What is a Micro-Moment?

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How many times have you pulled out your phone to decide where to eat or to make a quick purchase? If you’re doing it, you can bet your customers are doing it, too. Google calls these micro-moments.

Micro-moments are small periods in time where it’s easier for you, as a business, to connect with a shopper and make a sale. They’re points in a customer’s buying journey where you can best meet their needs.

During these micro-moments, the consumer experiences levels of high intent and high engagement, which gives you a tiny window to connect with them on a deeper level and make a huge impact on their decision.

Four key types of micro-moments

Your clients’ specific micro-moments will depend on your business, but Google has identified four key types that everyone experiences:

  1. I want to know…
  2. I want to buy…
  3. I want to do…
  4. I want to go…

Consumers will experience different micro-moments throughout their buying journey. They’ll have different questions and problems at each stage. To capitalize on these moments, figure out how you can address those problems – either for free (through blog posts and videos) or paid (through your products or services).

Read also: 9 Reasons Your Small Business Needs Content Marketing

Why should I care about micro-moments?

More and more people are beginning to rely on cell phones for more than just checking their email or browsing the internet. They’re using them to answer questions, find relevant information, get directions, and go shopping.

Your ideal clients are shopping on their phones. If you provide the right content that answers the right questions at the right time, shoppers will be more likely to buy from you over your competitors. If you don’t answer their questions or if you ask for too much information initially, you run the risk of losing the shopper forever.

How can I take advantage of micro-moments?

When consumers are asking questions during these micro-moments, they want the information as quickly and accurately as possible. If you can figure out what your ideal customers are looking for, you can provide high-quality content that answers their questions.

If you’re unsure how to get started, let’s look at some examples based on Google’s key types of micro-moments.

I want to know & I want to buy

If you own a clothing boutique, a customer might want to know how to style a little black dress so they can go straight from work to girls’ night out. If you have a blog post talking about that, they might find it. If the post answers their questions, they’ll keep you in mind in the future. Consider asking them to sign up for your email newsletter so you can keep in touch. Learn more about how to effectively use email marketing.

Maybe a couple of weeks later, that same person wants to buy that little black dress. Your online store pops up on Google. They remember how helpful your blog post was, so they buy from you.

I want to do & I want to go

If you own a hair salon, someone might want to do their kid’s hair for “Crazy Hair Day” at school. If you write a blog post with step-by-step instructions on how to do some wacky hairstyles, they could find your article and follow the instructions.

The hairstyle was a huge hit! But now that same person’s child needs to get their haircut. They want to go to a kid-friendly hair salon nearby. Your salon pops up on Google, so the customer gives you a call and makes an appointment.

Read also: How to Take Advantage of Google My Business

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