It has been said that customers are three times more likely to both buy and recommend your product or service if they feel emotionally connected to your brand. And yes, you do find a select few swooning over certain brands but we’re not suggesting that you get them to fall in love with your company. However, in order to build genuine loyalties in a highly competitive market, brands that forge emotional connections with their client base are more likely to succeed. Given that loyalty ultimately affects the bottom line.
Technology and Engagement
Technological advancements ultimately serve to make customer experiences better and faster, but these can work against the tide to leave prospective and current clients feeling cold. Humans, after all, do crave human interaction, and businesses that fail to capitalize on this emotional connection are shooting themselves in the proverbial foot. Businesses need to tap in and find that balance between maximizing on technology to bring in their business, and perfecting their client relationship management to optimize on and retain it.
This is not easy especially when businesses are maximizing resources and multitasking is the name of the game in a world where less is more. The focus tends to be lost, and the most important assets of every business, its customers, become just a number. Here are a few ways that you could work on to keep that connection between your business and customer alive.
Be authentic
Most major corporations revel in industry jargon that more often than not has the opposite outcome of the desired intent. Consumers yearn for authenticity and uniqueness. Be human in your approach and communication with customers. Remember that most purchases are made emotionally, and tap into this with an emotional response. There are simple but touching ways in which this can be done, and one such way is through email. Email responses to clients should touch them in a special way that isn’t robotic. Employ tools such as birthday email campaigns with personalized offers. Going that extra mile means listening to your clients, and giving them the opportunity to speak even if it’s not about business. Engaging on this personal level builds rapport and trust.
Your business can be social
Building a strong online and social media presence is good, but without a personal touch, your business just becomes another name. Using tactics such as putting faces to employees names, along with their business profiles helps consumers to build a connection. While creating 360 Virtual tours gives clients a personal feel for your business premises, and this can build a connection from across the globe. The use of virtual Tours also improves your search rankings, giving you even more opportunities to create a positive impression.
Your content matters
One area you definitely shouldn’t skim on is content creation and design. Customization is key when it comes to setting your business apart from the rest, and the last thing you need is another load of generic content. From your logo to your advertisements, your content deserves deep thought centered around building awareness and creating a positive brand image that stands out. And once you have your image in order, you need to maintain it with honest content and approaches that meet consumers where they’re at. Blog posts are an excellent addition to every page, but it’s how they’re written that matters. An honest, well written, emotionally connected blog that both invokes curiosity and inspires its reader is key to lasting engagement.
Show empathy and honesty
We’ve already identified that regular interaction with clients is central to building that emotional connection. On the flip side of this is an overload that tends to do more harm than good, and balancing this is imperative to good customer relationship management. Being vulnerable and telling compelling stories that people can identify with and relate to is amazingly effective in building this connection.
We are after all social beings, and everyone loves a story that helps us to feel connected. We’re often taken aback by a frustrated or angry client, and instead of listening to and understanding their pains and complaints, we respond in a like manner. Showing clients your humanity and identifying with their situation or challenge not only makes them feel better but gives them the indication that they do matter to your business. Don’t be afraid to show empathy.
Good public relations
Public relationship management could be a maker or breaker in building an emotional connection, depending on how it’s managed. People migrate to what they know. Keeping an audience constantly in the loop about the good and the bad goes a long way to building trust. One area that many businesses neglect is that of complaints, and another is negative press. Big mistake. These can be used to an advantage in that speaking about these gives a feeling of openness and transparency, with consumers looking at the business as one that accepts responsibility and finds solutions to its’ problems. This builds an impression that the business caring about its customers is no longer jargon, but that they really do.
Giving out your number
For those who are afraid of being inundated with calls, there are safe and cost-effective pay per call services to help you manage these while building your brand integrity. The last thing your clients need is an unanswered or always busy phone line. Make your number easily available and build that connection through phone contact.
Conclusion
There are a number of ways that you could employ to build an emotional connection with your clients, but the number one go-to is simply empathy. Put yourself in their shoes. Ask yourself what kind of service would you expect if you were the client. How would you want to interact with that or any other business?
Brainstorm your ideas with your team to come up with viable solutions that benefit the business and the client. Brand management isn’t just technical. It’s largely focused on human input, and the maximum output is achieved only when the maximum effort is put into the most important aspect of your business – its clients.