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We see that the buyer is made aware of online supermarket Best Foody via a touchpoint. In
the next phase, he actually becomes interested in buying food. Step by step he continues until
he becomes a loyal customer (if all goes well).
In addition to all the steps he takes, he also goes through a number of phases. These stages are:

• Awareness: Hey, what is that? That might be something for me!
• Consideration: I think I will buy that product.
• Purchase: I am going to buy!
• Service: What a great service I have received!
• Loyalty: Next time I will go to this shop again!

The first three stages in the above list are known as the "Sales funnel". Buyers take these steps
(often unconsciously) when they want to make a purchase. The marketer must ensure that the
potential buyer can actually go through these steps. In another chapter we discuss the AIDA
model. The sales funnel is derived from the AIDA model.

The customer journey is not just about the digital steps. Physically receiving products, calling
customer service or visiting a shop are also part of the customer journey.

3.3 De customer experience

We go a little deeper into the customer experience. The customer experience is about how the
customer experiences the "contact" with a company. This goes beyond customer service. An
example. If you call a company with a question and you are kindly and competently answered,
then that is good customer service. The "customer experience" is however about all experien-
ces with the company, so not only about calling the customer service but also about how the
webshop and the Facebook page are experienced.

All touchpoints are involved! Investing in a good customer experience pays off. Take a look at
the following figures :
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86% of customers are prepared to pay more for a good experience..
For 73% of customers, the experience is the most important factor when making a
purchase decision.
According to 65% of customers, a positive experience during the buying process has
more influence than a good advertisement.

Another study shows that customer experience will become more important than price and
product when it comes to differentiating between brands.

3.3.1 Loyalty
Because a large proportion of customers take the experience into account when making futu-
re purchasing decisions, the customer experience has a major impact on the level of loyal-
ty. Customers are less likely to switch to the competition and loyal customers often become

2: Source: Superoffice

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