The Digital Presence Imperative: Winning the 'Zero Moment' in Consulting

A relevant statistic for you: 9 out of 10 service buyers will actively do their own research on you. But 8 out of 10 consultants automatically get rejected because their digital footprint does not point to a desired level of expertise.

Your digital presence is definitely something you should not neglect. We don’t hire services like we used to. And neither do your prospects.

Ten years ago, we would rely on things like gut feel, word of mouth, and price to make a buying decision. We would ask friends and colleagues for referrals and trust their recommendations. You needed to visit physical offices and stores to get quotes and compare solutions.

The internet has forever changed how we decide what and when to buy. Most of the information we need to make a buying decision can be found online. And your competitors - who had built great thought leadership and captured considerable mindshare among your niche - are only 1 click away.

Even though we can't measure everything, there's a strong consensus among serious marketers that this is a trend with no signs of reversal.

The period during which people research and explore your online presence before contacting the business for the first time has been named by Google as the "Zero Moment of Truth" (ZMOT). In their words, it is the “moment in the buying process when the consumer researches a product prior to purchase.”

There are several ways you can win in the ZMOT game, but almost all of them require strengthening your online presence and digital marketing.

Ask yourself these questions:

• What will your ideal client find if they google your name and check out your LinkedIn or social profiles?
• Will they instantly see that you are a specialist who can address their needs? Will they find any thought leadership content (case studies, your point of view, latest trends) that communicates your expertise?
• Will they find testimonials and social proof? How much can they learn about your services without talking to you first?

Answering those is the starting point to building a strong digital presence.