Organizations need to carefully find ways to effectively engage with their customers if they want them to move successfully through a sales cycle and develop long-lasting relationships. To achieve true customer engagement, it’s important to create honest, emotional connections with your target audience by consistently utilizing the right marketing tools.

 
Social Media Content

COVID-19 has shifted ad spend budgets away from traditional channels and onto social networking platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Tiktok and LinkedIn. Social media is a convenient way in which your customers can be encouraged to share their opinions about your brand and its evolution. These platforms can allow your organization to directly resolve customer queries and concerns and operate as a great tool for generating personal connections and unique experiences with customers. To utilize social media effectively however, it all comes down to content. Video content is still king, as evidenced by 85% of all American mobile users watching video content on their devices at least once a month, with 54% of consumers demanding even more of it. When creating content for your social media handles, it’s important to remember to match the tone of your platform and remember your audience to use this tool effectively. 

Email

Despite its spammy reputation, email communication is still a highly effective tool for engaging with customers and keeping them interested in your organization. To use this tool effectively to engage customers, emails must be delivered in a thoughtful, timely, and targeted manner. For small businesses, in particular, email can operate as the main port of call for keeping your customers informed about developments within your organization, updates to your product range, and convert leads through EDM campaigns. A great way to maximize the effectiveness of email as a tool is to integrate it with CRM software, to track performance and engage customers throughout the customer journey.  

Live Chat

Live chat can be a great way to encourage two-way interactions with your customer base because well, simply put -- it is an instantaneous method of communication. Any questions your customers might have about a product or brand can be resolved quickly and effectively through communication with your personal service team.

Some prospects and consumers may have questions that don’t warrant a phone call or email but still eats away at them all the same. Having a live chat function to resolve anything that isn’t covered on your brand’s FAQ page not only helps customers but also improves brand credibility. Though not every organization can afford to have a live chat team resolving issues, this feature can be truly valuable and convenient addition to any organization.

Surveys & Customer Feedback Software

Surveys are an overlooked way of getting a detailed impression of how your customers feel about your brand and your products. You can also utilize customer feedback software, which allows you to design and distribute surveys to customers. The results from a standard Likert scale questionnaire can be used by your team to draw data-rich conclusions about customer perception. Make sure that your method for sending out surveys is convenient and simple for customers to fill out so that you can minimize the dropout rate of less eager consumers. Some examples of useful customer feedback software include Surveymonkey and Qualaroo.

A useful tip to maximizing the engagement of your survey is to consider the content, defining exactly what it is you are trying to find out about your customers, and make the survey as painless and palatable as possible,

Make Sure Your Website Stands Out

This one seems like a no-brainer, but you would be surprised how many websites have a shocking user interface. To engage with your customers fully you will need to find ways in which to make your website unique and matched to the voice of your organization. True customer engagement occurs when you can appeal to your customers on a personalized, relatable level. Don’t make the mistake of allowing your organization to appear void of humanity, but don’t get lost in sweeping, ambiguous statements littered with marketing buzzwords. Include some personalized information on your website about the people who work at your company or nominate a brand ambassador. 

If possible, also include a well-maintained blog section on your website that shares topical, informative, and entertaining stories that encourage customers to comment. Also, be sure to regularly respond to any comments that pop up on your website!

Use Analysis and Review Tools

 If you want to maintain strong relationships with customers, it is important to really listen to what is being said about your organization online. Social listening allows you to research and track your overall audience reception. You can check what customers are saying about your organization, and effectively monitor all your social media channels, mentions, analyze competitors, do keyword searches, and much more.

If you haven’t considered any of these tools already, we recommend you take the time to think about how your brand can benefit from using them to drive authentic customer engagement and increase your brand perception, awareness, customer journey, and sales.

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