In our current digital age, we are no longer limited to shopping at our local mom-and-pop establishment. Now, with the internet, we have more options than ever to make our purchases online from stores that are not necessarily around the corner.
With more choices and social media building avid brand followers, the competition has grown dramatically and businesses must be ready to face it with a compelling strategy.
What Is Brand Loyalty?
Brand loyalty is when a customer feels a commitment to a certain product or business over another. This customer segment does not need to be subjected to any type of market strategy or tactics to persuade them to buy. They are already massive fans and are not easily swayed by the competition, offering similar products and services.
A consumer survey conducted by Yotpo discovered that close to 80% of consumers mentioned that it took a minimum of three purchases before they became “brand loyal”.
The reasons cited for becoming brand loyal include great sales, deals, and exemplary customer service. They also expressed that they would become brand loyal even sooner if they were offered exclusive discounts via a loyalty program.
Why Is It Important?
If you pour a significant amount of resources into providing top-notch experiences for your customers, you can dramatically offset the expenses necessary for customer acquisition. This initial investment will help your business to grow more.
Once you have established brand loyalty, your current customers will become your ambassadors, recommending your products or services to their friends, family, and social media followers. This means more purchases can come your way through these newly established channels.
Through referrals and word-of-mouth, your brand is promoted and your customers are the ones that are complementing your “in-house acquisition efforts” and boosting your sales.
When you have brand loyalty, it means that your existing customers are more likely to try a new product you launch. This is because it can be accomplished by using very little selling effort. With an existing customer, you are 60 to 70% more likely to sell. This is in contrast to the 5-20% likelihood of selling to a new, potential customer.
How To Utilize Social Media To Build Brand Loyalty
We’ve established that brand loyalty is critical to the success of your business. It also drives traffic to your store, to your website, the conversion which leads to customers, and word-of-mouth referrals.
As we now live in a more digitalized world, your capacity to utilize the power of social media to establish meaningful connections with your prospects and customers is more important than ever.
Want to know how you can leverage social media in order to build your brand loyalty? Keep reading.
1. Social Media Strategy
A social media strategy should not involve the “spaghetti tactic”, just throwing random posts out and seeing what sticks. Or worse yet, simply posting and not engaging. With social media, you are incorporating communications, selling, marketing, and advertising in one effective, strategic marketing punch.
Know that your competition may be well on its way to incorporating these tactics, so time is of the essence. Don’t be left behind. The key is to start now.
2. Answer And Honor Your Followers
There is a reason why it’s called social media. These platforms were built with the primary purpose of enabling people to be social. The type of engagement can take on many forms, such as: commenting, asking questions, complaining, and complimenting.
If you don’t provide a place for customers to express themselves, they will continue to do so, somewhere else. But you will not know about it. And you will not be able to respond to it either.
To build brand loyalty, you must engage with those who have reached out to your business. By engaging with you via social media, they feel as if they are connected to you. Therefore, respond to them promptly in order to solidify that connection and bring them further into your orbit. By bringing them further in, you can potentially convert them into customers.
3. Establish Your Voice
Every business must establish its voice and use it throughout all of its channels of communication. Similar to a brand, your voice is the distinct way that you communicate with your customers.
Since you can’t communicate “face-to-face” with your customers on a regular basis, your brand’s personality is delivered via the written word. This can be via blog posts, newsletters, and even marketing copy.
By establishing a solid brand voice, you will differentiate yourself from the rest of the competition. With some thorough research, you can determine who your audience is and tailor your communication in a way that will resonate with them.
4. Hone In On Customer Service
The end goal of your social media strategy is superior customer service. If customers have had a negative experience with your product or service, they will let you know about it. As a business that values its customers, you are tasked with making things right and correcting these problems. One thing that is not advisable is to simply ignore it.
It’s best to set the stage before problems arise. Communicate your expectations and criteria for your team. Train your workers on how to use social media in a way that is in line with your company standards. Have a dedicated team of people who is available to answer any questions, complaints, or compliments. If you were to experience a negative customer, by responding positively via social media, you can convert this into a positive experience.
Start Building Brand Loyalty Today
You may have an amazing product and an equally profound message to share with the world. However, none of this will matter if you don’t know how to communicate it in the fashion that will draw new customers into the fold of your brand.
Social media plays an essential role in helping you both build your brand and maintain brand loyalty.
