Anatomy Of A Customer Touch Point

ANATOMY
The
of aCUSTOMER
10Questions
YourBrandExposed.com
Original Content Series
April | 2014
Scott MacFarland
TOUCH POINT

ANATOMYThe of a
CUSTOMER
TOUCH POINT
“
ANATOMYThe of a
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TOUCH POINT
Today’s business schools better teach this,
or the next generation of marketers will miss
a very important component in their marketing
– The Customer Touch Point.”

ANATOMYThe of a
CUSTOMER
TOUCH POINT
This eBook is not a rant about how I know everything about each
and every touch point known to the human race -- I don’t.
However, this eBook is about the importance of the touch point and
raises some key questions embedded in each one so today’s digital
and social marketers can answer them.
ANATOMYThe of a
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TOUCH POINT

ANATOMYThe of a
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Touch Point Questions
That Need Answers
10
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ANATOMYThe of a
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1
What Type of
Customer Are You
Targeting? (persona)
Q
ANATOMYThe of a
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ANATOMYThe of a
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This is really marketing 101; If you are attracting customers,
then there is naturally a touch point involved. Take a good
hard look at your customer persona. Clearly define each
persona that is most important to the company so you can
create brand messages and a process that is going to be
effective. Persona example: 50 year old, white, married
female with 2 kids, a homeowner, book reader, not internet
savvy, HHI150k, stay at home mom, likes cooking, and traveling.
What Type of Customer Are You Targeting? (persona)
1Q
ANATOMYThe of a
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TOUCH POINT

2Q
Why Are You
Targeting Them Using
This Touch Point?
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ANATOMYThe of a
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ANATOMYThe of a
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ANATOMYThe of a
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2Q
ANATOMYThe of a
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Why Are You Targeting Them Using This Touch Point?
This may sound weird, but depending on the persona you are
targeting, may in fact alter the touch point and how it’s
executed. Here’s an example. You know your basic persona is
a 50 year old, white, married female with 2 kids, a
homeowner, book reader, not internet savvy, HHI 150k, stay
at home mom, likes cooking, and traveling. These are just a
few of the descriptors needed to complete a good persona. >>
ANATOMYThe of a
CUSTOMER
TOUCH POINT

ANATOMYThe of a
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2Q
ANATOMYThe of a
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TOUCH POINT
Why Are You Targeting Them Using This Touch Point?
Let’s think about social media. If you were to choose
between Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Pinterest or Instagram,
which one would you select? The only way to make a good
decision is to know about each of those social channels and
the generation types that frequent those channels. In this
case, Facebook and Pinterest are the best options based on
their users and your persona.
ANATOMYThe of a
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3Q
Is This The Best Touch
Point For The Customer
You Are Targeting?
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3Q
ANATOMYThe of a
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Is This The Best Touch Point For The Customer You Are Targeting?
Now we know that out of the 5 social media channels you
selected, two of them are good ones to reach your persona.
Now let’s dig a little deeper. Which one is best? In order to figure
this out, you will need to define your goals for the social media
touch point and how you plan on communicating. >>

3Q
ANATOMYThe of a
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Is This The Best Touch Point For The Customer You Are Targeting?
For instance, will you need more text or more image based
communications? If you decide that text is critical because of
the message you need to get across, then Facebook is definitely
better than Pinterest. You will also want to do some research to
find out what social channel your persona is most likely to use.
--You get the idea.

ANATOMYThe of a
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ANATOMYThe of a
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Which One Is Best - Social Media InfoGraphic
http://www.slideshare.net/globalwebindex/globalwebindex-stream-social-q1-2013-report-preview

4Q
ANATOMYThe of a
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TOUCH POINT
ANATOMYThe of a
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What Made The
Customer Arrive
At This Point?

4Q
ANATOMYThe of a
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ANATOMYThe of a
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Customers usually don’t haphazardly arrive at a touch
point. They are typically prompted or teased to visit a
website, social media page, landing page, blog or other
destination. Maybe you just want them to read an email
and then call a customer service rep, or visit your store.
Whatever your plan is, you must understand the options
in which your customer arrived in order to best
communicate to them. >>
What Made The Customer Arrive At This Point?

4Q
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ANATOMYThe of a
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Think about the ways in which you are promoting your
product. This will help you understand how the
customer got to the touch point in the first place.
When you do understand how they got to the touch
point you can provide a more personalized experience,
which will help to make them feel more comfortable
with your brand.
What Made The Customer Arrive At This Point?

5Q
ANATOMYThe of a
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ANATOMYThe of a
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What Is The Customer’s
Problem You Plan
To Solve?

5Q
Every customer has a problem. Sometimes it’s glaringly obvious; other times
the problem needs to be pulled out of them because it’s not easy to see.
Whatever it is, you must know what the problem is. Hint: The problem can also
be labeled a “pain point.” By knowing the problem you can solve it with your
product or service. Solving the customer’s problem gives your brand a fighting
chance so that you put yourself in position to be purchased. If you don’t solve
the customer problem, why would they even consider you for their purchase?
This is a very important question to answer to create revenue growth. >>
What Is The Customer’s Problem You Plan To Solve?
ANATOMYThe of a
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ANATOMYThe of a
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5Q
ANATOMYThe of a
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What Is The Customer’s Problem You Plan To Solve?
Here’s an example of a problem > solution: High school soccer players wear-
out their soccer cleats each season. Thus, buying a new pair each summer
before school starts is inevitable. The problem is: The soccer player needs
cleats before summer captain’s practices begin. The solution: Adidas starts
advertising heavily around the end of the school year promoting their soccer
cleats and accessories. Why? Because they know almost every high school
soccer player will purchase a pair of new cleats between May and August.
There’s an advertising solution and also a product solution. In this case there
are both.

ANATOMYThe of a
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6Q
ANATOMYThe of a
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Are You Solving The
Customer’s Problem
Or Creating A New One?

6Q
ANATOMYThe of a
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ANATOMYThe of a
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Are You Solving The Customer’s Problem Or Creating A New One?
Let’s say you are trying to solve the customer problem. However, in
doing so you created customer confusion. This can happen, and
it’s easier than you might think. In order to reduce the likelihood of this
happening, be very clear in your advertising and marketing message.
Don’t over stimulate the customer with so many brand messages that
you are causing them to think too much. You want to make it very
easy for the customer to make a decision. Simplify your message and
also simplify the way in which the prospective customer will find your
company so they can make a purchase decision easier and faster.

7Q
ANATOMYThe of a
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ANATOMYThe of a
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What Action Do You Want
The Customer To Take,
Now That You Have
Their Attention?

7Q
ANATOMYThe of a
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ANATOMYThe of a
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What Action Do You Want The Customer To Take
Now That You Have Their Attention?
The good news here is that your promotion worked and
got the customer’s attention. Now they are right where
you want them. What are you going to do now? Hmm…
some might say, “I’m not sure.” While others might say,
“just send the customer to the company homepage.”
– Wrong, wrong, wrong. There’s a better way. >>

7Q
ANATOMYThe of a
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ANATOMYThe of a
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What Action Do You Want The Customer To Take
Now That You Have Their Attention?
In your marketing message, make sure to write a very clear, concise
call-to-action (CTA). This is a statement or phrase that prompts the
customer to do something that enables them to get closer to making
a purchase. However, it can also be a phrase that leads the customer
to a website landing page that only has information on it that educates
the customer. This occurs with videos and photos and also has a customer
representative photo and contact information there as well. Don’t lose
sight of the fact that you want to anticipate their action by making it
easy for them to take action. Map out the customer path. This will also
help you discover potential spots where the customer path could
potentially direct the customer in the wrong direction.

8Q
ANATOMYThe of a
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ANATOMYThe of a
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Is There A Path You Want
The Customer To Take
Beyond This Touch Point?

8Q
ANATOMYThe of a
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ANATOMYThe of a
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Is There A Path You Want The Customer To Take
In question number 7 above, we briefly talked about the
customer path. The touch point may be the first touch point
with the customer, or it may be the 3rd in a path of 5 that
ultimately leads to an e-commerce transaction. Whatever it is,
create the customer path by mapping it out. It may look
something like this, see an example on the following page. >>

8Q
ANATOMYThe of a
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ANATOMYThe of a
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Is There A Path You Want The Customer To Take

9Q
ANATOMYThe of a
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What Part Of The Sales
& Marketing Funnel Is
This Touch Point Located?

9Q
ANATOMYThe of a
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TOUCH POINT
What Part Of The Sales & Marketing Funnel
Is This Touch Point Located?
As you can see in the Sales and Marketing funnel description
I am using here, Hubspot has defined it simply listing three
distinct areas, each with two identifiers.
•Top of the funnel: Visits and Leads
•Middle of the funnel: Marketing Qualified Leads and
Sales Accepted Leads
•Bottom of the funnel: Opportunities and Customers

9Q
ANATOMYThe of a
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ANATOMYThe of a
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If you breakdown the top of the funnel, all you have to do
is think about what tactics you will use to attract customers
to get them to visit your website to create a lead. An example
of this might be email, a social media ad, a website banner, a
mobile or tablet ad, a video pre-roll or maybe even a TV
commercial. These are just a few of the many options you
have to choose in the crowded digital marketing arena.
What Part Of The Sales & Marketing Funnel
Is This Touch Point Located?

ANATOMYThe of a
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TOUCH POINT
ANATOMYThe of a
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Are You Assessing
The Touch Point?
10Q

ANATOMYThe of a
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TOUCH POINT
ANATOMYThe of a
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TOUCH POINT
Are You Assessing The Touch Point?
Each touch point requires some sort of assessment so that
you will know if it is actually working or not. This can be
tougher in the offline world of marketing. However, in the
digital world, you can track user data leading to conversion
with the right toolsets. >>
10Q

ANATOMYThe of a
CUSTOMER
TOUCH POINT
ANATOMYThe of a
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TOUCH POINT
Are You Assessing The Touch Point?
Here’s an example: Your marketing plan calls for website banner advertising
that leads to a reverse proxy website with a specific phone number for
tracking purposes. When the customer is searching on the web, your ad
appears. They click on it and are instantly linked to your reverse proxy website,
which is a mirror image of your company website. The difference here is, the
reverse proxy website has CTAs that lead to short forms and phone numbers,
all of which are tracked and calls are recorded. You can assess all of this by
determining if actual calls are coming in and if leads are coming in from a
web ad by reviewing your online dashboard which tracks everything.
– This isn’t big data, but it’s handy real time data relating to your marketing.
10Q

Remember, not every touch point leads to a sale. Some are designed to tease the
customer, provide awareness, build affinity and lead to deeper level conversion tactics.
There also are many other strategies that work based on your marketing goals. My
suggestion is to really think about the overall goal of the touch point you are creating
and answer the 10 questions in this document. They will help you maximize the
effectiveness of the touch point and enjoy the benefits of good marketing strategy
at the same time.
ANATOMYThe of a
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TOUCH POINT
ANATOMYThe of a
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Final thoughts

ANATOMYThe of a
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TOUCH POINT
ANATOMYThe of a
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TOUCH POINT
Links:
Generation Types
http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/diet-and-fitness/talkin-bout-my-
label-20110720-1ho7s.html
Which One Is Best - Social Media InfoGraphic
http://www.slideshare.net/globalwebindex/globalwebindex-stream-
social-q1-2013-report-preview
Adidas
http://www.adidas.com/us/content/soccer/
Sales and marketing funnel
http://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/33711/The-Steps-You-Need-
to-Define-the-Stages-of-Your-Sales-Marketing-Funnel.aspx
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Photos used with full resolution or 40% opacity. Cropped images to fit design.
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Photo Credits:
Niels Dejgaard - Flickr
http://bit.ly/1grM0to
Colin and Sarah Northway - Flickr
http://bit.ly/1ggGokx
iwona_kellie - Flickr
http://bit.ly/1gPwGRA
Daniel Foster - Flickr
http://bit.ly/1isV6EJ
Julian... - Flickr
http://bit.ly/1mprw6U
Julian... - Flickr
http://bit.ly/1rkMHYG
Julian - Flickr
http://bit.ly/1m1sK5g
Julian... - Flickr
http://bit.ly/1jkzgXw
Ed Yourdon - Flickr
http://bit.ly/1iSwhmu
Bark - Flickr
http://bit.ly/1f8r2KH
Sources

Anatomy Of A Customer Touch Point

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Anatomy Of A Customer Touch Point