When it comes to keeping your customers, there is so much more to it than just producing a great product. Your customers need to identify with your brand and feel that they have something in common with it – beyond them just putting money in your pockets. So what can you do to garner that feeling of recognition, trust, and loyalty from buyers?
Verbal is Gold
You have to understand that in a word of digital, someone saying something is very powerful. Word of Mouth (WOM) Marketing is the most effective and reliable type of marketing, and it’s also free. But how do you get those glowing recommendations? You provide outstanding service and communication to everyone. Recent studies have found that people are (unsurprisingly) more likely to trust a verbal recommendation given by friends or family than a brand’s own website. Another study found that when a customer is gained by WOM, they are likely to spend more than an organic customer. One of the best ways to help facilitate the growth of your word of mouth is by introducing a referral program – rewarding customers you have by enticing consumers you haven’t yet gotten.
Photo by Campaign Creators on Unsplash
Get Your Brand in Order
When it comes to business, you don’t even have to open your mouth before you are judged. Your logos, color choices and ease of use say more than you think. When it comes to excellent website design, you should be looking to keep it clean and easy to navigate. Make sure that there is cohesion across all of your platforms. What you say on the website regarding ingredients, sales points, prices and voice should be consistent. Look at brands that you buy from over and over again. Ask yourself what about their service makes you do that? Let’s face it most shops and small business are selling the same product, but they all have something that makes them stand out. Ideally, you want to make the transition from an ad on Facebook to the purchase point as short and delightful as possible. The quicker it is, the more likely you are to snag a spur of the moment sale.
Be Open
Being authentic isn’t a buzzword, it is a way to have staying power. Customers are more likely to research a brand and product than ever before, so it pays to be transparent and almost an open book. Use your ‘real life’ style and tone in your business, and where possible show your real face too. People are looking to connect on a level that has less to do with parting with money, and more to do with how they view themselves as a person. The content that you share and create should always link back to your voice and brand ethos.
Listen and Act
If you are hearing a lot of feedback about certain parts of your website, or perhaps how a product is working, then you need to act on it. Engage with the comments that people are leaving and be seen acting on the information that you have been given. When customers are giving you feedback, it is because they are invested enough in your brand to want to help you get it right.
