Life is full of responsibilities. Add a business to run to your list of things to do and you might easily be overwhelmed by all the things left unchecked on your to-do list. Your customers want you to solve their problems, but how will you find the time to handle each customer when you already have so much to do?
Your customer’s interactions with your business should be seamless and easy. If your customers are not happy with your service, they can easily take their business somewhere else. The digital world has many benefits and it gives each buyer the power to decide which business or brand is best for them. You need to nurture your customers to ensure they stay with you.
Why is Client Engagement Important
Customer engagement simply defines the relationship you have with your clients and customers. It is upon this foundation that your customers will form their opinions of you and develop loyalty for your brand. So you see, it is a significant part of building your business; without your customers, you cannot have one. If you client engagement is done right, your clients will be much more inclined to refer others to your company.
Humanize your Brand
Loyal customers don’t appear out of thin air. They are encouraged and nurtured by their interactions with you. Their customer journey should be enhanced by customer engagement strategies that make them feel as though they are dealing with real people instead of automated systems and chatbots. Even if these are used to communicate with your customers, it should be done in a way that invokes a human connection.
There are simple strategies that will help you to humanize your brand. Some will be as easy as signing your emails and newsletters with a personal signature instead of from your business, others will require more effort. Either way, your customers should consistently feel a personal connection with you and your business. That is how you build customer loyalty.
Create Beneficial Content
Your customers should expect value when they see your name in their inbox or on their social media pages. A good rule of thumb might be posting content that is brining them value 4-5 times in a row, and then asking for something 1x. Nothing magical about that ratio, just a way to keep folks wanting to see your content often, instead of training them to expect to be sold to every time they engage with your brand.
Email/Newsletter
Some businesses send out newsletters as part of their email marketing campaigns on a weekly or monthly basis. This is an easy way to add a touch of personalization. Tell your customers what you’ve been up to, maybe share plans you have for the business. Make them feel valued and like they are a part of your decision-making process.
Keeping them in the loop when you are not trying to get them to buy something from you will show them that you care about their opinion more than the sale. Without the pressure of purchasing, a customer will be more inclined to respond and engage with your business. Your conversion rates will soar.
Social Media Engagement
Your social media is no longer just a place to post images and videos every few days. It provides an opportunity for you to have conversations with your customers.
- Post quality content consistently – Having a consistent schedule is important, but posting content that provides value to your customers is even more important. Your customers must grow to trust you and know that your content is genuine. You will become a source of reference to them, and instead of constantly answering individual questions, you can use this medium as a way to post about frequently asked questions and concerns.
- Live Q&A – With your busy schedule in mind, it would be unreasonable to suggest that you have live Q&As every day. What would work is if you have a scheduled time slot, maybe once per month, where you tell your followers to submit their questions, concerns or suggestions. This will make it easy to have conversations with them, but it will not take up too much of your time. Use this time wisely and actively engage them.
- Respond to messages and comments – Social media is a powerful medium but it can be detrimental to your business if it isn’t used properly. Many customers turn to the comments section of your posts to voice their happiness or displeasure. It is not wise to ignore the negative comments. Instead, use this opportunity to acknowledge the customer’s complaints and try to find a solution.
- Use Videos – Many business owners are afraid of the camera. However, using video is a great way to engage. Most social media platforms will promote video over images. In addition to this, if you have a video link in an email, it’s an easy way to get them to take an action and click to go to your website for social media channel.
- Ask – Many forget to just ask for a like / comment / or follow. Just ask. You might be surprised how far a reminder can go. We want to support the things / businesses we like. So don’t forget to remind your customers and followers to like / comment / share your content!
You don’t have to respond in detail about each and every complaint. You can set aside some time to do this once per week, or assign this task to a staff member. Create a protocol for how to handle these things and delegate. As long as the issue is addressed, your customers will appreciate it. Who knows, that customer with something bad to say about you might end up writing a comment about how you addressed their issues and become your biggest cheerleader.
Support/Feedback
Your marketing strategy must have a dedicated section for customer service. Live chats, customer support and customer feedback must be considered when developing a strategy that will build loyalty and help you to successfully engage your customers.
Live chat supports are all the rage now, but often, they are done by bots or with customer service agents who are not familiar with the business, so they are unable to properly answer questions or concerns. A way around this is to ensure your customer service representatives are educated about your business, so they can effectively answer questions on your behalf. Live chats aren’t necessary, but they are useful for quick responses. Ensure that you do it well.
It’s much easier to keep your customers happy and satisfied to begin with instead of trying to get back in their good graces afterwards. Invest in a properly trained team and you will not have to spend your time reviewing your customer’s concerns.
Engaging your customers and making them feel appreciated will help you to build a long line of loyal followers ready to buy your products and services. Try to be relatable and approachable. You don’t have to use all your time to speak to your customers, but setting aside some time every now and then will only work in favor of your business. It will be worth it.
If you want to find out how to implement engagement strategies in your current customer service or digital marketing model, contact evlos digital for a free consultation.
