8 Smart Customer Engagement Strategies That Marketers Can’t Ignore

Customer Engagement Strategies – Ever wondered why marketers tirelessly market their brand?

To attract people to their brand, right?

But there’s more to it…

The marketing game has changed. Companies not only want people to buy from them. Instead, they want customers to become their brand advocates.

Happy and loyal customers spread good things about business. They recommend the product to their social circle. Because they want people to benefit the same from their favorite brand.

Isn’t it great?

Your customers trigger word-of-mouth marketing and bring more prospects.

I am sure you want that, too. Because the idea of Free Marketing is too tempting to resist.

So, now you must wonder: How can I keep my customers happy?

The answer isn’t difficult. All you have to do is connect with your customers. And build a relationship with them; and not with their credit cards.

Sounds tough?

Well, trust me, it isn’t…

There are tons of methods that you can use to engage with your customers. And don’t worry, these methods are easy and cost-effective.

I’ll walk you through these strategies to boost customer engagement rates’ in today’s post.

But, before that…

I would like to discuss the term ‘Customer Engagement.’

What Is Customer Engagement?

Customer engagement refers to the way a business interacts with its customers. It covers both online and offline interactions.

A customer should feel satisfied during his interaction with the business. Because it will influence his future relationship with the company.

The following are a few examples of customer engagement:

• A business sends a newsletter to customers about a sale.
• A customer calls the support team to exchange the product.
• Customers engage with businesses on social media.

There are 100s of other examples of customer engagement.

But, it all comes down to one thing:

Providing them an amazing experience and catering to their needs.

Hence, a business shouldn’t see its customers as a profit generation source. Instead, it should connect with customers to build a strong bond with them.

This, in return, helps the business keep customers and win their loyalty for a long period.

Are you ready to begin?

Let’s dive in…

Optimize Website Experience

Imagine walking to a store that is unattractive and unorganized.

You walk around searching for goods you need. After a lot of searching, you find the product and head for checking out. There is a long process to checkout from the store. Fill in a few forms and to put the cherry on the top… the staff is incredibly slow.

Will you visit such a store again?

At least, I won’t!

Your customers will do the same thing if your website doesn’t meet their needs.

Ecommerce websites are the place where you can make or ruin your customer engagement.

And you wouldn’t want to lose your prospects because of a bad website, would you?

Here’s what you can do to optimize your website and enhance customer experience:

• Select an attractive theme.
• Use pleasant colors. Make sure they align with your brand’s identity.
• Make it mobile responsive.
• Include customer reviews.
• Have easy-to-use navigation.
• Write brief yet interesting product descriptions.
• Make sure you include a search button on your website.

Let’s move on to the next tip, which is:

Create A Brand Personality

A brand personality is as important as user experience for boosting customer engagement.

Your audience must know what your brand personality is before they engage with you.

Brand personality means how people perceive your brand. For instance, your brand can appear cheerful, reliable, excited, responsible, etc.

If people aren’t aware of your brand personality, they’ll hesitate to connect with you. Let’s take an example here…

Suppose a baby store develops its brand personality as responsible and reliable. Its potential audience would trust its products to be safe for babies.

Likewise, luxury brands such as ZARA, Michael Kors, Chanel, etc., have sophisticated personalities. It attracts people who like pricey, elegant products.

Hence, you must create a strong brand personality and market it on many channels.  As it will attract the right people to engage with your brand.

Speaking about marketing makes me want to talk about famous social media marketing… 

Get Social

Social media has a whopping 3.96 billion active users from across the world. It means a brand can reach its potential customers without spending a hefty amount.

But creating an account alone is not enough for boosting customer engagement. Come up with strategies to engage with your customers on social media.

Engaging content is essential for social media marketing success. Thus, make sure that you post engaging content consistently. Include live Q/A sessions, quizzes, games, etc., to entertain your customers.

And don’t forget to…

Reply to your followers when they comment under your post or inbox their queries. I know… I know. It sounds like an extra task. But, trust me, your customers would love you for that.

If a customer has a complaint, respond to him with courtesy. Look into the matter and offer him the best solution.

Likewise, if he has a suggestion, thank him for his feedback.

Responding to customers makes them want to engage with the business more.

Up next is…

Capture Heart And Mind With Video Marketing

Videos are a powerful tool for marketing and engaging audiences. Especially since smartphones have become the new necessity for human survival.

People love to watch and share small video clips through their phones. So, why not provide them with what they love? And enjoy great customer engagement.

Now, people do not like all types of videos. Particularly the ones that make them yawn. So, your priority should be to create something light and enjoyable for people.

The secret of successful videos lies in storytelling.

Yup! That’s true…

Even after so much advancement and revolutions in our lives, some things remain the same. The love of stories that people have will never change. People enjoy listening to different stories and connect with them emotionally.

Take cues from Lush cosmetics to master the art of storytelling. It has created YouTube videos that show the preparation of its bestselling products.

Have a look at this one:
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Use Popups 

A person comes to your website and explores different products. A few minutes later, he exits the website.

Will you sit and watch him leave?

Or will you make him leave his email or contact number?

To engage your customers, remind them repeatedly about your offers. Push notifications or pop-ups are a great way to do that.

Pop-ups are brief messages that appear on a person’s screen outside the browser.

ECommerce websites use it to notify their customers about sales, discounts, announcements, etc. A person must subscribe to receive these notifications. If a customer opts-in to receive them, Congratulations!

It means he wants to engage with you.

Now, all you have to do is create enticing messages. To tempt the customers to revisit your store.

Once they’re on the website, use chatbots to engage with them…

Use A Chatbot

People are impatient in the online world. They expect the business to respond to them even after the working hours are over.

Thus, you don’t only have to respond to your customer during 9-5. Instead, you have to offer your support to them around the clock. Don’t worry; you don’t have to be up all night to respond to your customers.

Thanks to Chatbots!

They can collect your customers’ queries and respond to them immediately.

Chatbots are powerful tools that automate the chat service. A customer can enter his query, and a sales rep will answer him.

And don’t worry, when the sales rep isn’t present; smart technology allows businesses to feed the answer of FAQs. So, even when you are deep asleep, your customer won’t be waiting for the answers.

Replying to your customers and helping them is a surefire way to keep them engaged!

Let’s talk more about it…

Focus On Customer Retention

I am confident you know the cost of attracting new customers.

Keeping current customers is easy and reasonable for all businesses.

A business earns more than 50% of its revenue from existing customers. Also, regular customers spend 67% more than new buyers.

So, make sure that hunting for new customers doesn’t make you forget about current ones.

Thus, always extend your unlimited support to them. Make it your priority to give customers an unforgettable experience with your brand.

Customers won’t switch to other brands if their interactions with a business are happy.

Hence, focus on retaining your customers, and train your team to do the same…

Support Your Team

Happy Team = Happy Customers

Do not expect your customers to be happy if the staff dealing with them isn’t happy.

Thus, take care of your team. Teach them to be respectful to the customers, both in online and physical stores.

Did you know 73% of buyers love the brand because of its friendly staff?

If you want customers to interact with your business… adopt the most overlooked technique, which is:

Taking care of your team!

Provide them with the right training, technology, and a little dose of appreciation. It’ll do wonders to make customers happy.

Wrapping Up…

There are many ways to engage with customers like never before. But remember, your competitors have them too. Thus, make sure your customer engagement strategies are stronger than them.

I would recommend you to grab every chance that you find to interact with your customers. Online or offline, make them feel special, and they’ll reward you with their loyalty and advocacy.

All the best!

Author Bio:

Ricky Hayes is the Co-Founder and Head of Marketing at Debutify – free Shopify theme, helping dropshippers build high-converting stores in minutes. He is a passionate entrepreneur running multiple businesses, marketing agencies, and mentoring programs.