As
a business owner, you’re already aware that your customers are the lifeblood of
your business. And that’s why it’s important that you engage with them. The
problem is there are plenty of companies out there who just don’t understand
the importance of engagement and insist on shoving sales pitches down the
throats of their customers. The successful brands who engage their customers
understand that customers want to interact with their peers and learn something
of value – which has never been as easy thanks to technology.
Still looking for ways to
engage your customers? Give these eight strategies a try.
1. Develop Emotional Connections
There’s been research from the likes of Forrester and The Corporate Executive
Board and Google that have explored the
importance of building strong emotional connections with your customers. To get
to know what your target audience connects with, you can work with a company
like SearchMetrics (I
personally use them) to get the market analysis you need. When brands
accomplish this, they are able to increase consumer loyalty and charge premium
prices.
One of the most effective ways in building emotional connections
with customers is to prove that they are dealing with an actual person and not
just a nameless, faceless corporation. Here are a few ways you can engage your
customers while showing your human side at the same time.
·
Introduce
yourself. Whether it’s an email,
direct message when you have a new Twitter follower, or
welcoming a new member to your online community, always send these individuals
a brief and personalized message.
·
Use team member
images on social media and forums. Let’s say a customer has a question or concern on Twitter or on
your forum. Do you think your brand logo or an image a team member answering
the question would have a stronger impact? The same could be said when a customer likes
or comments on your Facebook page. Having Tom Smith reply is more
efficient way to address that person that just the faceless corporate logo
·
Include
author bios on your blog.
This will allow your customers to get to know you and begin building a
relationship.
·
Make
someone your brand ambassador. Select someone on your team, it could even be you, that is
the face of the community. Think how Steve Jobs was the brand ambassador
Apple
2. Build a Community or Forum
Community and online forums have been around for ages – and
they’ll probably be sticking around for the unforeseeable future. The main
advantage to online communities and forums is that you are able to directly
engage your customers by answering their questions, having discussions that are
relevant to your industry, keeping them updated, and sharing information that
they care about or are looking for.
However, popular social networks, such as Facebook Groups,
LinkedIn Groups and Google+ communities, are now giving you the ability to
create communities, which is an added bonus since your customers are probably
already on these social media channels.
3. Hold a Contest
Who doesn’t enjoy getting free stuff? We all do.
Take advantage of that and hold a contest for your customers. Not only will you
grab their attention, you’ll also engage them by rewarding them for their
participation.
For example, you could ask customers to share creative photos and
tag your business and the chosen winner receives a product or free one-year
membership to your service. Other ideas could be hosting a voting contest or
photo tagging contest where customers tag as many of their contacts as
possible.
4. Use Technology to Your Advantage
We all know how important social media is for customer engagement.
Instead of just sharing content or answering customer service inquiries, why
not use social media technology
to our advantage to predict what customers want?
Lenovo, for example, listens to its customers on social media so
that it can stay on top of trends, such as color preferences for laptops.
Another example would be the Société de Transport de Montréal (STM)
offering promotional offers based on the location of its customers so they can
try a new restaurant or shop when they got off at their stop. When using technology, make sure to stay ahead of the curve and
not behind it. You won’t find success without it.
5. Make Your Customers a Part of the Team
We all like to feel like we’re part of a team. And your customers
are no exceptions. If you notice a customer has launched a new charity or
released a product of their own, don’t hesitate to promote them on your social
media accounts. Or, you could keep it simple and just highlight a loyal
customer each month.
If you just celebrated your tenth year in business, celebrate with
your customers by offering them a discount or coupon or attending an exclusive
anniversary party. Not only does this make them feel like they’re part of the
team, this also thanks them for their years of loyalty. Finally, you could ask
your customers to co-create content, like adding a chapter to your eBook
or asking them to have some fun like New Belgium did with Reddit users.
6. Share Exclusive Content or Offers
Provide your customers with exclusive content,
such as a case study, or offer, like a 10% off coupon, for being subscribers to
your email newsletter or for purchasing a paid membership. You could even
release exclusive content or deals on your blog and remind your customers when
that will be released through an email. Many companies offer a
mobile-first influencer platform where you can engage and leverage with key
influencers across many social networks.
7. Create a Product Tour
Product tours are one the best ways for your customers to learn
everything there is about your product or service. Not only is this an
effective way for you to reach out to your customers, product tours are also a
great way to engage them. You can record a product tour and place it onto your
website and YouTube account. Animoto is a great company that makes it easy
to turn your photos and video clips into a professional video to showcase your
products.
8. Host An Event
Whether it’s hosting a webinar or hosting a local meetup or
industry event, hosting an event either online offline or online is a great way
for your customers to learn from their peers or feel like they’re part of an
exclusive community.
Even if you don’t host your own event, look for local networking
opportunities or set-up a booth at a trade show in your industry so that you
can mingle and engage with your customers face-to-face. Platforms like
Eventbrite provide an easy, effective, and low-cost way to get the word
out about an upcoming event that you are planning on hosting, including linking
it to numerous social media networks for further publicity.
Credit: Ian Altman, Forbes
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