The Evolution of the Purchasing Process | SiteMap 6

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We have seen previously that, by diversifying consumers' sources of information, the Internet has transformed them, modified the purchasing process and revolutionized marketing (see the articles Marketing in an Attention Economy I and II here ). Today we will focus on this paradigm shift.

TRADITIONAL PURCHASING PROCESS – AIDA MODEL
The purchasing process has traditionally been explained based on a model that is over 100 years old, according to which the consumer goes through 4 stages: Attention, Interest, Desire and Action . To illustrate this, the metaphor of the “marketing funnel” was used , meaning that throughout these stages the options were reduced until the final decision was made.

With the Internet, this model began to fail because the points of contact between consumers and brands multiplied, communication was no longer just one-way and the consumer now had much more information.

In 2005 McKinsey concluded:

That the number of brands under consideration may twitter data increase over the course of the process rather than decrease
That the search for information from other consumers is now more important than the communication that brands send to them
And that the post-purchase experience decisively informs subsequent purchasing decisions in the same category
Thus, an update of the model was proposed, making it a circular process instead of a linear one, composed of 4 marketing battlefields: initial consideration , active evaluation , decision and post-purchase experience .

MODEL OF MOMENTS OF TRUTH
A second explanatory model of the purchasing process is that of moments of truth, consisting of 3 consecutive stages: stimulus , 1st moment of truth (relating to the choice and decision in the store) and 2nd moment of truth (relating to the post-purchase experience). Here too the process was linear: you saw the advertisement, generated interest, went to the store, chose and bought.

THE MOMENT OF ZERO TRUTH
To illustrate the transformations that have occurred, Google has taken the Moments of Truth model and adapted it to the new reality . Basically, it has introduced a new stage between the stimulus and the visit to the store, which it has called Moment of Truth Zero .

Why? Because today, when you hear about a product, your first reaction is not to go to the store but to go online. That's where a journey of discovery begins, which includes gathering information from multiple sources: the brand's website, friends on social networks, opinions from other consumers, product testing, etc., etc., etc.

This phenomenon, also known as pre-purchase, started out as a high-value purchase, but today it is used for almost everything. And it often continues in the physical store itself via smartphones.

The only way a brand can influence a consumer’s decision is to be present at this stage. To be successful, brands must understand that technology has changed the consumer and the decision-making process.