5 Elements for Successful Customer Engagement and Retention

 
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We are constantly bombarded with STUFF.

They say content is king - but in reality, all it has done is made it more difficult to discover and hear the things that really matter to us.

It’s become challenging to be heard.
Worse yet, it’s become increasingly difficult to engage and retain your customers.
So how do you engage them and become essential to their lives?

The key is to simplify the thought process.
Instead of creating a long laundry list of tasks, there is a simpler way to approach customer engagement, and it starts with 5 simple elements.

1.           POINT OF VIEW

In order to be essential to your customers’ lives, it is absolutely crucial to have a distinct point of view.

A point of view about anything and everything that you can conceive of.
“Everything” may sound extreme, but the key to fleshing out your brand point of view is to apply your brand to as many social and lifestyle scenarios as possible.

Here are a few examples of questions to ask yourself.

Does your team know what your brand’s stance is on:

  • The environment (recycling, renewable energy, packaging materials, etc)

  • Using your product (the order, do’s and don’ts, who your brand ‘friends’ are, etc)

  • Additives, Preservatives, etc.

  • Public figures (who do you align with and why? This can be for anyone from activists, celebrities, designers, etc)

2.         AMPLIFY

Once you have a clear idea of your brand’s point of view, it is important to leverage this throughout your communication. Is goes without saying that very single consumer touch point is an opportunity to speak to your point of view, but for Essential Brands, sharing your point of view is always at the forefront.

Not amplifying your point of view will lead you to being indistinguishable from your competitors.

Do you share your point of view at every customer touch point?

  • Dotcom

  • Retail Displays/POS

  • Social Media

  • Email Newsletter

  • Packaging

3.          CONTEXT

Understanding context becomes the cornerstone for shaping your communication at each customer touchpoint.

To become an Essential Brand, it is crucial to understand the customer mindset based on CONTEXT. Think about this when crafting any communication (this could be copy, video content, packaging, ads, etc).

Your customer will be in a different mental state depending on the environment and context.

Put yourself in your customers’ shoes in order to consider your brand through their lens:

  • Viewing product on a retail store shelf

  • A super fan visiting your flagship store

  • Browsing product on mobile while waiting for the bus

  • Unboxing product at home from an online purchase

Every touch point is an opportunity to amplify your brand point of view.

4.          EXPERT SOURCE

In order to be the “go to” brand in your category, brands must own up to the responsibility that they have to be the “go to” as a knowledge base. Simply speaking “expert talk” isn’t enough.

By sharing tips on how your product can be used, how your unique extraction process makes your product more effective, or why your product is formulated/manufactured you give your customers more reasons to trust.

You can position you brand as an expert in many ways:

  • Social media posts

  • Founder interviews

  • Educational videos

  • In-store demonstrations

  • Third party testing

5.         REPEAT

Once you have a point of view, and start amplifying it, while being mindful of the context and always positioning your brand as an expert go-to, the next is to NEVER STOP.
Consistency is key and want to know the secret? Most brands will DROP THE BALL.

Essential Brands hit hard, and keep hitting hard. Your team will gain momentum, your customers will thank you, and your business will grow.

Developing a distinct point of view is the 20% in the 80/20 rule.
Putting it to work is the other 80%.

 
c okubo