Queen was a bloody brilliant rock band…and Freddie Mercury was probably a time traveler, because he sure did understand the urgency of 21^st century people. “I want it all…I want it all…and I want it NOW!” We’re sure that’ll be stuck in your head all day…you’re welcome. Indeed, insatiable curiosity and instant gratification are definitely modern trends that are here to stay, especially as mobile technology plays a larger role in everyday life: More than three out of four American adults use a smartphone and fifty percent own a tablet. Mobile devices are now like a body part these days…if you woke up missing you’re leg, you’d probably panic a bit. That’s how almost thirty percent of users (it really is an addiction) admitted feeling when they don’t have their phone on them. Many mobile phone owners spend nearly three hours interacting with their devices, from checking their social media apps and browsing the web to playing games and communicating through text, call, or e-mail; however, these interactions tend to be short bursts throughout the day – 150 on average. While people use their mobile devices to entertain themselves, they also turn to them to take action on immediate needs and wants – instances Google calls micro-moments. They represent different points along a potential customer’s purchasing journey and are broken down into I-want-to-know, I-want-to-go, I-want-to-buy, and I-want-to-do moments. Here’s what each moment entails:

• I-want-to-know moments are triggered by curiosity and represent the research phase of a customer’s journey. They’re not quite ready to buy yet, so informative, even inspirational, content is better suited than the hard sell.
• I-want-to-go moments are just as they sound: people are trying to locate a business. “Near me” searches have doubled in the past year, making Google My Business and other location information a top priority.
• I-want-to-do moments happen when people are looking up how-to tutorials, whether they want to try something new, figure out how to properly use a product, or find a better way to get things done. “How to” searches on YouTube are on the rise, growing seventy percent year-over-year.
• I-want-to-buy moments are your chance to seal the deal. People can make an instant purchase anywhere or look up information to assist their buying decisions. In fact, more than 8 out of 10 customers turn to their phone while in store to help them make a decision.

Companies, especially small businesses with limited marketing budgets, ought to leverage these sweet spots to guide customers through each point of their decision-making journey. So, how can your company seize the micro-moment? By showing up through search engine optimization (SEO) and mobile strategies, catering content to audience needs, and optimizing the mobile experience for speed. Here’s a short checklist of questions to help you capture those tiny moments:

1. Are you ranking on the first page of the search engine result pages (SERP) for your brand’s keywords?
2. Are you capturing a high proportion of organic traffic generated from those keywords?
3. Have you provided content for every point in the consumer’s purchasing journey, from research to transaction?
4. Are you producing quality, “snackable” content that answers consumer questions quickly, including providing how-to tutorials for your products and services?
5. Have you signed up for Google My Business?
6. What functions on your mobile site are essential for your customer?
7. How long does your mobile website take to load?
8. Are you analyzing the data and using it to continually optimize your customers’ mobile experience?

Of course, like any inbound marketing strategy, leveraging these micro-moments requires a long-term and consistent investment in your online storefront. Your brand’s visibility won’t brighten overnight; instead, you’ll need to weave a multi-platform epic spun to suit each stage of your audience’s journey. If you’re in need of storytellers with the mind for analytics, please contact Social Spice Media. We’ll create and optimize online content to capture and capitalize on those precious micro-moments. And for your immediate gratification: click here for Queen’s “I want it all”. Look at us…predicting your needs.