“An important part of building a loyal base is knowing who is (and who should be) a part of it. Then it’s a matter of supplying those people with a great experience every single time they interact with your brand.”
– Tom Klien, CMO at Mailchimp
What does it take to create a brand that keeps the right people coming back? According to Tom Klein, CMO at Mailchimp, it’s all about driving personal connections, staying customer-centric, and putting your heart into what you do.
Know Your Target. Know Yourself. Make an Emotional Connection
Knowing who is your target is one of the most important things. Focus on what makes you different (better) than everyone else. Design the experience you want to create and deliver.
Creating an emotional connection with people is what drives loyalty. People want meaning and connection with the products and services that they use. If you want to be valued as more than a commodity, then you need to make that emotional connection.
What is the emotional benefit to your customers? What is the benefit for them? How does using your products and services make them feel?
Trust
Trust is something that has to be earned customer by customer, sale by sale. Your brand can create trust – or not…
Brand-building and building your business is a marathon, not a sprint. Anyone who’s interacted with customers at any level understands that it takes a degree of maturity and patience. You need to be firm but fair. Customers recognize that you should not probably be able to return a thing that you bought two years ago but, at the same time, if you have a problem, there’s a general expectation that you’re going to help someone get through it.
Thoughtful and Mindful Communication
If your marketing communication is thoughtful and creative – and a little part of you – then people want as much as you can give them. But be mindful of your cadence.
Today, you have so many different options, whether it’s social media, advertising, or email. Set the cadence that makes sense. Put enough heart into the things that are going out and narrow what you’re doing. Put enough effort and enough heart into the things that you do so that customers will actually ask for more.
Driving personal connections, stay customer-centric, and putting your heart into what you do.
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How to Build a Brand That Inspires Loyalty. Mailchimp. https://mailchimp.com/resources/build-brand-loyalty/