You need to adopt the right strategies when increasing customer engagement online. When building a brand, it is not enough to just generate awareness and interest. Rather, it is also a must to be able to create great relationships with your target customers.
This is because awareness and interest will only trigger a customer’s initial transaction, while it is brand loyalty and customer engagement that will drive repeat business.
By establishing an emotional connection with your customers, you are creating a barrier for your competitors, making it more difficult for them to grab these customers from you. Customer engagement thus plays an integral part in the long-term growth and sustainability of the brand.
Like in brand building, it takes time to develop customer engagement as well. It is a continuous and consistent process that focuses the business on creating positive customer experiences rather than just closing a sale.
Powerful strategies to increase customer engagement online
You can improve your customer engagement in several ways, but not all strategies may be appropriate for your type of business. Always keep in mind that any activity you do should be in line with your brand’s identity, personality, and objectives.
It is best to work with an experiential marketing agency that can guide you through the process and help identify the right strategies for your brand. To give you an idea of what you can do, take a look at this list:
1. Prioritize Customer Satisfaction
A key driver to improving engagement with your customers is the quality of service that you provide them at any stage of the sales cycle.
Whether it is an inquiry prior to closing the sale or a complaint filed afterwards, take that extra mile and ensure that your company representatives treat them with great importance and care. Do not make it difficult for customers to get in touch with you.
Provide them with different contact options such as an email address, a dedicated phone number, web chat, and other messaging platforms, then set a standard response time for each message received. When their concerns are properly and promptly addressed, customers will feel that they are valued and appreciated, which helps create a positive impression for the brand.
2. Clearly Communicate Your Brand Purpose
Today’s consumers now demand more transparency and accountability from brands they support. Recent studies show that more than 70 per cent of consumers prefer to lend their support to brands that share their personal values. They also appreciate brands that show a clear vision and demonstrate compassion for the community.
Make the effort to clearly convey the reasons why you do what you do, and make it count. People want to buy into a brand not just because they like a particular product or service, but more so to support a story and advocacy. When you have a distinct brand purpose, customers are enticed to join an inclusive group that is working together towards the same goal.
3. Build A Seamless Omnichannel Platform
Consumer behaviour has evolved over the years, and while in-store shopping still plays a critical role in a customer’s journey, it is no longer the primary area of interaction for a brand and its target consumers. Thus, new market expectations are requiring brands to be more adaptable in the way they operate.
In many instances, digital platforms already function as the main contact point that drives consumers to the store. The recent pandemic has further driven this point home as physical activities became limited and people moved most of their shopping activities online.
This highlights the need to align all your online and your offline channels in order to provide a hassle-free and seamless shopping experience to your customers anywhere they go.
4. Produce Interesting Content
As the internet has become more accessible almost everywhere, social media has been integrated into consumers’ daily habits regardless of the demographics. As such, platforms like Facebook, TikTok, Youtube, and Instagram remain popular with billions of users every day.
However, the information that they consume still varies depending on their specific interests. Thus, your social media platforms can only benefit your business if you are able to produce content that captures your customers’ attention and triggers interactions with your brand.
5. Launch Customer Rewards Programs
Rewarding your customers for supporting the business is another way to make them feel recognized and appreciated, which strengthens their engagement with your brand. By offering your customers incentives, bonus items, rebates, or other perks, you are also giving them a reason to keep coming back, and maybe even recommend you to their friends and family.
These kinds of activities can also be made to fit your budget. In most cases, people appreciate receiving bonuses regardless of the cost. To make sure that the incentive is something that they will be interested in, you can also try to get their opinion through reviews or surveys, which would also help improve their engagement with the brand.
I am Adeyemi Adetilewa, an SEO Specialist helping online businesses grow through content creation and proven SEO strategies. Proficient in WordPress CMS, Technical Site Audits, Search Engine Optimization, Keyword Research, and Technical Writing (Portfolio).
I help brands share unique and impactful stories through the use of public relations, advertising, and online marketing. My work has been featured in the Huffington Post, Thrive Global, Addicted2Success, Hackernoon, The Good Men Project, and other publications.
