Organic growth is crucial to the success of any business. The days of solely focusing on paid advertising and pay-per-click are gone. While those things are still important and have their place, nowadays, people want to feel a connection with the businesss and businesses they choose. So you need to investigate how to connect with your audience. For the sake of your business, do it now, not later.

One study found that when companies create and participate in relevant conversations online,44% of consumers said they would feel a stronger connection. Since many consumers base their spending habits on emotional connections, building that bond is crucial.

Not only will you draw in new consumers with stronger connection skills, but you’ll build loyalty and satisfaction within your audience.

Whether you’re a brick-and-mortar business or do things strictly digitally, there are multiple ways to connect with your audience and experience authentic growth. Let’s cover a few strategies you can use to foster that connection and see greater success.

Define Your Customer Retention Strategies

If you’ve already built up your target audience or you’ve made an effort to get to know your customers, you’re one step ahead. However, that doesn’t mean you should take your foot off the gas pedal. Now is a perfect time to define yourcustomer retention strategies and consider what you can do to keep your audience interested. More importantly, what can you do to strengthen your relationship with them? 

Personalizing the customer experience is often the best retention strategy. People want to feel seen, heard, and appreciated when they’re supporting a business or business. You can do that by optimizing your website to make it more user-friendly, improving customer service efforts, and separating any back-end areas of your business from the things people see.

You can also improve the customer experience and boost retention using some of the following strategies:

  • Loyalty programs
  • Rewards/incentives
  • Engaging on social media
  • Checking out metrics

    • The more you retain existing customers, the more likely they are to be loyal to your business above your competitors. Beyond that, they’re more likely to tell others about what you have to offer. As everyone in marketing knows, word-of-mouth advertising is worth its weight in gold.

    Boost Your Digital Marketing Plan

    If you’re trying todevelop a growth strategy, the retention practices above can help. However, it might also be time to take a closer look at your digital marketing plan and make changes where necessary. You might be doing things that are contributing to unnecessary costs, or investing your time and energy into strategies that don’t connect with your audience.

    Your growth strategy needs to include the following:

    • Partnerships with other organizations
    • Uncovering gaps in your business and industry. What user needs are going unfilled?
    • Product development opportunities (e.g., growing out of your gap analysis)
    • A boosted digital marketing presence
    • Utilization of new tools and resources

    If you’re not sure how to change your existing marketing plan for the better, consider asking your customers what they want. (What a novel concept.☺) A customer feedback loop will boost your business and let your audience know you care about what they have to say. Emphasize convenience.

    Check in with your customers via newsletters or text surveys, and commit to the highest quality of customer satisfaction. These check-ins are also great for retention, as your customers are more likely to come back to see if you’ve made any changes based on their opinions, ideas, or suggestions. When they see their suggestions were taken seriously, there’s a good chance you’ve gained a customer for life.

    Humanize Your Business With Social Media

    We touched on the importance of word-of-mouth advertising earlier. Today, there’s no better way to spread the word about a business than via social media. If a strong social media strategy isn’t already a part of your marketing plan, it’s time to rethink things.

    Social media allows you to humanize your business and directly communicate with your audience. It allows you tobuild trust with your customers by answering questions, engaging in conversations, and letting them see that there are real people working to make sure they’re happy and satisfied.

    You don’t necessarily need to have an account on every social media platform. Consider what makes the most sense for your business, including where your audience is most likely to spend their time online. Don’t be afraid to get personal and casual on these platforms. Post behind-the-scenes photos, host live stream events, and let your personality come through in every word. Social media makes it easy to be authentic every day while showing your customers that you’re truly listening to them.

    Growing your audience with authenticity is something you can feel good about. Not only is it more cost-effective, but it allows you to have fun with your business and get other people as passionate about it as you are. While keeping a sense of professionalism is important, letting your guard down just a bit and connecting with your audience will make a big difference in how your business is viewed, and you’re more likely to form loyal relationships with customers for years.

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