Does your customer experience and customer engagement build customer loyalty to drive more revenue in your business? For many years, business owners and marketers have been experimenting with methods to drive customer loyalty. From redeeming tokens and stamps to collecting box tops and
punch cards, loyalty programs were (and still can be) a way to move customers along the buyer’s journey and retain them. After all, it pays to have loyal fans, as they often spend more and provide free advertising as they spread the word to friends and colleagues.
But with a world of choices now at their fingertips, consumers are no longer confined to the limited selection that’s available at their neighborhood store. They can buy whatever they want, whenever they want it at a competitive price by shopping around the internet. Building genuine, lasting relationships requires a deeper connection between your business and customers: It’s called “emotional loyalty”.
Today, building loyalty is about
creating memorable experiences and
building a base of ambassadors to share your story,
not just increasing transactions.
What is “Emotional Loyalty”?
Emotional loyalty is the deep connection achieved when every touch point and communication a customer receives from your business makes them feel valued and respected. True loyalty is not just a points program or a rewards card. Though these are tactics that bring your business and your customers
closer together. But genuine loyalty is an outcome—a goal you can only achieve by truly knowing your customers and carefully nurturing every relationship you have.
Establishing an emotional connection between your business and customers is the ultimate goal, as it builds lasting relationships that keep your customers engaged and coming back over and over. But achieving this level of customer love requires a strategy of activities and behaviors between your business, your staff and the customer to drive engagement at every single touchpoint.
I always share and prove to my coaching clients that prioritizing loyalty is a worthy investment in their business. By investing in customer loyalty through deeper emotional connections, your business will stand to not only gain increased profits now, but future sales as well.
It costs up to
25x more to acquire
new customers than to
retain existing ones.
There are three types of loyalty:
- Affinity – “I like you but I don’t love you.” – Customers have affinity for your business when they enjoy what the
your offer: high-quality goods or products at a great value. But liking your business doesn’t mean being loyal to it and return again. - Attachment – “You know me well.” – Attachment is less about liking your business and more about making a connection. When you and your staff make the effort to connect in meaningful and personalized ways with your customers your customers feel valued, appreciated, and confident in your company’s ability to meet their expectations.
- Trust – “Let’s be friends.” Trust is the secret of emotional loyalty and the main ingredient to retaining a loyal customer. When a customer feels respected, their willingness to trust increases. Customers then become eager to make referrals and give you frequent feedback on their experience. Remember that trust is earned and can easily be taken away.
Meaningful Customer Engagements:
Building true emotional loyalty with your customers requires a mix of activities and interactions between your business, staff and customers that will drive engagement at every touchpoint. The best and most thriving loyalty programs consistently follow these guidelines to build affinity, attachment, and trust among customers:
- Evaluate your present customer journey and touchpoints. Put yourself in your customer’s shoes. How can their customer experience journey be improved?
- Reward your best customers – Offer special treatment to your best customers. Loyalty is a two-way street. If customers are
going to trust your business, they better receive something in return, whether in product/monetary rewards or exclusive content/offers. - Ask for customer feedback – When customers can connect with you and provide their feedback and opinions, they feel valued, appreciated,
and respected, sparking attachment and trust. Enable your loyal customers to be vocal advocates of your business by inviting feedback and rewarding them for the referrals they give across social media. - Personalize offers and communications – Define, manage, and target highly personalized offers online, at the register, or even in-store with
coupons, recommendations, and exclusive offers. It is valuable to make them feel important and special.
So let me remind you again. Building genuine, lasting relationships requires a deeper connection between your business and your customers. Customer loyalty is based on emotions. If you want to create loyalty for life, you need to connect emotionally with your customers. Get your entire staff and team involved. Make it a priority, fun and rewarding. I promise you it will be “Magical”!
Need help with your Customer Experience Strategy and creating loyalty? Contact John today for a FREE Strategy Session Call or let’s schedule a training workshop for your team. It might help you achieve the profits and goals you always dreamed of. Contact John at info@johnformica.com or (704) 965-4090.
Click on the link below to schedule your FREE ONE on ONE STRATEGY SESSION CALL:
https://go.oncehub.com/
We can accomplish a lot in 45 minutes! I truly look forward to helping you in any way.
To your success!
John
John Formica is America’s Customer Experience Coach, team culture expert, keynote speaker, and Top 10 Global Thought Leader and Influencer on Customer Loyalty. For information on customer experience programs, leadership training, team culture, business growth, how to find and hire great people and tailored training programs just for you or to book John, contact 704-965-4090 or visit our website at JohnFormica.com.