Online businesses thrive and succeed with the help of their loyal followers. Building a brand does not just stop once it is established – it is essential to form a community of followers around it. These so-called “netizens” become recurring customers who may also be willing to market the brand via word-of-mouth.
They are living evidence of legitimacy for newcomers and potential customers. However, many business owners forget that followers can easily unfollow a brand when they lose interest. Thus, it is essential for business owners to explore how to engage with their followers and customers continuously.
Gaining followers is one thing, but keeping them interested and loyal to our brand is another. You need to be personable but keep a business-customer relationship. Avoid trying too hard and scaring them off by saying inappropriate comments. When it comes to engaging with customers on social media platforms, businesses need to balance their agenda. Here are some ideas on how to keep customers loyal in following your brand.
Respond to Comments
Most businesses hesitate in answering questions raised on their social media sites. Many of them think that their answers might bring in a wrong precedent. Also, hundreds of people comment and post questions, so how do businesses choose which one to respond to? Avoid getting overwhelmed with the help of online tools that you can use for answering queries. If you don’t have a social media admin or team responsible for handling your social media platforms, take some time to respond to the most pressing queries posted on your page.
Reacts and Ask Questions Back
Communication is a two-way street, and if you want to keep the engagement with your followers, you must also react and ask questions about various topics. Inquire about their thoughts about the content you share, but avoid vagueness. Instead of asking about their thoughts on salad varieties, ask them what they think about locally sourced produce.
Take Advantage of Newsletters
Communicating via social media is not limited to chatting or commenting. You can use more than these texts or emojis. Online businesses today also utilize newsletters and digital brochures to reach out to their customers. It is an excellent way of announcing your product launch or promotions. Compared to just posting, business owners may include visuals like infographics, pictures, and videos. These contents are eye-catching and informative without a lot of text. Send regular newsletters to your followers to update them about what’s new and hot with your business, services, or products.
Create Forums Relevant to Your Business
When it comes to customer suggestions and feedback, businesses can use online forums to gather data regarding their products or services. There are public and private online forums that are relevant to your business. You can create an account and join the discussions. But you may also create your own forum and invite your followers to join you in discussing various topics.
Some online app forum builders create better engagement with followers. Here, you will learn everything that customers love and hate about your product or service, and you can use it to make improvements. Although it may seem scary to have these people sharing their feedback, it is one of the best ways for your products to go from Version 1 to 3 quickly.
Linking Social Media to Website Posts
There are many ways to link social media platforms to website posts. It is a growing trend for online businesses because when one follows you on one platform, they are interested in your business. Make it easier for your followers to link up with all your social media sites and websites by including links in your content so that you can effectively keep their attention. Some ideas to do this is to include links in your Twitter or Instagram profile. Doing cross-linking helps grow audiences and allows you to consistently follow through with your brand across all platforms.
Likewise, you can integrate your social profiles in your websites to make sharing content easier and help your audience follow you on their desired social media site.
Customer engagement is one of the keys to a long-term, profitable and successful online business community. Businesses need to make an effort to communicate with their loyal customers. Otherwise, they might lose interest and look elsewhere. Social media followers prefer businesses that value their opinions and thoughts. They have questions and opinions that are all worth your time and attention.
Don’t be afraid of customer feedback, whether they are good or bad. These things you gather from your social media platforms are some of the most effective tools for improving your products and services. Keep in mind that while it is easy to build an audience and increase followers, keeping them interested, loyal and engaged is another thing.
