Last month, we introduced the customer journey: the way your customers interact with your brand from start to finish.

The customer journey is everything your customer experiences from the moment they discover you to the day they become your biggest fan.

After the essential first stage, Awareness, potential customers enter Phase 2: Consideration.

(If you missed the previous post, click here to learn how to bring potential customers into the Awareness stage.)

Consideration is the experience your potential customers have as they think about whether they want to buy your product. Walking your potential customers through this stage is key to making sales and building lasting relationships with your customers.

Consideration Stage Customer Journey

Your primary tool for being successful in this stage is your website.

The goal is to have a website that converts visitors into paying customers.

Consider your customer’s perspective. As they visit your site, they’re consciously or subconsciously comparing it to your competitors’ sites. They’re considering the pros and cons of each winery, interpreting what you have to offer as it relates to their life and their preferences.

Here’s how to create a website that converts:

1. Look at the 5 closest wineries to your location and compare.

If you were a consumer trying to decide which winery to visit, what would draw you in? Chances are, you’d be considering factors like these:

  • Location
  • Experience: What’s it like to visit your winery?
  • Wine varietals
  • Price

Consider what your potential customers are looking for, and make sure that comes across on your website.

2. Have a clear brand differentiation on your homepage.

Does the uniqueness of your brand – your winery and your wine – come across right away? Is it obvious what makes you special?

3. Capture emails.

Every website we create has a single focus = conversions. Think about this: what good does it do to drive Google or Facebook ads to your website if you don’t have a way to capture a potential’s information?

We know consumers are overwhelmed with how many images they see online and offline each day. On average it takes 7 or more touchpoints for a consumer to buy. By getting someone’s email address you are able to continue the conversation with your potential consumer.

How can you capture emails?

Present a special offer as a way to entice visitors to join your email list. When visitors subscribe to your list, you open up the opportunity for a lasting relationship. The offer can be a coupon for a free tasting, a discount on food or product in your gift shop, or a downloadable wine pairing freebie.

Once you have a clear, engaging message on your website, apply it to your social media pages. All your digital marketing elements should feel consistent, because they all work together to convey your message about your brand.

As potential customers enter the Consideration stage, they’re looking for clues about whether or not your brand will solve their problem, delight them, make them feel a certain way or accomplish a goal.

When you know what your potential customers are looking for, and you’re clear about what you have to offer and why it’s unique, your value becomes clear to your customers.

When you make it easy for potential customers to enjoy the Consideration stage, you set a foundation for lasting customer relationships.

Next up: How not to lose your potential customer at the last minute in the Decision stage.