How-To: Energize Brand Evangelists
5 Tips from GolinHarris' Jeff Beringer
Earning customer enthusiasm in a word of mouth world takes more than a plastic loyalty card and a few nominal discounts. According to Jeff Beringer, head of the interactive communications team at GolinHarris, it takes innovation and conversation. "In today's interconnected world, the voice of a brand loyalist carries more weight than ever before," he says.
To keep your most loyal customers excited and delivering positive word of mouth about your brand, consider Jeff's five tips for energizing brand evangelists:
Tip #1. Find your brand loyalists
Before you can energize brand evangelists, you must be able to find them. Jeff recommends establishing clear criteria for doing so. "One of the most important components of energizing your brand's loyalists is to first understand who they are," he says. "The definition of what constitutes a brand evangelist varies widely from company to company, so be sure to work closely with communications, marketing, and sales functions to get a clear picture of who the most loyal audiences are."
Tip #2. Give exclusive access and special privileges
Evangelists expect to be courted in return for their loyalty. "It's not enough just to produce great products or offer leading-edge services," Jeff says. "Customers want more from the companies they engage with." Show loyal customers you care by giving them special access to your company -- an advance-look at new products, for instance, or a dedicated customer support line for issues. "A little TLC goes a long way at building and maintaining loyal customers who will spread the word."
Tip #3. Respond quickly to comments and feedback
Evangelists not only expect companies to listen to them -- they demand it. "If you're a loyalist, there's nothing worse than a company that doesn't value your input," Jeff says. "Companies who ignore the voices of their brand loyalists often see not only a loss of repeat business, but also ill will, which can harm its quest for new customers, too."
Tip #4. Monitor and reach out proactively
Don't wait for loyal customers to find you before you recognize and reward them. "Savvy companies are closely monitoring online chatter to unearth opportunities for engaging their loyalists -- and even detractors -- in dialog," Jeff says. "Imagine the goodwill generated when a company posts a simple 'Thanks for your support' comment to a positive blog posting pertaining to their product."
Tip #5. Give brand evangelists a voice
Don't just engage brand evangelists, make them content co-creators. "For true brand evangelists, there's nothing more rewarding than seeing their input and passion for a product play out publicly or shape the future direction of a brand," Jeff says. More and more marketers are seeing results from open source initiatives, he adds, whether a television campaign or a survey that helps dictate product attributes. "Loyalists are typically thrilled to provide feedback and see their input put to work."
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