The buyer's journey is the process a potential customer goes through, from first realizing they have a problem to making a final purchase decision. This path typically consists of three stages—awareness, consideration, and decision—during which a buyer researches their problem, evaluates potential solutions, and finally chooses a provider.
Understanding these stages helps businesses tailor their marketing and sales efforts to meet the buyer's needs at each step. The journey is often visualized as a funnel, guiding a prospect from initial problem recognition to a final purchase.
Understanding the buyer's journey is crucial for modern sales and marketing. It allows you to empathize with prospects, providing the right information at the right time. This tailored approach builds trust, addresses objections effectively, and ultimately increases conversion rates by meeting buyers where they are in their decision-making process.
While often used interchangeably, the buyer's journey and customer journey represent distinct phases of the customer lifecycle.
This is how you can create a detailed map of your buyer's journey.
Buyers often face several hurdles that can complicate their path to making a purchase.
How does the buyer's journey differ for B2B vs. B2C?
B2B journeys are typically longer and involve more stakeholders, requiring consensus-building content. B2C journeys are often shorter and more emotional, driven by individual needs and focusing on brand trust and social proof.
Is the buyer's journey always linear?
No, the modern buyer's journey is rarely linear. Buyers often jump between stages, revisit previous steps, or conduct research in parallel. This non-linear path requires a flexible, multi-channel marketing approach.
How has the internet changed the buyer's journey?
The internet empowers buyers with instant access to information. They now conduct extensive independent research online through reviews and blogs before ever engaging with a sales representative, shifting power from the seller to the buyer.
Data-driven marketing uses customer data to inform marketing decisions, optimize campaigns, and deliver personalized experiences to consumers.
“No Spam” is a commitment to sending only relevant, solicited messages. It means avoiding bulk, unwanted emails to respect the recipient's inbox.
The customer lifecycle is the journey a person takes from first becoming aware of your brand to becoming a loyal, repeat customer.
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Product-market fit is when a product meets the needs of a strong market, leading to high demand, customer satisfaction, and organic growth.
The buying cycle is the journey a customer takes from first realizing they have a need to making the final purchase decision.
Employee engagement is the emotional commitment an employee has to their organization, motivating them to contribute to the company's success.
A Customer Data Platform (CDP) centralizes customer data from all sources to create a complete, unified profile for each individual customer.
Ad-hoc reporting is the creation of one-off reports to answer specific business questions as they arise, providing instant, targeted insights.
A Target Account List (TAL) is a focused list of high-value companies that a business specifically aims to convert into customers.
Your email deliverability rate is the percentage of sent emails that successfully land in a recipient's inbox, rather than bouncing or going to spam.
Programmatic advertising uses AI and real-time bidding to automate the buying and selling of digital ad space, targeting specific audiences.
Customer churn rate is the percentage of subscribers or customers who cancel their service with a company during a given time frame.
AI in sales uses smart technology to automate repetitive tasks, analyze customer data, and help sales reps close deals more efficiently.
Loss aversion is our tendency to feel the sting of a loss more acutely than the pleasure of an equivalent gain.
Stress testing is a type of software testing that determines a system's robustness by pushing it beyond its normal operational capacity.
Referral marketing is a strategy that incentivizes existing customers to recommend a company's products or services to their personal network.
Inbound sales attracts interested prospects who've engaged with your brand, letting sales reps connect with warm leads instead of cold outreach.
Targeted marketing focuses on specific consumer groups whose needs align with your product, allowing for more personalized and effective messaging.
Text message marketing is a strategy where businesses send promotional messages, offers, and updates to customers via SMS or MMS.
Lead generation tactics are the strategies and methods used to attract potential customers and convert them into leads for your sales team.
Personalization in sales means tailoring outreach to a prospect's specific needs, interests, and context to make communication more relevant.
An on-premise CRM is a system hosted on a company's own servers, offering complete control over data, security, and system maintenance.
Marketing attribution is the process of identifying which touchpoints contribute to a conversion and assigning value to each of them.
X-Sell, or cross-selling, is a sales strategy of selling additional, related products or services to an existing customer base.
Inbound lead generation is the process of attracting potential customers to your business with valuable content and tailored experiences.
Customer segmentation is dividing customers into groups based on shared traits. This allows for more targeted and effective marketing efforts.
A sales bundle groups multiple products or services into a single offering, often at a discounted price to provide greater value to customers.
SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is increasing the quantity and quality of traffic to your website through organic search results.
A Statement of Work (SoW) is a document that outlines a project's scope, deliverables, and timeline. It acts as a contract between parties.
Remote sales is selling from a distance. Reps use digital tools to connect with prospects and close deals without meeting them in person.
Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) is a business model where companies sell products directly to customers, bypassing traditional retail middlemen.
A sales intelligence platform is software that provides sales teams with data and insights about prospects to help them sell more effectively.
Data mining is the process of discovering patterns, trends, and useful information from large datasets to make better business decisions.
Price optimization is the process of finding the ideal price for a product or service to maximize profitability or other business objectives.
Latency is the delay between a user's action and a system's response. It's the time it takes for a data packet to travel to its destination.
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Sales training is the process of honing a salesperson's skills and knowledge to enhance their effectiveness and drive sales success.
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API security is the practice of protecting application programming interfaces from attacks, preventing data breaches and unauthorized access.
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Marketing automation uses software to automate repetitive marketing tasks, such as email marketing, social media posting, and ad campaigns.
Guided selling simplifies complex sales by giving reps step-by-step instructions and data-driven recommendations to close deals faster.
User-generated content (UGC) refers to any form of content, like images, videos, or text, created and shared by users on online platforms.
A Software Development Kit (SDK) is a set of tools that allows developers to create applications for a specific software package or platform.
Cybersecurity is the practice of protecting computer systems, networks, and data from digital attacks, theft, and unauthorized access.
A custom API integration is a bespoke connection between software, enabling them to communicate and share data to meet unique business requirements.
Load balancing is the practice of distributing incoming network traffic across a group of backend servers, ensuring no single server is overworked.
Customer centricity is a business approach that puts the customer at the heart of every decision, aiming to build loyalty and long-term value.
Lead Velocity Rate (LVR) is the growth rate of your qualified leads, measured month-over-month. It's a key indicator of future revenue.
Customer experience (CX) is a customer's total perception of your business, based on every interaction across the entire customer lifecycle.
Internal signals are data points from your own systems, like website visits or product usage, that indicate a customer's buying intent.
Customer Retention Rate (CRR) is the metric that measures the percentage of customers a company has kept over a specific period of time.
Event tracking is the method of collecting data on specific user actions, or 'events,' on a website or app, such as clicks or downloads.
The lead qualification process is how you determine which prospects are most likely to become customers by evaluating them against specific criteria.
Average Customer Life is the average time someone remains a customer. It's a key metric for predicting revenue and measuring customer loyalty.
A version control system (VCS) tracks changes to files over time, allowing you to recall specific versions and collaborate without conflicts.
Email deliverability is the ability for your emails to successfully land in your recipients' inboxes instead of their spam folders.
An email cadence is a scheduled sequence of emails sent to prospects over a specific period to nurture leads and drive engagement.
Sales objections are reasons or concerns raised by a potential customer as to why they are hesitant or unwilling to make a purchase.
A sales coach is a mentor who trains and guides sales reps to enhance their skills, boost performance, and ultimately close more deals effectively.
Inside sales metrics are quantifiable measures used to track the performance, activities, and effectiveness of an internal sales team.
An Operational CRM is a system that automates and improves customer-facing business processes like sales, marketing, and customer service.
Reverse logistics is the process for goods moving from the customer back to the seller, covering returns, repairs, recycling, and disposal.
Virtual selling is the process of selling to customers remotely using technology like video calls, rather than meeting them in person.
Account-Based Marketing (ABM) software helps teams coordinate personalized marketing and sales efforts to land high-value customer accounts.
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Warm calling is contacting prospects with a prior connection, like a referral or social media interaction, to make your outreach more relevant.
Accounts Payable (AP) is the money a company owes its suppliers for goods or services bought on credit. It's listed as a current liability.
A sales sequence is a series of automated touchpoints sent to prospects over time to guide them through the sales funnel.
Mobile app analytics involves collecting and analyzing data from mobile apps to understand user behavior and optimize the app's performance.
Accessibility testing is a software testing method that verifies an application is usable by people with disabilities, like vision or hearing loss.
Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) is a cloud computing service that offers essential compute, storage, and networking resources on-demand.
A sales stack is the suite of tech tools—from CRMs to prospecting software—that sales reps use to close deals faster and more efficiently.
Corporate identity is the visual and verbal persona of a company, encompassing its logo, color palette, communication style, and core values.
The marketing funnel is a model illustrating the path potential customers take, from initial awareness to making a purchase.
Sales Engineers blend deep technical knowledge with sales acumen, demonstrating a product's value and solving customer problems to drive revenue.
No Cold Calls is a sales strategy that replaces unsolicited calls with warm outreach to prospects who have already demonstrated interest.
Multi-channel marketing uses various platforms—like email, social media, and direct mail—to engage with customers wherever they are.
A Sales Manager leads a sales team, setting goals, analyzing performance, and developing strategies to drive revenue and meet targets.
Digital contracts are legally binding agreements created, signed, and stored electronically, offering a faster, more secure alternative to paper.
Technographics is data that outlines a company’s technology stack, helping B2B teams identify prospects based on the software and hardware they use.
Consultative selling is a sales approach where a salesperson acts as an advisor, focusing on understanding and solving a customer's specific needs.
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A cold email is an initial outreach sent to a potential customer with whom you've had no prior contact, aiming to introduce your business.
Mobile optimization adapts your website to ensure visitors on smartphones and tablets have a seamless, user-friendly experience.
Lead generation software helps businesses automate finding and capturing potential customers' contact information to build sales pipelines.
Trade shows are events where companies in a specific industry showcase their latest products and services to find new customers and partners.
OAuth is an open standard for access delegation. It lets you grant apps access to your data on other services without sharing your password.
The open rate is the percentage of recipients who opened an email. It's a primary indicator of a subject line's effectiveness.
A sales pitch is a persuasive presentation of a product or service, aimed at convincing a potential customer to make a purchase.
Closed opportunities are potential deals that have concluded. They are categorized as either 'closed-won' (a sale was made) or 'closed-lost'.
A draw on commission is an advance payment a salesperson receives against future earnings, which is later repaid from earned commissions.
Sales engagement is the sum of all interactions between a seller and a prospect, aimed at building a relationship and moving a deal forward.
Digital Rights Management (DRM) is technology that controls access to copyrighted digital content, restricting its use, modification, and distribution.
Retargeting marketing is a digital advertising strategy that targets users who have previously interacted with your website or brand online.
A small to medium-sized business (SMB) is a company whose employee count and annual revenue fall below certain industry-specific thresholds.
Network monitoring is the continuous process of tracking a computer network's performance and health to detect and resolve issues proactively.
Dynamic data is information that updates in real-time. Unlike static data, it reflects the most current state of information automatically.
User Experience (UX) refers to a person's overall feelings and perceptions while interacting with a product, system, or service.