How to Boost Customer Engagement and Loyalty

These days, the term "customer engagement" is used frequently. This word is popular in the world of e-commerce and in business. But it can be difficult to come up with a single definition of it. Engagement does not occur when a marketing message is delivered in a one-way fashion from the brand to the customer. It’s no longer a one-way street. Customer social media practices such as “liking”, “sharing” or “commenting” doesn’t actually mean “engagement”. But what’s true, customer engagement is a key component of running a successful Shopify business. Engaging and building relationships with your customers should be your top priority. When done right, customer engagement marketing can help you build customer trust and loyalty. When you consistently engage your clients on a variety of channels you show your human side and provide value beyond just transactional relationships. Nevertheless, many new companies tend to focus more on customer acquisition and it’s one of the reasons for failure in e-commerce. That’s why you should take a client-centric approach. You should engage better with your customers and reward your most loyal ones.

"The more you engage with customers the clearer things become and the easier it is to determine what you should be doing."

John Russell

By keeping your customers engaged throughout their journey you can better understand them. You will know who they are, what they need from you, and how to make them loyal.

In this article, we’ll show you how to boost customer engagement and loyalty.

So, here’s a sneak peek into what we will be discussing in this post:

• What is Customer Engagement (CE)? What is the Correlation between Customer Engagement and Loyalty?
• How to Increase Customer Engagement and Loyalty?

What is Customer Engagement (CE)? What is the Correlation between Customer Engagement and Loyalty?

Any successful firm depends on its loyal clients. Why? It costs less to engage existing customers than to acquire new ones. Engaged customers are loyal customers. But what do we mean by customer engagement? What is the correlation between customer engagement and loyalty? Let’s dive in.

Customer engagement. You might be surprised to know that this marketing concept is relatively new. It is only a couple of decades old. The widespread use of the Internet in the late 1990s marked the mainstreaming of customer engagement. There is currently no agreement on how CE should be defined despite numerous definitions being offered. But, what they all have in common, though, is CE can be thought of as a continuous, two-way interaction between a brand and its customers with the primary objective of strengthening the company’s relationship with them. The first interaction starts this process and it continues after the sale is over. You can engage your customers through social media accounts, email, Shopify forums and communities, your company blog, or any other space where they’re communicating or consuming content. However, engagement doesn’t stop there and goes beyond attracting customers. It’s a long continuous process. So, you should be always working on maintaining and improving customer relationships to build a loyal, engaged customer base. As we’ve told you before, building strong customer relationships will help you better understand their needs and how to meet their expectations. Their active feedback will help you deliver a better customer experience. The journey you provide is a game changer. It is said that 87 % of customers who had a wonderful experience will return to make another purchase compared to 18 % of customers who had a negative experience.

A successful approach to customer retention includes a genuine connection with your clients, their trust and satisfaction. How customers feel your company treats them, is the foundation of customer engagement. Their activities are impacted by these perceptions, which also create memories and emotions that motivate their loyalty.

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How to Boost Customer Engagement and Loyalty?

1. Engage Customers Through Social Media Sites like Instagram

In today’s digital world, traditional advertising techniques aren’t as popular as they once were. Engaging with your customers or “soon-to-be” customers on social media platforms is the simplest way to increase engagement and foster loyalty. By communicating with customers online, resolving any problems they may have, and responding to any concerns, you may also lay the groundwork for excellent customer service. Every direct message, comment, and reply you get requires your full attention. The faster you react, the better because the speed of communication is what matters on social media. You should keep your direct messages open. Try to reply to every direct message as promptly as possible. Even short answers in the comment section can do miracles. They can calm your customers and strengthen your relationship with them. You make them feel appreciated and loved. You can turn them into lifelong customers. Social media attracts billions of people every day and some of them are rude. It’s important to know how to deal with negative comments on social media. Respond to them quickly. Be apologetic. Discuss the problem privately. Ask them how you can help. When reacting to negative comments, be composed and keep in mind that many people are reading them. If your company isn’t active on Instagram, you are passing up a ton of chances to engage with your clients. It’s better to keep your posts short, engaging, and to the point when writing them for any type of social media. Make sure that you are writing posts that users want to read and share. Calling customers by their names will help you build strong bonds with them. Take a look at how some of the most well-known companies, like Lexus keep their Instagram posts short and catchy. What’s more, they refer to their customers by their names.  

What is the ideal length for an Instagram post? Marketing experts from Sprout Social and Influencer Marketing Hub claim that posts with 138 to 150 characters get the most engagement.

In addition to that, hashtags can undoubtedly improve your audience’s engagement with your posts. They are an important asset in your loyalty engagement toolbox. You should use niche-specific hashtags rather than popular ones. By adding too many hashtags, you’ll miss out on engagement. Although Instagram allows you to use 30 hashtags per post, 15-20 would be more than enough to engage your clients and keep them coming back for more. Keep your hashtags short and easy to read. You need to create a unique hashtag for your brand. Then you need to make sure that people remember it. How can you do it? Organize contests for your customers. Encourage people to share pictures using your company’s hashtag. A feature on your Instagram feed or other material rewards is just a couple of possible incentives. The hashtag #LookAtMyLexus is a perfect illustration of this.  Lexus encourages its customers to include this hashtag in their Instagram posts. Then they repost these pictures on their Instagram feed.

It is a fantastic approach to get people talking about your company. It enables you to re-engage your existing customers and improve your customer loyalty. You can also work with Instagram influencers in your specialized field and request that they include your hashtag in their sponsored posts. This can help you reach more people. If you are not using Instagram for your e-commerce business, you are missing out on a great deal of engagement.

2. Reward your Ecommerce Customers

Simply using social media for customer engagement may not be enough. Rewards and incentives can make customers more engaged. By incentivizing your customers to leave reviews, comment on their purchases, and refer to their friends, family, and colleagues, you can increase engagement while simultaneously improving their loyalty. Customer appreciation means a lot for your ecommerce business. It is a fantastic way to humanize your brand and make your customers feel heard and valued.  

How can you thank your customers?

Loyalty Programs

Good customer loyalty programs are a great tool to keep your customers engaged and loyal. The main idea behind loyalty programs is that customers will receive more rewards the more they purchase from you. And this in turn promotes continuous engagement with your brand, which boosts conversions.

The most effective loyalty programs are the ones that are the simplest. Every time a consumer buys from you, make it simpler for them to receive awards.

Here are the 3 most popular loyalty programs:

1. Points-based programs

Points-based programs give customers points for every dollar they spend. Customers can redeem their points for merchandise, cashback, or discounts after they reach a certain number of points.

2. Tiered programs

Tiered programs are customer incentive strategies that divide benefits into different levels. Your customer spends a certain amount of money and unlocks a new tier. It can be the name of precious metals (gold, silver, bronze). To get a higher tier your customer needs to engage more with your brand.

3. Referral programs

Referral programs are a type of marketing strategy that rewards customers for sharing your brand with friends, family members, colleagues, and neighbors, either online or offline.

You would want to create your own loyalty program as a Shopify store owner. One that can help you engage with your customers, deepen relationships with them, boost sales, and increase loyalty. One that includes points on purchases, VIP tiers, and referral programs.

At Growave, our software allows you to do just that and more. Growave offers the full package and would only be one app installed instead of many. It has tools for loyalty programs, wishlists, referrals, shoppable Instagram galleries, and UGC. It is one of the best Shopify loyalty apps on the Shopify App Store. It ensures the right balance of functionality and adaptability to successfully manage 3 types of e-commerce loyalty programs. (Points, VIP Tiers and Referral Program). With Growave, you can build a program that works for both your customers and your company. You can improve customer engagement and build a perfect brand-customer relationship. You can collect data from your frequent buyers and get valuable insight into their purchasing behavior.

3. Ask for Customer Feedback

Collecting customer feedback can be extremely beneficial for your business and it’s another effective way to engage your ecommerce customers. Sometimes online retailers fail to understand why shoppers aren’t converting. An easy way to solve this issue is to ask them. Nothing is more straightforward than asking them questions. You need to know how to ask the right questions to under their needs. Without client feedback, it might be challenging to engage your customers, identify the true problems, improve your products and services, understand their needs, and improve the user experience. Keep in mind that repeat customers expand your business quicker than marketing ever could.

Your customers should feel heard and valued. All you have to do is provide the opportunity to do so. To get feedback from your customers you could add a comments section on your ecommerce website. You can ask users to leave reviews on your e-commerce website and social media platforms. They can help you understand what is working or what’s not. But you need to make sure that you moderate any customer feedback. This way you can protect yourself from spam, explicit content, and negative reviews from competitors. Keep track of customer feedback and provide responses as soon as possible. Keep track of customer feedback and try to give answers as quickly as you can. It can help you build trust with your customers. Let them know that they matter to you. Without them, you wouldn’t have a business. Emails can help you collect feedback, too. For example, many online clothing stores ask their customers to rate the product quality, shipping speed, and overall shopping experience in an automated email that is sent to them after their order has been delivered. The surveys you include in those emails should be short and shouldn’t require the recipient to do a lot of work. Integrate the surveys inside the email itself. They would respond to them without visiting another page. Once you begin to analyze feedback you will see the true benefits of it. Without analyzing, you risk missing key information and wasting your time. Plus, you can use exit feedback forms. They can help you identify why your website visitors are leaving and what left them dissatisfied.

Using feedback can help you enhance customer engagement tactics by incorporating information obtained directly from your customers. Customer feedback and reviews give you a perfect opportunity to engage your customers by helping them with their issues, giving them advice, or addressing any problems they might be having with your products and services. They can help you improve your products and services, understand their needs, engage with them, and make better customer decisions.  

Conclusion

In today’s digital world, you must find a method to stand out from the competition while blending in with the lifestyles of your customers. Customer loyalty programs, customer feedback, and social media sites can help you differentiate yourself from competitors. They can help you understand your clients better and make their experience enjoyable. Positive customer experience often leads to increased customer engagement. To engage them it's important to understand your customers and their needs. Engaged customers are loyal customers. You need to create a dialogue, interact with consumers, get their feedback, and try new marketing strategies. The tactics that we’ve shared with you in this article can improve customer engagement and loyalty.