One of the reasons businesses put so much time and resources into their marketing strategy is to develop a brand following, get exposed to new customers and be able to increase sales. This can easily be interpreted by many as the need to incessantly talk about their products or services. However, when we consider this sort of behaviour in a social context – for example, you are introduced to someone who is, by all standards, nice enough, but never strays too far from one topic – themselves – then things can get pretty tiring, pretty quickly.
While in the past, this may have been the standard model for most businesses, social media, and other avenues for consumers to reach the companies directly have somewhat levelled out the playing field. This calls for a new awareness that needs to be directed at consumers and forming an interest in them.
One of the most important things for marketers to keep in mind is to be able to have a conversation with their customers through their marketing channels. That is, it should feel like you’re talking with the user rather than talking at them. Social media has emphasised the need for authenticity when it comes to consumer engagement because it encourages trust and also fosters more enduring relationships.
Be approachable
While it is still important to maintain a professional tone, appearing as a trusted authority is not mutually exclusive with being approachable and relatable. Ditch the jargon and where appropriate, be more conversational and engage with your customers. Having fun, engaging content on your social media channels encourages users to share your articles and helps grow your social media following organically.
Does your content provide some form of value?
Creating content to show consumers how to use your products or how your services work can be a great way to provide value for online readers. One of the ways you can do this is to provide a how-to-guide. This sort of content, while being incredibly useful, also positions your brand as one that is here to help your customers. Content that exclusively promotes your product can be tiring very quickly. In comparison, how-to guides, eBooks or video tutorials are great for sharing and helps maintain traffic by remaining a consistently relevant resource.
Connect
The key to connecting with your customers is creating content that is not only memorable, but evokes some kind of emotion. Campaigns that have lasting impacts will be the ones that incite some sort of reaction in the audience – whether it is sadness, hope or excitement. It not only helps you build a deeper connection with your audience, but helps you strengthen the loyalty of your customers. Consider this ad campaign for example:
This Dove campaign inspires something emotional in the viewer, which makes it all the more powerful.
