There’s a fundamental misconception about how customers become customers. It goes something like this: “We need more customers. So we need to market more. So ads, or more Instagram posts, or a campaign.”
It’s logic that sounds reasonable — but it misses one crucial detail. People don’t become customers by seeing ads. They become customers by moving through a sequence — from total unfamiliarity to obvious choice. And every step has its own conditions.
We use a model for this, which we call the Visibility Ladder. It has six steps. You can’t skip any.
The six steps
1. Unknown — The business exists, but not on the customer’s radar. For the customer, you don’t exist. No marketing message can land because there’s no recipient.
2. Found — When the need arises, the customer finds you. Searches “dentist Lund” and sees you among the results. This is where Google Business Profile, local SEO and the website’s SEO foundation matter.
3. Understood — When the customer sees you, they understand what you do, for whom and where. This is where the website’s offering communication works — the 5-second test that decides whether the visitor stays.
4. Trusted — Trust has been built. Reviews, photos, legal entity and all “credibility signals” have qualified you as a business worth booking.
5. Chosen — The customer has made the choice. Booking, enquiry, phone call — the concrete first contact.
6. Remembered — Next time the need arises, you are the first name the customer thinks of. Returning customer. Recommended to friends. Long-term relationship.
Why you can’t skip
The important thing about the ladder isn’t the steps themselves — it’s that they’re sequential. An unknown customer can’t be chosen. A customer who doesn’t understand what you do can’t trust you. A customer who doesn’t trust you doesn’t book.
That means most marketing attempts fail not because they don’t work. They fail because they attack the wrong step.
Spending 20,000 SEK on a “book now” campaign (step 5) when the business barely passes step 2 — found — is like trying to sell dessert to someone who doesn’t know the restaurant exists. The money goes out without result, and the wrong conclusion becomes “advertising doesn’t work for us”.
In reality, advertising works excellently — when all the preceding steps are in place. Before that, it’s wasted.
Where does your business stand?
Stop and reflect. Where does your business stand on the ladder?
Step 1-2 (unknown → found): If the Google profile is incomplete, if no one searches for you and finds you, if the website’s SEO is weak — then you haven’t passed step 2. All work should focus on being seen where customers search. Ads to a page that doesn’t convert is waste.
Step 2-3 (found → understood): If people click through to the website but drop off quickly, if Google Analytics shows low “time on page”, if the bounce rate is high — then you have a 5-second problem. The customer found you but didn’t understand what you do.
Step 3-4 (understood → trusted): If people stay and read but don’t take the next step, if you get many “browse around” visitors but few concrete enquiries — then trust signals are missing. Reviews, photos, cases, legal entity.
Step 4-5 (trusted → chosen): If people are ready to book but it doesn’t happen — then the friction is too high. Complicated form, unclear next step, contact that requires too much.
Step 5-6 (chosen → remembered): If one-off customers don’t return, if you don’t get recommendations — then there’s an experience question or a follow-up question. Visibility isn’t enough; the relationship has to be built over time.
The ladder in practice
For most local businesses the most valuable work is to strengthen steps 2-4: found, understood, trusted. When those three are in place, step 5 almost comes by itself.
That’s why we prioritise the foundational pillars in this order:
- Google Business Profile — to cover step 2 (found)
- The website’s offering communication — for step 3 (understood)
- Reviews and trust evidence — for step 4 (trusted)
- Booking and contact flow — for step 5 (chosen)
- Follow-up and social presence — for step 6 (remembered)
In that order. With one clearly-thought-through step before we move on to the next.
What it means for your business
Before you spend money or time on a marketing activity, ask yourself: which step of the ladder does this attack?
If the answer is “step 5” (a book-now campaign, a discount, an increased presence on social media) — first check that steps 2-4 are in place. Otherwise the activity goes out without producing a result.
If the answer is “step 2-4” (improve the Google profile, adjust the website, set up a review system) — do it. That’s where the lever is biggest for most local businesses.
It’s not glamorous. But it’s what actually works.
Want to go deeper on the individual steps? Read Google Business for small businesses for step 2, The website that actually creates customers for step 3, or Reviews and trust for step 4.