Starting an Online Business All-in-One For Dummies, 5th Edition

Chapter 1

Mapping the Digital Buyer’s Journey

IN THIS CHAPTER

Defining the stages from browser to buyer

Picking apart the modern sales funnel

Fine-tuning the online buying process for a smooth ride

Information is power. There’s little debate that a well-educated buyer is a smart buyer, and the Internet has truly empowered today’s consumer online and off. Analysts estimate that as much as 70 percent of business to business (B2B) buyers have already made or narrowed their decision to buy before seeking late-stage sales assistance from your business. For business to consumer (B2C) buyers, that number jumps to as much as 90 percent! Of course, this difference in buyer behavior isn’t too surprising. A B2C purchase is often less complicated (buyers simply complete the online check-out process) compared to a B2B purchase (which might require actively engaging a salesperson to complete the sale). It’s more important than ever before for online businesses to understand where and when buyers are getting information and how that influences their final buying decisions.

In this chapter, we walk you through the stages typical online buyers go through when making a purchasing decision, how they ...