Canvas Research Study: What We Get Wrong About the Customer Journey

Canvas presented its findings in a webinar hosted by Peter Watkins Senior Vice President Managing Director for Canvas Worldwide39s Decision Road and Flo Halliwell Group Strategy Director for Omnicom research and insights agency Hall ampamp Partners They drilled down into results of a yearslong study the second phase of which included 2450 participants It covered 49 brands and eight verticals apparel automotive beer and spirits fast food financial planning insurance movies and streaming and skin careAdding further context Watkins noted quotTraditionally in marketing we39ve depicted the customer journey as a linear pathway to purchase What we saw in our work was that the consumer is not on one journey amp8230 but two happening simultaneouslyquot he said quotOne is a brand journey which can continue throughout a lifetime The other the purchase journey can be more of a start and stop sometimes leading to a purchase and sometimes notquotUltimately in order for someone to make a purchase the two journeys need to convergequotPurchases happen at the intersection of 39buy this and buy now39quot Watkins explained quotWhen brand affinity is high enough and purchase propensity is high enough someone will pull out a credit cardquotBrands need to invest the time energy and money to develop tight relationships with consumers that hold up over years quotIf the brand makes them happy if it reminds them of things that they like delivers great value or an exclusive product or service that increases brand affinity and purchase propensityquot he saidCanvas39s research suggests that of all possible brand encounters the ones that have the greatest impact on both affinity and propensity are those that make people happy and deliver great value With that in mind brands need to carefully consider how they want to curate consumer experiencesAccording to Watkins brand journeys can be very long Many people in the study discussed interacting with brands for a decade or longer The relationship is personal with consumers creating their own stories around the brands And it39s catalytic meaning the more familiar they are with the brand the more likely they are to notice it out in the worldThe relationship can also be volatile quotA negative encounter with a brand can have seven times the impact on brand affinity as a positive onequot Watkins assertedOne way brands can increase brand affinity is by exposing consumers to the brand more often and in varying contexts But that39s the hard part Watkins said quotYou have to invest a lot of time and communicate consistently over time to get people to increase their affinity for your brandquot he added quotA single misstep can send people39s opinion of your brand hurtlingquotMeanwhile purchase journeys generally take place over much shorter timelines although people certainly spend more time thinking about their purchase of some products such as automobiles financial planning or insurance than others fast food or apparelRegardless of their ultimate reason for purchase respondents in the study quotusually wanted to treat themselvesquot Watkins said This held true even for the less quotfunquot categories such as insuranceThe study also uncovered four distinct categories of buyers that tend to be shopping at any given momentClout Hounds People who are preoccupied with their image and what a given product says about them They are more affected by celebrity endorsements and social influencers and are less brand loyal quotIf a market shifts they will shift with itquot Watkins notedReal Deals Consumers who tend to find brands they like and stick with themCompulsive Consumers People who just like to shop The endorphins they get from buying a product is as important as the product itself For this group quotit39s all about the experience of shopping and as a consequencequot Watkins said quotThis group is much less brand loyalquotStraight Shooters A group that is the most responsive to brand experiences whether the reaction is positive or negative quotThese people are less concerned about the brand itselfquot Watkins explained quotThey pay attention to whether they are treated with respect If you make a mistake they may not ever forgive you If you deliver a good product or service there39s no reason to make a changequotFor each group quotultimately their purchase decisions reflect the person more than the purchasequot Watkins concluded quotThe more you can tailor your marketing to the way they think and the way they make an evaluation about a brand or a purchase the better off you39ll bequotClick the social buttons to share this story with colleagues and friendsThe opinions expressed here are the author39s views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet

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Canvas Research Study: What We Get Wrong About the Customer Journey

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Paige Albiniak

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