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Tag Archives: 413Assign1
How Long-Term Relationships Bring Long-Term Success
Keep Your Eye on the BallThere is nothing more frustrating than trying to hold a conversation with someone who cannot look you in the eye. You struggle to make any kind of connection while their eyes remain focused on some object over your right should… Continue Reading
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Customer Engagement 101
Redefined Relationships
What is the point of customer engagement? Successful IMC is measured by the extent of customer engagement used as the redefined value of profitable relationships. Profitable relationships with customers prove distinct choice in brand loyalty. Although it is easy to automatically assume that “profitable” relationships only refer to revenue, it is just one of several ways for customers to interact with companies. The sharing of opinions on goods or services bought is not new, rather the ability to maximize conversations online and with the use of social media makes it very important for companies to make customer engagement a focal point.
In Re-envisioning customer value written by the Economist Intelligence Unit, customer engagement is described as recently becoming a priority as the use of social media and buyer power grows exponentially. Consumers are more savvy than ever and research brand choices before finally settling on one. Companies are compelled to research these internet platforms, so that they can reach their potential customer base and engage and explore what the customer desires in a product or service. Customers are not afraid to ask, “If I were to walk away, what would you do to regain my loyalty?” Customer engagement is not just a desperate ploy in the face of brand parity, but it is the building of a relationship between customer and company, so that customers do not feel as though they are just a one time monetary transaction.
Aaron Magness, Senior Director of Brand Marketing for Zappos Development, stated, “We want a local community mindset, so it feels like I’m buying from my friend’s store. It allows us to get deeper into the relationship, and further away from the attitude that customers are just a wallet on legs.” Zappos is a great example of an online retailer that focuses on customer engagement. Their customer engagement leads to numerous loyal customers to return to their online retailer over a competitor’s.
“Customers nowadays want a different kind of relationship with the companies whose products andservices they buy. This makes the challenge of effective relationship management far more difficult.The advent of social media multiplies the challenges, but at the same time it creates an extraordinary opportunity for companies to understand and work with their customers in mutually benefi cial ways.Those that grasp the potential, and embrace social media with a scalable and sustainable strategy, will secure a significant competitive advantage over their rivals.”
– Economist Intelligence Unit
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Gotta Catch ‘Em All…Con-Su-Mers!
Let’s Just Be Friends!In the age of the 4 Ps of marketing, communication was not necessarily a two-way street. Shultz introduced us to a new idea of communication that definitely set ablaze the old ways and had companies jumping aboard the 5 Rs of IMC … Continue Reading
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Engaging the Customer in the 21st Century
Where do we stand?Since the introduction of the internet, the market landscape has changed many a time. First, we all remember AOL or the first hyped social network MySpace. Then we made the transition towards small startups such as Faceboo… Continue Reading
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What a Customer Wants, What a Customer Needs
“It’s a small world”
Is a long-lived phrase, but still holds true to today’s society, but I am referring to specifically our market based society. Technology, now more than ever, has given customers all around the world the ability to interact and discuss products the consumer market has to offer, and give feedback and reactions to those products and services. Consumer markets have taken notice of this growing trend, and are using it as a way to get their brand to reach out and engage with more consumers.
Clow uses the example of Chick-fil-a and their effort to use social media to interact and engage with their consumers. Chick-fil-a discovered that they had a big presence in the world of Facebook, and utilized this social media network to create a fan page that would allow customers to interact with the company. Clow would define Chick-fil-a’s Facebook fan page as a “contact point” or any place where customers can interact or acquire additional information about a company. Customer engagement was key in Chick-Fil-A’s Facebook page, allowing customers to post openly about Chick-fil-a’s products and giving the consumer more of a voice, which makes them feel more appreciated and valued.
Willem also talks in depth about customer engagement, and to be a successful brand in today’s day and age, the customer needs to be more in control of the buying process, which he illustrates in a company’s “Blueconomy”. In a Blueconomy value creation and collaboration are key components when marketing a brand. The customer needs to feel connected to the product the company is promoting and needs to feel that the product would satisfy a need or want of the customer. The customer needs to feel like they are being listened to and that their wants and needs are being taken into account. With so many social media channels it is easier than ever for customers to voice their opinions on products and services, which could benefit or hurt a company’s reputation.
Twitter, a huge social media outlet, is an easy and effective way consumers can voice their opinions about any product and look at other’s opinions before making purchasing decisions. American Express has come up with an innovative way for consumers to purchase and promote products by just “hashtagging” a certain product on twitter. With one simple hashtag, linking the American Express account with the twitter account a consumer can purchase a product. According to Carr, this is an innovative way to link e-commerce together with social media and
“To have customers promoting brands at the same time as they’re purchasing items from them–a clever trick to yield more social currency for all players involved.”
I agree completely that customer engagement is one of the most vital components to marketing a product. In today’s consumer market, customers have so many brand options to chose from and I believe by listening to the customer’s wants and needs, and letting consumers interact one on one with brands is only going to make a product stand out and attract more buyers. A customer wants to be paid attention to and I believe that the firm who does that the most is going to be the most successful. Over & Out.
-SILV
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A Superbowl of Ad Mistakes….Well, Mostly
Engagement- Where Was It?Hans Willems defines customer engagement as the following in his article, Customer-driven Online Engagement: “The process of being involved with (prospective) customers by interacting with them through relevant dialogues and ex… Continue Reading
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