Having a strong customer relationship is more important than ever. Advancing technologies and new communication channels have made consumers very aware of their options- and a highly personalized experience is now the expected norm when interacting with brands.
Related: 8 Digital Marketing Trends You Can’t Ignore in 2019
It’s not enough to offer a fantastic product or excellent service; customers now expect immediate answers and personalized interactions. Brands capable of making this happen will connect with their customers and create long-lasting relationships.
How do you build these strong relationships? Here are seven useful tips to incorporate into your digital marketing strategy:
1. Listen to your customers
To connect with your customers, first, understand what they’re thinking and talking about. What are their pain points, complaints, and needs?
By using social listening (link: SproutSocial) you can understand and analyze the conversations and trends around your brand and industry, and use those insights to deliver real value to your customers.
You’ll create content that’s relevant to your audience; in turn, they’ll identify with you, and feel you value their interests.
2. Respond quickly to the conversation
According to The Social Habit, 42% of online consumers expect a response to their inquiry within 60 minutes- if not, they’ll often express their discomfort by complaining across social media.
Conversely, an immediate answer will delight your customers, increasing the likelihood of building a loyal relationship.
Chatbots are very helpful for this, giving brands 24/7 two-way communication with their audiences through instant messaging. It’s a great, cost-effective way to deliver fantastic customer service and build stronger relationships with your audience.
Related: 5 Ways You Can Use Chatbots In Your Marketing Strategy
3. Personalize your communications
Thanks to analytics, marketers can see consumer behavior, purchase preferences, habits, and more- ingredients for customizing our responses to them.
Using previously gathered data from past interactions allows you to tailor not only your responses to consumers but outgoing messaging (i.e. marketing) as well: for example, if a person bought a skirt on your website, you can send them an email with suggestions of the perfect heels to match.
This kind of personalization helps you to build a connection with the customer and make them feel valued.
4. Be authentic
In a previous post, we mentioned how essential an authentic voice is. The future of marketing is more transparent and personal, and brands need to follow suit in their communication style.
Authentic communication works because people relate to your brand and perceive you as reliable and trustworthy, making even initial connections stronger.
The key to being authentic is showing your human side and personality, consistency, and maintaining your core identity (i.e. staying genuine) at all times.
Related: How To Get The Most Out Of Your Blog
5. Show appreciation to your customers
Showing appreciation builds customer relationships that last longer.
A simple way is by rewarding loyal or active customers with contests and competitions with the opportunity to win an attractive prize. Contests on Instagram are very common; in addition to strengthening relationships with long-time customers, you generate buzz and brand awareness in new audiences.
Another proven winner is a loyalty discount program, where customers earn points when buying your products and services, redeemable for rewards.
Of these, the former is best suited for business models expecting few, high-value interactions with consumers, such as durable goods or expensive items such as fine jewelry. The latter is best suited for models based on frequent repeat engagement, such as affordable fashion, food, or recurring services.
6. Ask for feedback
Whether customers have positive or negative feedback, asking for it is invaluable- it makes you aware of weaknesses in your service you may not have known existed. When given the right means to express their feedback, customers often provide the solutions to the very problems they complain about.
Another critical benefit of frequently soliciting feedback is emotional- even if a problem can’t or won’t be solved, giving consumers a voice and allowing them to feel heard improves their perception of your brand. Remember, negative feedback is as valuable- or more- as positive.
7. Exceed expectations with an outstanding experience
“Under promise and over deliver.” Always look for ways to go the extra mile and impress your customers so they keep coming back.
Some easy but valuable ways to exceed expectations is to deliver a product before the date you promised, offer incredible discounts and promotions to long-time customers, and provide additional support (such as product service check-ins) even though your customers didn’t ask for it.
Conclusion:
Building connections with your customers must be an essential part of your digital marketing strategy. You will win the affection of your customers, and also it will keep your brand ahead of your competitors.
At Motion Ave, we understand the importance of taking care of our customers, and we can help you build strong connections with your customers as well. If you need a hand, just let us know.
What are other ways you build stronger relationships with your customers? What’s the best thing a brand has done to earn your respect? Comment below and tell us your story!
References:
https://sproutsocial.com/insights/build-customer-relationships/
https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/330531
https://www.cloudways.com/blog/how-to-build-relationships-with-customers/
