Parallels Between the Buying Process

and Learning

Todd Kasenberg

Principal, Guiding Star Communications and Consulting

@Guidingstarcc

http://www.linkedin.com/in/toddkasenberg

www.guidingstarcc.com

todd@guidingstarcc.com

Todd Kasenberg

• Synthesize a model of the buying process

• Reflect on the parallels between the steps in the buying process and the “learning process”

• Provide an overview of customer journey mapping

• Explain the purpose of customer journey mapping

• Outline concepts and approaches for learner journey mapping

• Present a peak at the future

What This Session Should Do For You

The Confessions

Compliance Voluntary

Just in time/Tactical Planned/Strategic

Atypical Focal Points

Need Advocacy

Here!Here!

DesignedLearningProgram

Surprise!

You’ve inherited a heritage home!

Here’s your situation…

The Munsters home…

The Kitchen

In examining your new domain, and beyond cleaning, what are some things

here that must change?

Talk to me!

Work with those near you:

1. Choose one of those change items

2. Explore how you will acquire the goods or services needed to improve upon the current state.

In short –walk through the “buying process”, documenting or charting all the things you must do and think about as you move from that ugly kitchen to something more livable.

Exercise

The Buying Process:the process through which those with an “itch” determine how to scratch it, then find, evaluate, and choose among alternative “options” (aka brands).

Let’s Learn…

Todd’s Consensus Buying Process

Todd’s Synthesis – 7 Steps in the Buying Process

Need Re/Search

Evaluation of

Options

Justify / Vendor

Step-backs / Objectio

ns

Acquire Review /Remorse /Repeat / Recomme

nd

What Does This Have to Do With Learning?

A learning program is more than the instruction – it is the sum of all elements

from first contact with need to recommendation to others.

• Recognition of problem• “Need”

• Powerful emotional stage – current state not acceptable, change must occur

• Drive for change must exceed cost of status quo

• Internal stimuli vs external stimuli

Step 1: Need

Do our learning programs actively cultivate need?

Meander through information:

• ZMOT

• Social connection/recommendation

• Expert advice

• Media / advertising

• Store “help”

Step 2: Re/search

Do our learning programs support re/search?

Google’s Zero Moment of Truth

Better Than Social Recommendation?!?

Needs are met many different ways… especially if vaguely expressed

Problem: Water is coming through the top of my home

Options…

Step 3: Evaluate Options

Do our learning programs support option evaluation?

• Logical vs emotional

• Indecision

Brains Colliding?

When a particular option has been selected…

• Justify > often cost factors, relationship factors come into play

• Commodity vs single source vs customized/personalized

Step 4: Justify / Select Vendor

Do our learning programs support approach/style selection?

Objections Early:

• Not enough motivation to change

• Blissfully unaware of problem / problem scope

Objections Late:

• Cost, competitive pressure, implementation issues

Step 5: Step backs / objections

Do our learning programs address the step backs/objections?

Disruptions:

• negative feedback from other customers and the level of motivation to accept the feedback

Step 6: Acquisition

Do our learning programs address the nay-saids?

• Expectation reference• in brief, customers will compare products with

their previous expectations and will be either satisfied or dissatisfied.

• Confirmation bias

Step 7: Review/Remorse/Repeat/Recommend

Do our learning programs drive loyalty and recommendation?

Need inadequate – not enough emotional pain/motivation

Re/search – approach (e.g. unstructured), inadequate options, trust, time

Evaluate options – inadequate basis for decision, personalization desire

Where Are the Fall-Downs?

Select vendor – relationship factors, pricing, return on investment, commodity

Step backs/objections – not enough performance, credibility or relevance

Acquisition – change cost too high, nay-sayers win the day or are credible

R4 – quick win experience missing, post-acquisition “care” neglected

Where Are the Fall-Downs?

1. The learner sees no reason to participate in the learning.

1. Need problem…

2. The learner has heard parts of it before, and wishes s/he could be somewhere else.

1. Re/search/evaluation of options problems

3. The approach /style/format of the learning is inconsistent with the learner’s approach/style/format preferences.

4. The learning offers too much/too little, too late.1. Justification/vendor | Step backs/objection problems

5. The learner participates, but refuses to translate to behavioural change.

1. Acquisition/R4 problems

Persistent Problems of Learning

3. The approach /style/format of the learning is inconsistent with the learner’s approach/style/format preferences.

4. The learning offers too much/too little, too late.

Segmentation…

Decision criteria or brand keys

You and Me and a Dog Makes Three…

Marketing and sales concepts!!!

An Interesting Thought from the Massage Table

Customer experience (CX) is the sum of all experiences a customer has with a supplier of goods and/or services, over the duration of their relationship with that supplier.

This can include awareness, discovery, attraction, interaction, purchase, use, cultivation and advocacy.

It can also be used to mean an individual experience over one transaction; the distinction is usually clear in context.

Analysts and commentators who write about customer experience and customer relationship management have increasingly recognized the importance of managing the customer's experience

-Wikipedia

Customer Experience the New Rage

It’s a BIG rage…

It`s About Me!

The best experiences make the technology and platforms used invisible as part of a

seamless experience that provokes emotion.

Technology Platforms Emerging in Other Applications

Even Attempts to Tell Us What Media Types to Use to Match the Buying Process

KNOW YOUR CUSTOMER. PERSONALLY.

SELL TO

Journey Mapping

Courtesy of Bruce Temkin

• Divergences

• Inconsistencies

• Weaknesses

• Moments of truth

Before, during and after the “acquisition”

Leverage into (re)design to create WOW experiences

Customer Journey Mapping: The Quest

The purpose of customer journey mapping is to have the data you need to engineer or redesign to create WOW experiences.

WOW Experience:

Trust

Loyalty

Approach to Journey Mapping

Approach to Journey Mapping

Using Journey Maps

What’s the connection to learning???

• Understand the whole learner journey

• Brace yourself for different learner types (segmentation)?

• Implement learning strategies that match

Needs Assessments are… So Outdated

• End to end

• Journey > show motion

• Touchpoints – visible and invisible

• Moments to create value, to do something

• Relevant channels for intervention

• What the learner feels…

• What is the end state…

Moments of truth

Towards Learner Experience Mapping

The essential difference between

emotion and reason is that emotion leads to action while reason

leads to conclusions.-Donald Calne

• Walk the experience of having “learned” the subject

• Use audio, video and photographic recordings

• Use post-it notes

• Keep a log of the experience

• Record/address emotional state reported

Interviewing Those Who Have Learned

GoalsSubgoalsAmbience

Learner Goals

Company Goals

Want and don’t want

Feelings – coping / happy

• Walk the experience of having “learned” a subject

Interviewing Those Who Will Learn

GoalsSubgoalsAmbience

Learner Goals

Company Goals

Want and don’t want

Feelings – coping / happy

Ditto!

Ethnography is a process that combines observation and interview to find out what people really do and how they really do it.

It aims to surface attitudes and emotions that underlie the doing.

Anthropologic method

Learned/Learner Ethnography

“Think like Sherlock Holmes”

Learner Situation (style, environment)Learner Goals

Organization’s Goals

Need Re/Search Options Justification / Vendor

Step Backs / Objections

Acquisition R4

Sub

goal

sSte

ps

Feelin

gs

-

+

Am

bi

• Whatever is easiest to fix

• Whatever the internal culture feels is most important

• Whatever is easiest to measure

• Whatever gets most complaints

Action

• System thinking• Optimizing flow• Avoiding batching• Absorbing variety• People are best

My thoughts lead here…

How do we deliver right knowledge to support understanding – preferably at the moment of need?

Just in time/Tactical Planned/Strategic

• Learner mapping and ethnography

• Google throttled within the firewall (mashed up with social bookmarking technologies and intranets)

• Learners rate and recommend

• Personalization of learning materials:• Just-in-time learning powerfully supported• Persistent learning leveraged, extending the JIT

experience

• More effort outside the formal/program “box”

My Crystal Ball…

Thank you!