As a business, your customers are a precious asset to you. Your relationship with them is symbiotic; they get the product or service from you, and the stability of your business depends on their patronage.
It is important to maintain a strong connection with your customers throughout their buying cycle. To do this, you need to know what their needs are, and how to fulfill them.
What are your customers’ needs?
Most business ideas and actions stem from a business owner identifying a need, a desire, or a market gap and addressing it by providing an effective solution. Our tip, “Why is it important to really know your target market”, outlines the key reasons it’s important to know as much about your customer as possible.
There are five major categories of needs that you will want to consider in order to build and maintain a mutually beneficial relationship with your customer:
Emotional fulfillment
This first category is the most important of all of them. We’ve talked about the importance of “WHY” before, and how we make decisions from the emotional side of our brain (limbic). At the core of WHAT someone needs, lies an emotional reason. And, if you will focus on that reason, you will focus on their WHY, which will engage them much faster & make them feel like they are getting the absolute best product or service.
If you’re not familiar with this, take a few minutes to watch Simon Sinek’s Ted Talk, “Start with WHY”. He fills in enough details to get you started.
IF you nail this first category, while the others need to be fully on par, they become less important to your customer. They will pay more for your product or service, it may be a bit less “convenient”, and it may be different than what they started looking for… but their WHY has been satisfied.
Price
Every customer wants great value for their money. If you have positioned yourself correctly with identifying their WHY, they will see the value of what you bring to the table. Of course, pricing should be relevant based on what your customers will get, but, even with tangible goods, many times “what you get” is essentially the same if you buy the store brand or a name brand.
Don’t settle for selling your “Ferrari” for the price of a Subaru or Ford. If you focus on being the cheapest on the market, in the end, you lose – because it will be impossible to attract your target market and then deliver the level of service they expect.
Look at the industry, what you are providing, who your ideal customers are, and set your price from those guides.
Quality
Your customer has high standards when it comes to the quality of your product or service. If you have positioned yourself as the solution to their “problem”, and they perceive that you’re solving a “big” problem for them, the quality needs to match.
Choice
Each individual has unique needs, which influence how they look for and decide on the product or service. Even if you focus on a very targeted niche, you need to provide a variety of options for your customers to choose from.
For a service-based company, this means matching pieces of your services to their needs instead of pushing a “cookie-cutter” solution. Even though every customer may end up “getting the same service”, because it has been customized for their needs, they are happy & fulfilled.
Convenience
The benefits of convenience are extremely important. Customers are often willing to pay extra to receive a product or service faster, and with less hassle. Some of the questions they will have include:
- Can I shop online?
- Can I pay using mobile money or a credit card instead of cash/check?
- Can you deliver to my location?
- Can I get same-day or express delivery?
- Are there any after-sale services?
- If it’s not what I expected, can I return the product for a full refund?
Your customers need to know what options are available when it comes to convenience.
The importance of engaging your customers
We hope this is an obvious question/answer: “Is putting all the effort into engaging my customer worth the trouble?” The answer is “Yes!” Your business will flourish when you connect with & engage your customers.
Here are a few specific reasons:
To foster a long-term relationship
Connecting your business to your customers is more than just communication. Our tip on Its not just one sale explains the importance of having a lifetime customer.
You want your customers to remain with you even after that first purchase! Creating a relationship with your customers beyond the initial transaction makes you less of a stranger and more of a household name. A great purchase experience and follow-up will make them want to patronize your business over and over again, which is vital to the success and continuity of your business.
To keep them knowledgeable about your products or services
As a business best practice, if you’re not already doing so, you should be keeping an eye on emerging trends in your industry. Not only does this keep you relevant, adaptive, and seen as an expert, but some of this information may be vital to your customers as it may change the way they live their lives.
Remaining connected to your customers by constantly passing such information along is a great way to keep them abreast of your products and services, especially if the information is tied to an upgraded or new product/service.
To foster credibility and cultivate trust
Your customer’s connection with your business begins before your first interaction with them. The image and reputation of your business influence how you are initially perceived by your customers and is usually a big part of their decision whether to buy your product or service.
If your business is perceived as customer-centric, friendly, trustworthy, and providing value for money, then that is the mindset the customer will have when they approach you. That perception, along with the customer’s first impression when they actually do business with you will go a long way in encouraging your customers to trust your brand.
To build brand loyalty
Face it, it is less expensive to keep a customer than to find a new one. A customer that is well connected with your business is likely to come back because they want to. What’s more, such a customer may become an advocate for your business, referring other customers to you!
To maintain open communication channels
Your customers need to know that they can talk to you at any time and pass along their expectations or frustrations regarding your product or service. They also need you to maintain communication with them, especially regarding new products or services or any information that would be beneficial to them.
Having such a connection makes the customer feel appreciated and gives them a sense of belonging and value to your business. Remember not to spam your customers’ inboxes with too much information though!
In conclusion…
It is important to build and maintain engagement between your business and your customers as this is the best way to guarantee the growth and longevity of your business. A few questions to work with as you create your customer communications strategy are:
- How well do you know your customers?
- How well do your customers know you?
- What is the number one question customers always ask?
- What questions do you wish they would ask?
- What do you wish your customers would know about your business… that if they knew, it would knock their socks off in a good way?
Having the answers to these questions will guide you in developing and maintaining a great connection with your customers and reaping great benefits from it. If you need help navigating the waters of customer engagement and building your brand please talk to us and let us help you (and your customers) win!
Your Online Partner… for Success
Now more than ever you need a website that is more than a pretty business card. You need one that has its sleeves rolled up and working for you. We’re here to make sure your website is working just as hard as you are. Take advantage of a free 30-minute session with Christy to explore ways to take your site to the next level.