The consumer journey isn’t a straight line. Customers have multiple touchpoints for a brand and expect a seamless experience for each one. Discovery may happen on TikTok, research may happen on ChatGPT, and online shopping may happen on Instagram.

You can no longer assume that your customers’ journey will follow a traditional funnel.

Lori Akey, a campaign specialist at Federated Digital Solutions, says, “We’re seeing clients struggle because their customers are finding them in completely different places than they did just 18 months ago. The businesses that adapt their strategy to meet customers where they actually are, not where they used to be, are the ones seeing growth.”

To remain visible, businesses need to understand the fundamental shift in the consumer journey that’s taking place. Let’s look at what the consumer journey used to be, where it’s going, and how your business can adapt.

The Traditional Consumer Journey: Does It Exist In Any Form?

While the journey as a whole looks different, the stages of the traditional consumer journey still exist as a framework in 2026. Let’s establish what we mean when we say traditional journey:

• Stage 1 – Awareness: A customer realizes a problem they have, and they start looking for solutions. 
• Stage 2 – Research: A customer is researching different options. 
• Stage 3 – Consideration: A customer is weighing the options available to them and comparing the results. 
• Stage 4 – Conversion: A customer makes a decision and purchases. 
• Stage 5 – Re-Purchase: A happy customer becomes a brand ambassador who recommends your business to their community. 

While the stages exist, the journey between them isn’t linear anymore. Instead, customers might bounce around between stages, revisit previous stages, or blend stages together into a single action. 

Most notably, they’re using entirely new platforms to experience each stage. 

AI Search Engines and the Awareness Stage of the Consumer Journey

It’s no secret that AI is transforming everything we do in 2026, and that includes the way people search. 

Fifty percent of consumers use AI-powered search to find answers to the questions they’re searching for. But when they’re searching, 60% result in users never clicking through to another website.  Why? Because AI chatbots give them the complete answer, with recommendations, within the platform. There’s not always a need to click outside of it.

What does this mean for the consumer journey? It’s compressing the Awareness and Research stages into one stage, one conversation. Instead of searching for things like “best winter boots,” customers are searching with longer, more detailed queries like “what waterproof winter boots should I buy, as an avid walker, for under $200?” From there, they get immediate, comprehensive answers.

That means your brand needs to be present in these AI-generated responses. 

“Smart businesses focus on getting cited as authoritative sources in these AI responses,” Akey says. “That means creating genuinely helpful, expert content instead of just SEO-optimized pages.”

By answering the questions your customers have on your website and in your blogs, your brand becomes the authority that AI pulls from and cites. Those citations appear and are linked in AI Overview responses, which positions your business as the helpful authority!

Social Media for Purchase

While social media remains the hub for brand awareness, it’s now shouldering a heavier load as well. It’s where the transactions are happening. 

Social media isn’t just for status updates any longer. In 2025, 82% of consumers say they use social media for product research. But what does that look like in the real world? For Gen Z, their research begins on Tiktok, not Google, with 55% of them using it for product searches, while Millennials prefer Facebook.

“If you’re seeing less website traffic lately, don’t panic,” Akey says. “Customers are buying directly through Instagram and TikTok Shop much of the time. The journey didn’t disappear, it just moved to platforms where customers are spending their time.”

Why is this happening?

Through social media, a customer can see a product in action, used by a real person, in real time. They can get recommendations from creators they trust, ask questions in the comments, and go through with the purchase, all without leaving the app they’re using. 

Because of this, social commerce sales in the US are expected to hit $100 billion in 2026, completely transforming the Consideration and Conversion stages.

What Is Non-Negotiable?

Personalization is Everything

2026 is the year to treat your customers like humans, not numbers. To shop with you, they need to feel valued; that’s why 78% of customers expect more personalization than ever.

Omnichannel is Key

As we’ve mentioned, the customer journey is messy in 2026. Consumers research on mobile while the TV is on in the background, browse on their work computer, get retargeted with social media ads, and may buy on a store’s website or in person. There are a thousand different versions of that process.

To keep up with it, you need an omnichannel marketing strategy.

“The businesses thriving right now aren’t necessarily the ones with the biggest budgets,” Akey says. “They’re the ones willing to meet customers on new platforms and create experiences that feel connected, no matter where the interaction starts.”

When businesses incorporate a strong omnichannel strategy, they’re likely to retain 89% of their customers, while brands with weaker strategies only retain 33%. 

Personalization + Omnichannel = Success

What do these two qualities look like when paired together? A customer adds a product to their cart while on mobile, then receives a personalized email reminder. That reminder prompts them to click through Google reviews, complete their research, and make the mobile payment, with every touchpoint recognizing who they are and where they’ve been.

The Consumer Journey in 2026

With how fragmented the customer journey is in 2026, feeling overwhelmed is understandable. After all, we’re getting used to an ever-changing marketing atmosphere. 

Let us help you get used to these new changes and create omnichannel marketing strategies that work for your business, and meet customers across all platforms and stages of their journey.

Reach out to Federated Digital Solutions today for more information on building strategies that work in tandem with how your customers behave in 2026.

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