As a business, it is no longer good enough to be considered “good”. Today, to successfully stand out from your competition and win the loyalty of new and existing customers, you must be extraordinary. Remarkable, even. Being successful in business all comes down to how you engage with your customers. And how well your business provides customer engagement is well within your control.
Customer engagement is about how your brand interacts with customers, both online and offline. From social media posts, blogs on your website or in-person experiences, customer engagement has many opportunities. It is important to understand the rules of engagement to enhance their experiences, which will inevitably lead to your company’s success. Here are four rules of customer engagement that will help take your business from good results to extraordinary outcomes.
Remember: It’s Not About You.
The first rule of customer engagement is to always keep your customers at the heart of everything you do. When selling a product or service, it’s not enough to only understand your customer’s challenges. Instead, you must really understand who they are, to connect to them on a deeper level. When customers feel as though you’re speaking directly to them, and that your product or service was made just for them, you’ve succeeded. For example, what slang words do your customers use? What kind of music do they listen to? Is their humour dry, or witty? While some of this may seem irrelevant to your business, knowing your customers inside out is one of the best ways to make them feel significant.
Create Unforgettable Experiences.
An estimated 60 per cent of consumers are willing to try new brands if it means they’ll receive improved service. Making your brand unforgettable by offering one-of-a-kind experiences is a sure way to get your message to spread. Let’s say an older man sits down at a bar. The bartender engages the man in a conversation and asks how his day is going. It turn out the man is from out of town and came to your bar specifically to try a local draught beer – which you happen to be out of that night. The bartender could offer the man something else, or he could call the liquor store across the street and see if the restaurant could purchase some of their supply to offer the man – on the house. That’s exceptional.
Be Willing to Experiment.
Technology is always changing, and it can be difficult to keep up or stay ahead of trends. However, the more willing your brand is to experiment with new methods, the more effective your customer engagement will be. Experimenting with new ways to communicate with customers may be as simple as jumping on a new social media platform, creating your own company app, or making an existing process more user-friendly based on customer feedback. Experimenting in your business sends the message that you’re willing to try new things to promote improved communication, and enhance their overall experience with you.
Get Personal.
Customers are most likely to engage with (and in turn, buy from) brands who they feel they can trust, that understand them, and who have proven they can relate to them on a personal level. For example, generic emails and sales letters are far from personal. But if you take a generic template and combine it with the intelligence of online targeting, or even with the information you already have on the customer, you can easily create a customized approach to customer engagement. At the end of the day, that will go a long way to connecting and building loyalty for your business.
