Starting the Conversation – How to Connect to Your Customers

connect customers

marketing planConnect customers with your business with a variety of communication channels and techniques that enable a two-way conversation

In 2019, trying to operate any business with a one-way communication style with your customers can be fatal. Customers want a conversation, back and forth communications to heighten their understanding and engagement in your business and offerings.

Starting a conversation to connect your customer can be tough, but not impossible. It is about opening your channels to help change and enhance customer behavior. If you are looking to get started, then consider these simple tips.

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Starting a conversation to better connect your customers can only start once you understand your customers. Otherwise, you could be bringing a topic to the table that no one is interested in. Too many businesses are already guilty of this.

A great way to achieve this is by using a digital marketing agency. Agencies are specialists in understanding audiences. Knowing what your customers need, the jobs they are trying to get done, and their challenges are the foundation that leads to a more genuine conversation. Using agencies to learn customer insights or even conduct exploratory research is the best way to understand your customers, which leads to more genuine interactions.

Find the right channel

Once you understand your customers better, you will find yourself in a much better position to know where to start the conversation. The channel you choose can have a huge bearing on whether your customers will engage with both you and each other.

A great place to start is your website. Customers will generally seek information at a certain point and your website is a great owned channel to start a conversation. If you haven’t already, develop a blog or content section for your website. Allow comments and community members to leave their feedback.

Outside of your own blog, social media is another place where you can field communication and respond in real-time. If your customers begin interacting, it’s crucial you manage the community appropriately. Set ground rules for replying, when to step in, and more importantly – when not to.

Help them

Customer experience and creating genuine loyalty is no longer just about satisfaction. Customers are demanding more. Instead of focusing all of your communications in your community on an ‘ask’ or a ‘sell’, help your customers. Craft relevant content that educates, questions and helps your customers get their jobs done more effectively. Depending on where they are in their decision-making process, a hard sell may not help. Instead, help them understand their options, benefits and challenges. Doing so will propel your standing in their mind, positioning your brand as an authority in your own domain.

Isn’t this what we are all trying to achieve in our own businesses? Start the conversation and then allow your customers to connect with other customers who have purchased from your business. Let the advocates of your brand do the heavy lifting from there. By establishing a natural curiosity and feeding in satisfied customers, you are creating a new acquisition conversation channel.

Connection and understanding is the new measure of engagement, and if customers feel they get neither from your brand – they will not be sticking around. An important thing to remember is that brand advocacy does not happen overnight, but rather it’s earned day in and day out. Built over the phone, over an email, and responding to the infinite comments. Last the distance and continue to remain present with your audience, and they will always stay engaged.

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Editorial Staff

This article was written by SBMarketingTools.com editorial staff.