As you are learning in this course, a consumer’s journey to a buying decision has several steps and there are many factors that influence the choices made at each point in the process. P&G, the world’s largest consumer products manufacturer, has explained this as the Moments of Truth.94,95 The company started with two, added another, and other marketing experts now believe there are many more moments that marketers must consider when interacting with consumers.

The concept of the Moment of Truth began in the 1980s with Jan Carlzon, president of Scandinavian Airlines, who said, “Any time a customer comes into contact with a business, however remote, they have an opportunity to form an impression.” He believed that if a company managed that interaction to a positive outcome the company would be successful.

In 2005, former P&G CEO A.G. Lafley refocused the concept from customer service to sales, and broke the process down into two big steps: the first moment (FMOT)

when the customer is looking at the product in the store, comparing it to alternatives on the shelf, and the second (SMOT)

that occurs when the customer is using the product at home. Later, ex-P&G brand manager Pete Blackshaw suggested a third important moment (TMOT) when customers provide feedback about their purchase to the company and to friends and family.97 Remember the Star Wars “prequels”? Well, in 2011 Google introduced a prequel of sorts to this moment of truth concept with its Zero Moment of Truth—ZMOT. This moment is focused on the internet research that consumers do before they buy, which is standard practice today for products of all kinds. ZMOT was born from a Google study that found that 50 percent of shoppers used a search engine for product or brand research. They also learned that for some purchases, consumers were spending more time at the ZMOT stage than FMOT.98 Convinced, P&G updated its process to include ZMOT, FMOT, and SMOT.

FMOT, SMOT, TMOT, ZMOT—are you keeping up?

But wait—recently, marketing firm eventricity LTD added

business. P&G even established a Director of FMOT to lead the production of flashier, sharper in-store displays.101 It also helped drive marketing investment decisions. P&G is the largest advertiser in the world with a budget of over $7 billion.102 A significant amount of that spend has been focused on digital advertising, the battleground for ZMOT.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS CS 9-1 Choose four of the moments of truth. What specific strategies could P&G employ in each one to increase the probability of a sale and repeat business?

CS 9-2 For a consumer purchasing a new car, which would be the first, second, and third most important moments in the process? Explain your prioritization.

CS 9-3 Do frameworks like the MOTs help marketers, or is this just “consultant-speak?” If you believe the approach helps, explain how.

AppendixLO1