Micro-moments marketing is a trend that began gaining significant momentum in 2015 and looks to be the big trend of 2016, largely as a result of mobile marketing being the central facet in today’s marketing environment. So, I wanted to dig a little more into this trend and what it means to today’s savvy marketer.
According to Google, micro-moments are critical touch-points in today’s customer journey that when added together determine how that journey ends.
First, micro-moments are a result of the proliferation of mobile and how people use their smartphones. People use smartphones for “I want to know,” “I want to go,” “I want to buy” and “I want to do” moments and searches. As a result, in mobile, companies have to be available to deliver micro-moment information filled with intent, context and immediacy. According to a March 2015 study from Google and Ipsos, 82 percent of smartphone users consult their phone on purchases they’re about to make while in the store; 91% turn to their phone for ideas while in the middle of tasks. These are customer decision points and micro-moments that are part of a journey to purchase.
From Sessions to Spurts
We are accustomed to looking at website data such as time on site and average number of pages visited. Typically, we refer to this as “session data.” However, how people search and use their smartphone to obtain information has changed from users engaging in sessions on websites to “spurts.”
In the past year, there has been a 20% increase in mobile’s share of search volume, but a 19% decrease in time spent per site visit. This correlates to data that shows people, on average, check their phone 150 times a day, while spending about 177 minutes a day on the phone. This suggests the average time per “spurt” is a little over one minute.
Consumers no longer rely on long sit-down sessions on desktops to make decisions. Instead, they reach for mobile devices in context of the moment and use it to make informed decisions. When we look at retail, we see a decline in foot traffic, yet consumers spend more when they do visit as a result of doing research and having made a decision before entering the store. Similarly, when consumers visit websites using a laptop or desktop, they are spending less time, but converting more often. So, micro-moments are footsteps that lead customers to the store or the desktop site.
Harnessing Micro-Moments Marketing
In today’s environment, we have to earn consideration moment after moment. Consumers are more loyal to their needs in the moment than to any particular brand. In fact, 65% of smartphone users agree that when seeking information on their smartphone, they look for the most relevant information regardless of the company providing the information (Google/Ipos, Consumers in Micro-Moments, August 2015). To adequately harness micro-moments, brands need to:
- Be there by anticipating micro-moments for your consumers and commit to being there to help when they occur.
- Be useful by bringing relevant information to the consumer around their current needs in the moment.
- Be quick as consumers want to know, go and buy rapidly. As a result, the mobile experience must be frictionless.
Putting it Together
Red Roof Inns did all three of the above in one simple campaign. They discovered that daily 90,000 people are stranded as a result of flight cancellations. Their team developed a means of tracking flight delays in real time and used that data to trigger mobile search ads on a local level that read, “Stranded at the airport? Come stay with us!” Talk about an “I need a hotel” moment that for Red Roof Inn, resulted in a 66% increase in bookings across their non-brand search campaigns.
How to Use This Information
Micro-moment marketing, whether it will be called that or not, is something marketers will need to look at more closely. To do so, it takes looking at the holistic customer journey and identifying moments where you can be useful, relevant and in context with your audience. Part of this is taking time to identify personas and their needs in a variety of contexts where you can provide helpful information. We can help not only lay that groundwork, but also deliver and implement. Call us at 303-300-2640.
