As a small business owner, you may believe that your biggest priority is constantly drawing in new customers. While this is important, you should not forget about the power of existing customers and customer loyalty. Customers who are loyal to your business will speak highly of your brand to friends and family and will not think twice of recommending your services; this word-of-mouth endorsement is some of the best marketing your business can get. Here are some ways you can increase customer engagement with your brand for a happy and loyal customer base.
Engage customers on social media
Social media is one of the most powerful tools available to you and your business, allowing you to connect directly with customers. In addition to regularly posting value-rich content that your customers will welcome in their feeds, you should also use your social media accounts to communicate directly and show the human face behind your brand. This might include hosting Instagram Lives or having a Twitter question and answer session. Doing this will give your customers the opportunity to see behind the scenes connect with you, demonstrating that your brand is approachable and friendly.
Get a Google My Business account
As a small business owner, you might already have set up a Business Profile on Google. This will enable you to gain more visibility on the search engine; however, you will not have management over your profile. For this, you will need an additional Google My Business account, which allows you to manage and optimize your Google Business Profile so that it can be used as an effective SEO and lead generation tool. For example, with a Google My Business account, your business will appear in the top three listings on Google Maps above organic results. Click here to find out more about Google My Business.
Shout out reviews
If you get a brilliant review, shout it out. Turn it into a quote by placing it on a clean background in an attractive font, and you’ve got yourself some great new content for your social media platforms. Making a feature of positive reviews might even encourage an amiable competition amongst your customers for who can get a shout out in such a way. You could even go one step further and reward ‘winning’ reviews with a discount code.
Engage with your quiet customers
Though it’s important that you engage with customers on social media and reward those who post reviews, don’t forget about your quiet customers who are not as vocal. Some people simply prefer to observe rather than directly engage in social media, or perhaps they simply limit their social media use as a whole. For these customers, you could send an email thanking them for their business with an invitation to provide confidential feedback if they so wish, and perhaps even include a discount code for their next shopping trip. Chances are, these quiet customers will be happy for the acknowledgment and return to your brand.