5 Ways for your Brand to be Always Customer Focused

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In our increasingly connected world, it is imperative for brands to be seen as customer focused – always and continuously. It is a relentless pursuit of happiness – for your consumer, your customer, and not necessarily for your brand and your team. But focusing on the customer does have its payoffs. Here are five simple things you can do to keep your customers, in the loop, informed, interested and happy...

1. Build a sense of trust. 

Whether or not, you offer some kind of customer service via your online channels, it is important that you build a sense of trust with your customer. Relationships are built on trust. It depends on the way you 'speak' to your customers on your social channels, your website, your chatbots – and particularly offline. Be clear in delivering a message that is consistent about what you do, what your brand or product promises, how you deliver on that, and what your customers (and your target audience) can expect from you.

Keep your customers informed about changes, updates, and problems (if any) with your products and services. Be consistent, and deliver a mix of information that is relevant to their everyday lives, as well as good news from your side – that is of benefit to them. When you resolve a problem that a customer had had – beyond their expectations – they usually become loyal customers and advocates for your brand and product. That's what trust does for you.

2. Listen to your customer. Be open to feedback and criticisms.

Digital marketing is built around the customer, the audience you want to talk to, and getting proper insights about your customer, the consumer, their needs is what should be your first and fundamental step. You need to listen to your customers all the time. With proper intent. 

Customer feedback, criticisms, suggestions are hugely useful because they are direct input and insight from those who have used your product or service firsthand. This allows you to and fine-tune your products, iterations, fixes and new versions to the specific needs and preferences of your target audience. You can use surveys, open social media channels that allow for interactions, communities, user groups – even user generated videos such as unboxings and 'first impressions'.

3. Be reachable, be open, be honest.

In this digitally connected age, there's no excuse to say "Sorry, we're Closed'! Yes, you are in a 24/7 world that's Always On. The more easily accessible information you provide across multiple channels, the better you look. And that information has to be open and honest – faults, fails, wins, losses and all. You have to be open to multi channel contact and engagement – and that's not easy. Are you on WhatsApp? Via SMS? On Facebook? Is your twitter channel ready to receive feedback and are you ready to deliver on that?

4. Give them value. Create usefulness.

To win with your brand's content marketing strategy – give something away – for free!  Not prizes, not coupons. Value. What you need to do each and every time is to share content with your audience that is useful and valuable for them. That's how you create an experience that your target audience will enjoy, benefit from, and look forward for more. And be consistent with your generosity!

Content is hugely valuable in our currency of marketing today. How do you create a winning content plan for your brand? There are so many ways to use content to better market your products and services, to better connect to your target audiences, and engage consumers. Whichever way, whichever types of content you plan to create and share, remember that end-user value is critical.

As far as the types of content you can or should create, see Content Marketing Strategy: What kind of content should you create.

5. Always, always deliver what you promise.

Yes, you create value, yes you are open and honest, but are you delivering what you promised? And then some? This is important. When you make a promise, keep them within the boundaries of what you can manage to deliver – and make sure they match your goals. Your deliveries, your actions do not have to be flawless each and every time, but make sure you fix things, repair any emotional damage to trust, and then go the extra mile.

Customer experience today is a tough game. And social media has made it a game where the rules are constantly changing. Play it right, and your brand will resonate with your audience. Please share this with your friends and colleagues today.

Now please read (and share) these related posts:

• 8 steps to building Awareness and Customer Loyalty with Social Media

• Customer Insights is your First Step in Digital Marketing

•  Improve your social media engagement. Move from Selling to building Relationships