What if the entry point of your customer’s journey is not where you think it should be?
I can’t help but think of the old Irish joke… An American tourist lost in the west asks a local person “how do I get to Dublin”. With the response being. “Well, I wouldn’t start from here”.
There’s plenty of interpretations of the joke. One being that sometimes we must first get on the right road to reach a destination. Another being, that sometimes we must orientate ourselves to where we are before heading out.
I’d like to add another one.
As an expert, you often think that your customer’s journey should follow a certain path. That the perfect transformation for the customer is achieved through a straight line. When instead, the customer is on a circuitous route to get there.
Maybe that’s the origin of the saying that you need to meet customers where they are.
Sometimes you need to embrace the point where they first connect with you. Consequently, help them with what they think is the problem. Then lead them to a different point next. Maybe ahead. Maybe behind. But a better point for them to move forward from to reach the desired destination.
I’m finding this in my own business. Refining a framework for my consulting projects that help clients improve customer experience. At the same time, testing initial offerings to attract customers to take that transformation with me. An initial offer that both delivers value and builds trust.
The technologist in me wants the initial offers to be the first step in my framework. The logical starting point. The pre-requisites.
The solution architect in me knows that’s not where most customers want to start. That is, the customers I serve best.
I rarely work with people who are in a green field situation. Most of them already are doing things. With some success and some failure. They don’t want to revisit the beginning. They want to start where they want to start. Even if it’s not really the best place to start.
Which is why I like the idea of initial offers. It’s an opportunity for learning. For them to build trust that I can help. And for me to learn more about them so that I can recommend a tailored journey forward.
Do you see this in your work?
How do you create tailored paths through your customer journeys?
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