In our previous post, we have discussed why driving sales is an important element to drive business success. Without your sales team, you will not be able to qualify and close new business. And there will be no one to put actual weight on your marketing messages. It is therefore essential for your sales team to stay in front of your potential and existing customers. As well as ensuring all the time you stay connected with them. That is, connected all the way as they make their journey into the sales funnel.
Unfortunately, not all businesses value the importance of having connections with their customers. In fact, reports state that 77% of the customers are not properly engaged by their companies. Additionally, businesses analyse only 1% of customer data. This means that many businesses waste great opportunities to create deeper connections with their customers and at the same use that very connection to further enhance their sales strategies and tactics, and ultimately – their bottom line.
However, what does ‘engaging’ the customer really mean?
Customer engagement is when a customer interacts directly with a brand. It is a process of actively building, nurturing, and managing relationships with the customer. It is a trait of a customer-centric organisation, and can lead to long-term business growth if done right.
These days, there is a plethora of platforms wherein customer engagement can take place. Some of these mediums include:
Social media – Facebook pages, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and Twitter.
In-store demonstrations – Taster’s tables, interactive walk-through, and product sampling.
Mobile devices – Branded apps that provide personalised customer experience.
Targeted campaigns – Geared towards the customer’s locations, number of online visits, and customer feedback.
Direct interaction with customers – Face-to-face contact, phone interaction, instant messaging.
Why Is Engaging Customers a Must?
Having contact with your customer is critical to know your customer’s challenges, when they need to resolve it, and where they need the solution. The importance of great customer engagement cannot be stressed enough, as it builds and fosters:
1. Trust
2. Commitment to excellent customer service
3. Better communication
4. Healthy customer relationships
5. Valuable customer knowledge
6. Customer loyalty
Engaging the customer is also crucial to sustaining long-term business growth. When customers are connected with your business, they will be able to address their concerns and issues almost instantly. This means they will be able to get time service which then results in a better customer experience. Moreover, since word of mouth spreads like wildfire when it comes to a customer’ experience, having engaged customer can mean more customers in the long run.
