One of the nicest aspects of consumer pathways is that they lift the weight of off our clients’ shoulders. So many small businesses are just guessing when it comes to getting the word out. Working from a consumer pathway provides the means to measure a brand initiative’s success, or it tells us before we begin an initiative that success isn’t measurable. There won’t be any questions or disappointment because the expectations will be set, allowing everyone to move forward and adjust as the results come in.
The biggest benefit of consumer pathways is that clients don’t have to think about what the next step is – they just do it, and we assess each step as we move forward. From a success standpoint, to have a plan and work that plan is much more measurable. It causes your success rate to go up exponentially, rather than throwing darts blindly at a board.
It seems at times that some business owners have a marketing wheel with “print,” “digital” and other marketing initiatives printed on it, and wherever it lands is where they spend their money, regardless of whether there’s real logic behind it. Consumer pathways provide distinct roles that these initiatives will play in a business’s overall marketing strategy, with metrics to measure success and failure by, and elements that will be adjusted and reutilized appropriately. It takes a systematic approach, allowing you to follow the progress and follow the steps, and eliminate a lot of the guesswork.
Another benefit consumer pathways afford is the ability to plan ahead, and put together the ideas for collateral by thinking through each one of these pathways. It allows us to know what collateral will potentially need to be produced, such as blog content, or mailer content, allowing you to put together a more accurate annual budget for the business, which lets you plan for these expenses instead of waiting for an idea to pop up.
Consumer pathways help you plan in every way. They help you plan your initiatives; they help you plan your larger business goals; and they help you plan your financial situation for the next month, year and beyond. It’s important to look at broader trends to see how certain pathways or strategies may have worked for businesses from other industries, while tailoring it to your market and industry to achieve the best results overall.