Comments on: Is the Purchase Funnel Dead? How the Internet’s Rewired Consumer Buying Behavior http://www.adotas.com/2006/03/is-the-purchase-funnel-dead-how-the-internets-rewired-consumer-buying-behavior/ Where Interactive Advertising Begins Fri, 10 Feb 2012 17:07:34 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.1 By: Tim http://www.adotas.com/2006/03/is-the-purchase-funnel-dead-how-the-internets-rewired-consumer-buying-behavior/#comment-782592 Tim Tue, 25 Aug 2009 19:11:17 +0000 http://www.adotas.com/2006/03/is-the-purchase-funnel-dead-how-the-internets-rewired-consumer-buying-behavior/#comment-782592 I agree with David and don't believe the purchasing funnel is dead. The dawn of the internet does not mean a fundamental rethink is required here, but rather a few tweaks to the original concept. As with most models, the purchasing funnel needs to move with the times, but we shouldn't rewrite the rulebook just because something has been around for a while. Sure, information is more readily available and transactions are easier, but one and two way conversations with consumers and independent reviewers pre-date the web. Twitter isn't the solution to every consumer woe. http://www.marketing-made-simple.com/articles/purchasing-funnel.htm I agree with David and don’t believe the purchasing funnel is dead. The dawn of the internet does not mean a fundamental rethink is required here, but rather a few tweaks to the original concept. As with most models, the purchasing funnel needs to move with the times, but we shouldn’t rewrite the rulebook just because something has been around for a while. Sure, information is more readily available and transactions are easier, but one and two way conversations with consumers and independent reviewers pre-date the web.
Twitter isn’t the solution to every consumer woe.

http://www.marketing-made-simple.com/articles/purchasing-funnel.htm

]]> By: drauppDESIGN » Is the Purchase Funnel becoming a “Tumbler” http://www.adotas.com/2006/03/is-the-purchase-funnel-dead-how-the-internets-rewired-consumer-buying-behavior/#comment-32309 drauppDESIGN » Is the Purchase Funnel becoming a “Tumbler” Thu, 30 Nov 2006 21:48:39 +0000 http://www.adotas.com/2006/03/is-the-purchase-funnel-dead-how-the-internets-rewired-consumer-buying-behavior/#comment-32309 [...] Links to related articles: http://www.clickz.com/showPage.html?page=3605581 adotas.com is the purchase funnel dead? [...] [...] Links to related articles: http://www.clickz.com/showPage.html?page=3605581 adotas.com is the purchase funnel dead? [...]

]]> By: David Garfield http://www.adotas.com/2006/03/is-the-purchase-funnel-dead-how-the-internets-rewired-consumer-buying-behavior/#comment-12419 David Garfield Fri, 02 Jun 2006 15:17:45 +0000 http://www.adotas.com/2006/03/is-the-purchase-funnel-dead-how-the-internets-rewired-consumer-buying-behavior/#comment-12419 The strategic concept of the Purchase Funnel is a very useful construct despite the fact that there never was an "orderly buying process". The Purchase Funnel is an effective model that helps marketers organize their thinking about consumers navigation through the marketplace, including the automotive world. We have all seen what a DNA molecule model looks like. It's the double helix representation that has revolutionized scientific thinking on a score of issues. I'm told it looks nothing like a real DNA molecule, but the way it is portrayed conceptualizes the workings of a very complex nanoworld. So to, the Purchase Funnel helps marketers conceptualize the processes of buying products, particularly durable goods. The Internet is just a medium. It is a relatively new tactical instrument, but just like any other medium, its job is to deliver information to potential customers...at a reasonable cost. Wouldn't you guess that when radio was invented some people would have believed that the Purchase Funnel [had it been invented then] would have obsoleted any orderly buying process, because you could reach people by the millions. How about when TV came of age...now we could show prospects a product, and even DEMONSTRATE it...havoc. The Internet is just another way consumers effectuate their information gathering and decision process. It is a powerful tool, to be sure...but it does not violate the basic hierarchy of effects that the Purchase Funnel so splendidly portrays. The purchase process has always been messy and unpredictable at the individual level, which is precisely what makes a framework like the Purchase Funnel valuable. The Purchase Funnel does not pretend to trace individuals through their decision-making stages, but instead describes how a marketer's brands are doing in building or not building momentum down the funnel. The Purchase Funnel provides the best indication of whether or not a brand is on track to meet sales goals, and provides rich information on where obstacles exist. The strategic concept of the Purchase Funnel is a very useful construct despite the fact that there never was an “orderly buying process”. The Purchase Funnel is an effective model that helps marketers organize their thinking about consumers navigation through the marketplace, including the automotive world.

We have all seen what a DNA molecule model looks like. It’s the double helix representation that has revolutionized scientific thinking on a score of issues. I’m told it looks nothing like a real DNA molecule, but the way it is portrayed conceptualizes the workings of a very complex nanoworld. So to, the Purchase Funnel helps marketers conceptualize the processes of buying products, particularly durable goods.

The Internet is just a medium. It is a relatively new tactical instrument, but just like any other medium, its job is to deliver information to potential customers…at a reasonable cost. Wouldn’t you guess that when radio was invented some people would have believed that the Purchase Funnel [had it been invented then] would have obsoleted any orderly buying process, because you could reach people by the millions. How about when TV came of age…now we could show prospects a product, and even DEMONSTRATE it…havoc.

The Internet is just another way consumers effectuate their information gathering and decision process. It is a powerful tool, to be sure…but it does not violate the basic hierarchy of effects that the Purchase Funnel so splendidly portrays.

The purchase process has always been messy and unpredictable at the individual level, which is precisely what makes a framework like the Purchase Funnel valuable. The Purchase Funnel does not pretend to trace individuals through their decision-making stages, but instead describes how a marketer’s brands are doing in building or not building momentum down the funnel. The Purchase Funnel provides the best indication of whether or not a brand is on track to meet sales goals, and provides rich information on where obstacles exist.

]]> By: Purchase Funnels Fizzling? at Experience Planner http://www.adotas.com/2006/03/is-the-purchase-funnel-dead-how-the-internets-rewired-consumer-buying-behavior/#comment-5452 Purchase Funnels Fizzling? at Experience Planner Mon, 03 Apr 2006 19:12:21 +0000 http://www.adotas.com/2006/03/is-the-purchase-funnel-dead-how-the-internets-rewired-consumer-buying-behavior/#comment-5452 [...] As Experience Planners for the web know, it’s not so tidy.  Customers jump around from one mindset to another. In a recent Adotas article, Cathy Clift talks about a recent ComScore study  where the consideration set of a customer looking to buy a product, increased from 4 to 5 or 6 vehicle models after doing generic keyword searches.  That’s a huge “wow!” moment for me.  This implies that a customer, who had 4 plasma television brands/models in minds before starting research on the internet, had 5 or 6 brands/models after completing an initial pass at research using generic keywords like “plasma TV”. [...] [...] As Experience Planners for the web know, it’s not so tidy.  Customers jump around from one mindset to another. In a recent Adotas article, Cathy Clift talks about a recent ComScore study  where the consideration set of a customer looking to buy a product, increased from 4 to 5 or 6 vehicle models after doing generic keyword searches.  That’s a huge “wow!” moment for me.  This implies that a customer, who had 4 plasma television brands/models in minds before starting research on the internet, had 5 or 6 brands/models after completing an initial pass at research using generic keywords like “plasma TV”. [...]

]]> By: Digital Photography Alerts » Training 2.0 - Fifty Places Released for New Diploma in Training http://www.adotas.com/2006/03/is-the-purchase-funnel-dead-how-the-internets-rewired-consumer-buying-behavior/#comment-5098 Digital Photography Alerts » Training 2.0 - Fifty Places Released for New Diploma in Training Mon, 03 Apr 2006 01:04:33 +0000 http://www.adotas.com/2006/03/is-the-purchase-funnel-dead-how-the-internets-rewired-consumer-buying-behavior/#comment-5098 [...] Is the Purchase Funnel Dead? How the Internet s Rewired Consumer ADOTAS, NY - Mar 20, 2006 retailer terms (eg Best Buy, Gateway.com ) accounted for 20% and specific product terms (eg Canon digital camcorder, HP notebook nx9010 [...] [...] Is the Purchase Funnel Dead? How the Internet s Rewired Consumer ADOTAS, NY - Mar 20, 2006 retailer terms (eg Best Buy, Gateway.com ) accounted for 20% and specific product terms (eg Canon digital camcorder, HP notebook nx9010 [...]

]]> By: David Wassmann http://www.adotas.com/2006/03/is-the-purchase-funnel-dead-how-the-internets-rewired-consumer-buying-behavior/#comment-1815 David Wassmann Fri, 24 Mar 2006 23:23:52 +0000 http://www.adotas.com/2006/03/is-the-purchase-funnel-dead-how-the-internets-rewired-consumer-buying-behavior/#comment-1815 The purchase funnel has been dead a long time. Some consumers ask a friend and buy. Others shop for weeks, months, feverishly. The traditional funnel construct only works in the old Soviet Union. In the car business, consumers allegedly shop carefully and then make a decision. Hahahahaha...spend some time at a car dealership and you will be quickly disabused of that notion. Some consumers buy only because they were able to get financing or enough for their trade in. Others shop based on payment, or color. Others, based on what the neighbor said. And then...there are the maniacs, like me, who carefully browse for days, weeks and months for the PERFECT deal. Success in marketing, is finding the various clusters of behavior and marketing to those. The purchase funnel has been dead a long time. Some consumers ask a friend and buy. Others shop for weeks, months, feverishly. The traditional funnel construct only works in the old Soviet Union.

In the car business, consumers allegedly shop carefully and then make a decision. Hahahahaha…spend some time at a car dealership and you will be quickly disabused of that notion. Some consumers buy only because they were able to get financing or enough for their trade in. Others shop based on payment, or color. Others, based on what the neighbor said. And then…there are the maniacs, like me, who carefully browse for days, weeks and months for the PERFECT deal. Success in marketing, is finding the various clusters of behavior and marketing to those.

]]> By: John Lee http://www.adotas.com/2006/03/is-the-purchase-funnel-dead-how-the-internets-rewired-consumer-buying-behavior/#comment-894 John Lee Tue, 21 Mar 2006 23:17:49 +0000 http://www.adotas.com/2006/03/is-the-purchase-funnel-dead-how-the-internets-rewired-consumer-buying-behavior/#comment-894 A very interesting piece. I contend however, that the Purchase Funnel is alive and well. The PF is a strategic construct and the author is making a tactical argument. The piece states "The implications of this study challenge a widely held assumption encoded in the purchase funnel, that most consumers begin the product search process by using a generic search term...". The PF in it's basic form (awareness, consideration, use, loyalty) does not currently nor has it ever explicitly ascribed precise tactics e.g., magazine ads, brochures, events, search, owner testimonials etc., to each step in the funnel (although they are generally understood). The provided explanation of how someone now buys a car still deals with the Consideration stage of the funnel. Granted consumers have many more options (i.e., tactics) today to get them down, up, across and through this stage, but we are still dealing with the strategic issue of Consideration. This has not changed. Moving on to Loyalty, the piece goes on to state "...but again, the purchase funnel falls woefully short, guiding the marketer to invest heavily in awareness-building programs and under-invest in the usage/ownership experience." I again find this to be a specious argument. The PF does not assign relative importance to any step in the funnel over another. If marketer is a doing a poor job of loyalty marketing that does not mean the PF is flawed it means that marketers don't understand it. Today, as in the past, the PF has four equally important steps that provide a flexibly linear approach to the consumer purchase process. Consumers may enter the funnel at different points and by different methods but the funnel is still the funnel. To ensure success, each step must be mastered by the astute application of any and all traditional and new media marketing tactics that are available. A very interesting piece. I contend however, that the Purchase Funnel is alive and well. The PF is a strategic construct and the author is making a tactical argument. The piece states “The implications of this study challenge a widely held assumption encoded in the purchase funnel, that most consumers begin the product search process by using a generic search term…”. The PF in it’s basic form (awareness, consideration, use, loyalty) does not currently nor has it ever explicitly ascribed precise tactics e.g., magazine ads, brochures, events, search, owner testimonials etc., to each step in the funnel (although they are generally understood).

The provided explanation of how someone now buys a car still deals with the Consideration stage of the funnel. Granted consumers have many more options (i.e., tactics) today to get them down, up, across and through this stage, but we are still dealing with the strategic issue of Consideration. This has not changed.

Moving on to Loyalty, the piece goes on to state “…but again, the purchase funnel falls woefully short, guiding the marketer to invest heavily in awareness-building programs and under-invest in the usage/ownership experience.” I again find this to be a specious argument. The PF does not assign relative importance to any step in the funnel over another. If marketer is a doing a poor job of loyalty marketing that does not mean the PF is flawed it means that marketers don’t understand it.

Today, as in the past, the PF has four equally important steps that provide a flexibly linear approach to the consumer purchase process. Consumers may enter the funnel at different points and by different methods but the funnel is still the funnel. To ensure success, each step must be mastered by the astute application of any and all traditional and new media marketing tactics that are available.

]]> By: Tom Troland http://www.adotas.com/2006/03/is-the-purchase-funnel-dead-how-the-internets-rewired-consumer-buying-behavior/#comment-702 Tom Troland Mon, 20 Mar 2006 18:33:04 +0000 http://www.adotas.com/2006/03/is-the-purchase-funnel-dead-how-the-internets-rewired-consumer-buying-behavior/#comment-702 Are legible files for the third and fourth charts available? The three-line chart next to the passage about CNW and the ORBIT chart near the end are very intriguing, but largely indecipherable. Thanks for a terrific diagnosis. Are legible files for the third and fourth charts available? The three-line chart next to the passage about CNW and the ORBIT chart near the end are very intriguing, but largely indecipherable.

Thanks for a terrific diagnosis.

]]> By: Bob Gordon http://www.adotas.com/2006/03/is-the-purchase-funnel-dead-how-the-internets-rewired-consumer-buying-behavior/#comment-701 Bob Gordon Mon, 20 Mar 2006 18:05:31 +0000 http://www.adotas.com/2006/03/is-the-purchase-funnel-dead-how-the-internets-rewired-consumer-buying-behavior/#comment-701 Thanks for the articulation of what our sales guys have been unsuccessfully pitching to the car company ad agency's for the past 10 years...what excuse will the "the Funnel is the only thing" ad agencies have now for not becoming "research is the real thing" agencies and adding content sites ( like The Auto Channel.com) to historic and ineffective "Blue Book, and Yellow Page" media buys? Thanks for the articulation of what our sales guys have been unsuccessfully pitching to the car company ad agency’s for the past 10 years…what excuse will the “the Funnel is the only thing” ad agencies have now for not becoming “research is the real thing” agencies and adding content sites ( like The Auto Channel.com) to historic and ineffective “Blue Book, and Yellow Page” media buys?

]]> By: Joseph Jaffe http://www.adotas.com/2006/03/is-the-purchase-funnel-dead-how-the-internets-rewired-consumer-buying-behavior/#comment-699 Joseph Jaffe Mon, 20 Mar 2006 17:15:45 +0000 http://www.adotas.com/2006/03/is-the-purchase-funnel-dead-how-the-internets-rewired-consumer-buying-behavior/#comment-699 Cathy - good piece. Can you e-mail me the final chart (circle/arrows) as I'd like to write this up on Jaffe Juice. Thanks, jJ Cathy – good piece. Can you e-mail me the final chart (circle/arrows) as I’d like to write this up on Jaffe Juice.

Thanks,

jJ

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