2005 First and Second Moment of Truth
The ‘First Moment of Truth’ was defined in 2005 by Alan G. Lafley, CEO of the consumer goods company Procter & Gamble (P&G). It refers to the moment when the customer is about to make a purchase decision. This decision is made in the first three to seven seconds in which a consumer comes into contact with the product. It is precisely this period of time that marketers must utilise to convince potential buyers of their product.
In the offline world, the ‘first moment of truth’ is very much characterised by the shopper’s personal shopping experience. Advice and the right ambience for the sales experience play an important role here in particular.
This model can be transferred to the online world – keyword ‘shopping platforms’ and ‘booking portals’. Here, product reviews in particular play a role in the purchasing decision. However, in this case too, the presentation of the product is of decisive importance for sales success.
The FMOT therefore describes the moment when a potential customer sees a product for the first time and makes an immediate decision as to whether they want to buy it.
• This typically happens in-store (e.g. on the supermarket shelf) or online (e.g. on a product page).
• The FMOT depends heavily on visual and emotional impressions: Packaging design, price, brand, placement and other external features all play a role here.
Examples
- A customer stands in front of a shelf of chocolate brands in the supermarket and spontaneously decides in favour of a particular brand because the packaging is appealing.
- When shopping online, a user clicks on a product because the image and price look attractive.
The ‘second moment of truth’ is also coined by P&G. It refers to the moment when the buyer uses a product or utilises a service for the first time. At this moment, the buyer experiences the brand promise based on the quality of the product or service. Only after this experience can the buyer evaluate the product for themselves and judge whether it fulfils the desired benefit. This moment decides whether he or she will buy the product again and whether he or she will recommend it to other potential buyers.
The SMOT describes the moment in which the customer actually uses the product and forms an opinion about it. This experience influences whether the customer buys the product again or recommends it to others.
- SMOT is about the actual product performance and the fulfilment of expectations.
Examples
- The customer tries the purchased chocolate and is delighted with the flavour. This positive experience leads them to buy the brand again.
- A customer tests a technical device and realises that it does not fulfill the promised functions. This disappointment leads to negative reviews or to the customer not buying it again.
Transferred to the digital world, this means that customers receive a thank you page and are always informed about the status of their order, especially when purchasing online. The more personalised and individual the message sent, the higher the level of positive experience for customers.
This creates a point of contact between the customer and the company. The following four phases are relevant:
The initial stimulus
Your customer receives an incentive to buy, for example through a television advert or a magazine advertisement.
The walk to the shelf (First Moment of Truth/FMOT)
Your customer is interested and stands in front of the shelf where the product can be purchased. This is the first contact with the product.
Trying it out at home (Second Moment of Truth/SMOT)
At home, your customer tries out the product and experiences its specific properties. This is the second moment in which he or she experiences the product
Optional
Your customer becomes a brand ambassador (third moment of truth/TMOT): he or she is so enthusiastic that he or she recommends your product to others. This recommendation can act as a stimulus for others and the process starts all over again.
To summarize, this means that starting from the original information (the stimulus), the customer goes directly to the shelf. In between, there is no active engagement with the product.
2009 – McKinsey Consumer Decision Journey
McKinsey’s Consumer Decision Journey model from 2009 describes how consumers make decisions about the purchase of products or services. It extends the classic idea of a linear purchasing decision process and takes into account the changing behavioral patterns influenced by digitalization and increasing access to information.
In contrast to traditional models, McKinsey describes the consumer journey as a dynamic, iterative process. Consumers jump back and forth between different phases and can revise their decisions at any time due to external influences.
Consumers move in real life outside of a traditional sales funnel and therefore inform themselves about the product before making a purchase. Companies should actively shape the decision-making process of their customers by organizing suitable marketing measures and using modern software tools. They should also ensure that they create added value for both customers and their own brand and optimize the decision-making phase. In this way, the reflection and evaluation phase can be shortened, and the journey itself can become a source of competitive advantage.
Overall, the following four key phases of a journey were identified
- Initial Consideration Set:
The process begins with a list of brands or products that the consumer is considering. This list is based on previous experience, recommendations and brand awareness. - Active Evaluation:
In this phase, the consumer actively gathers information, compares alternatives and considers new brands or products. This can be done through online research, reviews, test reports or advice from friends. → Important: Brands can be added or excluded in this phase.
- Moment of Purchase:
The consumer makes the final purchase decision based on the information and impressions gathered. - Post-Purchase Experience:
After the purchase, the consumer evaluates whether the product or service has met their expectations. Positive experiences strengthen customer loyalty, while negative experiences can lead to brand switching. - Loyalty Loop:
Satisfied customers can enter a loyalty loop, which means that they will choose the same brand again in the future without having to go through the evaluation process again. Loyalty can be passive (habit) or active (conscious decision).
The consumer journey is influenced by numerous touchpoints, including advertising, social media, online reviews, personal recommendations and customer experiences. Companies must ensure that they are present and convincing at all relevant touchpoints.
Consumers can jump back to earlier phases at any time, for example if they have a negative experience during the post-purchase phase or become aware of alternative offers.
The study found that the ability of organizations to deliver this value depends on the following four interrelated capabilities:
Automation streamlines work steps. One example is the ability to photograph a example is the ability to photograph a bank transfer and submit it via a banking app instead of visiting a bank branch in person. While the automation of processes is very processes is very technical, the focus is on providing customers with simple, useful and increasingly and increasingly engaging experiences for customers.
Proactive personalization uses information about a customer that is either
customer, either based on previous interactions or from external sources, to personalise his or her to immediately individualise their experience. Remembering customer preferences is a basic example of this capability, but it is also about personalising and optimising the next steps in a customer’s journey. This includes, for example, instantly adding a valued hotel guest to an upgrade list.
Context-dependent interaction utilizes the knowledge of where the customer is currently in the decision path. This information is used to guide him or her to the next stage of interaction. For example, a website shows the customer the status of their last booking or their last visit on the homepage. Some hotels are experimenting with using their app like a key when a guest enters their room.
Journey innovation extends the interaction to new sources of value, such as new services
new services, both for customers and for the brand. Companies analyse their data and insights about a customer to find out which related services might be of interest to them. The best companies design journeys that enable open-ended testing so that new services or functions can be continuously tested in prototypes. An example of this is an airline app that integrates a taxi service so that travellers can book cars to pick them up at their destination.
For companies, this means that they need to pay more attention to the following factors
- Focus on influencers: Brands must appeal to consumers in the evaluation phase through convincing content and recommendations.
- improve customer experiences: Post-purchase experiences are critical to fostering loyalty and ensuring repeat purchases.
- Data Analysis: Understand at which touchpoints customers interact with the brand and make targeted investments to be convincing at these points.
- Omnichannel-Strategy: Companies should offer consumers a consistent and appealing experience across all channels.
The model emphasizes that the decision-making process of consumers today is more complex and less predictable. Companies must adapt to this reality in order to be successful.
Marketing Automation with Like Reply
Like Reply is a specialized expert in digital communication with offices in Munich, Milan and Paris. We support companies in the introduction and development of automated communication as well as in the systematic, effective management of leads and customer relationships. Contact us without obligation and find out how we can take the use of Marketing Automation to the next level together.