The Search Economy: Creating Demand vs Capturing Demand

I just wrapped my first month at Pneuma. It’s impossible to learn everything in a month, but I feel like I’ve got the building blocks in place to help us launch our story of The Search Economy into the universe. The Search Economy is how we will go-to-market at Pneuma. People don’t remember product features, new packaging, or how differentiated your services can be. People do remember stories. The Search Economy is our way of introducing a story to our audience that will place them as the hero to their next customer. We haven’t formally rolled out The Search Economy yet, but you’ll be introduced to the full length version soon through our new podcast, newsletter, and other content we’ll be shipping. 

The most important lesson I’ve learned over a decade and half experience in marketing is that the best marketing is all about gaining momentum. The best marketers are methodical about consistently sharing enough to create excitement. Great marketing can convert awareness into interest and then that interest into new revenue.

It's never enough to update your website, publish a blog post, or share a new story and expect your next customer to line up to purchase. It's all about using the channels that you've got to your advantage, but also giving your next customer context for why it should matter to them.

I won’t drop The Search Economy story here today, but will share the SparkNotes that I sent over to our team last week. 

• Pneuma's next customer's customer is spending more time online than ever before
• The problem is that companies are over investing in areas that create demand, but struggle to capture it (e.g. advertising)
• In The Search Economy consumers are on offense and turn to Google to find companies who can help solve their problem
• Pneuma has the people and services to help guide our next customer into the era of The Search Economy
• Finally, Pneuma has the evidence with so many customer success stories to prove it
  

One of the most important aspects about being a business that is growing in The Search Economy is understanding the differences between creating demand vs capturing demand. Many business owners, operators, and marketers bundle these two motions together when they’re investing in marketing. When you make the acts of creating demand and capturing demand interchangeable it’s nearly impossible to set realistic expectations with the results that you’re going to get from your marketing efforts. 

Here's how I think about creating demand vs. capturing demand and why they're different. ‍

Creating Demand 

Creating demand involves generating interest and desire for a product or service where little or none existed before. In The Search Economy, we talk a lot about the marketing investments that are made on the advertising front. There’s not a day that goes by that we aren’t smacked in the face by consumer services businesses who are advertising in the newspaper, TV, radio, billboards, and many other ways. Marketing efforts to create demand typically are aimed at educating consumers about the benefits of a product or service and how it can help solve a specific problem. The goal of creating demand in marketing is always to drive interest and desire among potential customers who might not have been aware of the product or service previously. 

Capturing Demand

Capturing demand involves satisfying existing demand for a product or service that already exists in a specific target market. The key with capturing demand is that it’s all about making it as easy as possible for customers who already want a specific product or service to find it, buy it, and have an excellent experience from it. Since we’re focused on generating interest from demand that’s already in place the focus is all about conversion. 

Setting the Right Expectations About Creating vs. Capturing Demand

Early in my career in marketing I struggled to truly differentiate between creating demand vs capturing demand. I’d create a new content series and be disappointed that readers weren’t lined up at the door to book meetings. I’d run campaigns and get excited about all of the interest, but instantly become disappointed when it didn’t immediately turn to revenue. 

Marketing is a long game. When we think about finding our next customer in The Search Economy you need to differentiate between creating awareness and creating demand. Also, you need to make sure that you’re making it stupid simple for your next customer to find you when they have a problem that your business can solve. 

At Pneuma, we’re in the business of capturing demand for customers who are growing in The Search Economy. It starts with our team made up of experienced SEO, PPC, and design professionals. We make it easy for your next customer to find you when they need you the most. 

Creating demand is about generating interest and desire for a product or service, while capturing demand is about effectively meeting the existing demand and converting it into sales. Both are important for the success of a business, and a well-rounded marketing and sales strategy will often involve elements of both.

If you want to quit losing to your competition and start capturing demand, book your free traffic audit today.