchasing decision
· In 2010 that double to 5.3 pieces of content
· In 2011 that double again to 10.4 pieces of content
· In 2014, it’s suggested this had risen to 18.2 pieces of information
(Source: Jay Baer – ‘Youtility’)
If we are to extrapolate that to 2017, we can realistically estimate the average consumer needs to gather close to 40 pieces of content about your business, before they will buy from you.
In today’s reality, we need more pieces of information to make a decision because we have so much more information readily available. There’s a phenomenon of information overload. It’s confusing. It’s overwhelming. Customers don’t know how to decipher all the conflicting choices. It’s not enough anymore to run one ad campaign and expect customers to come knocking on your door.
Today’s challenge is to put yourself in the shoes of a prospect who doesn’t know your business exists right now. Imagine their average week — where they go, what they do, what they’re watching, what they’re looking for, what their priorities are. Consider how many times they would realistically consume valuable information about your business in one week (and remember they don’t know you exist yet so they’re not going to be looking for you). Calculate how long it would take them to consume 40 pieces of content about your business.
Is it any wonder business is so tough! Think about how you can speak to your people more consistently. Where are you going to be able to get in front of them so you’re seen. Focus on consistency. It’s the best solution.