{"id":70208,"date":"2015-09-09T16:46:37","date_gmt":"2015-09-09T16:46:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.strattoncraig.com\/insight\/content-for-the-customer-buying-process-information-search\/"},"modified":"2015-09-09T16:46:37","modified_gmt":"2015-09-09T16:46:37","slug":"content-for-the-customer-buying-process-information-search","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.strattoncraig.com\/us\/insight\/content-for-the-customer-buying-process-information-search\/","title":{"rendered":"Content for the customer buying process: information search"},"content":{"rendered":"

Part two of our blog series on the best content for the customer buying process<\/a>\u00a0takes us to information search \u2013 the second stage of a consumer\u2019s purchasing journey. Below we\u2019ll explore this important part of the overall process and the best types of content to give potential customers exactly what they\u2019re looking for.
\nInformation search explained<\/strong>
\nThis stage follows the moment when a consumer has identified their problem and now needs to search for information to find a solution. This involves an analysis of internal information, such as previous experiences with products or services and their opinion of a brand. It will also see them explore external information such as the opinion of friends, family and peers, product reviews, and sales messages.
\nThe external information search is where you can have an influence through content. You need to make sure information on what you\u2019re selling is easily found and clearly communicates the benefits of the product\/service. At this stage you can call upon a wide variety of content types to get the messages across, but we think the two below are particularly effective, as we explain.
\nBlog posts<\/strong>
\nMost people will start online when searching for a solution to a problem. Therefore, one of the easiest ways of getting your own explanation in front of a potential buyer is through a blog post that ranks highly during a search. Keyword analysis will allow you to spot topics that are trending among your target audience, and with these insights you can craft a post that explores an issue many people are currently facing.
\nFor example, we know how important it is to blog effectively as part of a content marketing strategy<\/a>, but many firms struggle to get it right. Our blog on \u2018five reasons why your company blog is failing\u2019<\/a>addresses this issue and explains where firms are going wrong, so they know what to put right. It also ranks second when you tap \u2018failing company blog\u2019 into Google, proving it has been effective in being both informative and a useful SEO tool.
\nIt\u2019s important to remember that at this stage of the buying process your audience doesn\u2019t want to be sold to, they simply want information. That is why blog posts that stay true to the ideals of content marketing – i.e. provide value \u2013 are effective here. They shouldn\u2019t be a thinly-veiled sales pitch but instead educate and inform the reader.
\nPodcasts<\/strong>
\nAnother useful way of providing valuable information in an engaging way is through a podcast, as people turn to them to be educated as well as entertained. The consumption of this type of media has been rising steadily for years<\/a>, and it offers an alternative to blogging or ebooks as people can gain information while walking to work, for example.
\nJust as you would through a blog, you can discuss a pertinent issue and how to overcome it, but a podcast enables you to add more of a human touch. You could invite two colleagues to discuss the issue to give your audience a more rounded solution, and use humour to keep them interested. The podcast could also be promoted on your website as part of a blog or through social media to get it in front of people who are hunting for help. I struggled to find examples of brands that already use podcasts to inform their audience, which suggests that it could be a useful tool to differentiate your business from its rivals.
\nUsing the above content types you can help potential customers to find the information they are searching for when solving a problem, and at the same time establish yourself as a credible expert. This is beneficial when it comes to the next stage of the buying process – evaluation of alternatives \u2013 which we\u2019ll explore in the next blog post.
\nShare your thoughts on the above by leaving a comment below, or tweet us @strattoncraig.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Part two of our blog series on the best content for the customer buying process\u00a0takes us to information search \u2013 the second stage of a consumer\u2019s purchasing journey. Below we\u2019ll explore this important part of the overall process and the best types of content to give potential customers exactly what they\u2019re looking for. Information search […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[411,305],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-70208","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog-writing-us","category-content-strategy-us"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nContent for the customer buying process: information search - Stratton Craig - Global Copywriting & Content Strategy Agency<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.strattoncraig.com\/us\/insight\/content-for-the-customer-buying-process-information-search\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Content for the customer buying process: information search - Stratton Craig - Global Copywriting & Content Strategy Agency\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Part two of our blog series on the best content for the customer buying process\u00a0takes us to information search \u2013 the second stage of a consumer\u2019s purchasing journey. 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