The secret to creating loyalty

I often get asked how to create loyalty. Like there’s a magic switch. So here’s a download on what I believe to be the secret to creating loyalty.

To me, the most important thing is to start by asking yourself, am I creating an experience that will make people want to come back for more? Too often, brands focus on referral schemes and loyalty offers before checking that they’re delivering an experience that’s worthy of shouting about or repeating. 

So, focus first on your customer experience.

Customer experience is now the key differentiator for a brand - it’s more important than product or price when it comes to choosing who to buy from 👀. In my opinion, there are three key components to great customer experience.

One: Deliver on a promise.

The single best way to deliver a great experience, and loyalise your customer, is to do what you say you’re going to do. It’s as simple as that. The way you communicate, the things you sell, the way they’re made - you’re setting expectations, and it’s vital that you meet them. Delivering on a promise builds trust. And trust is the key to unlocking brand affinity in the long term.

Two: Convenience.

Think about every step of your journey to purchase and where you can make it as frictionless and effortless as possible for your customers. Remove barriers, allow people to buy in ways that work for them, try to be open when your customers want to engage, in the channels that work for them.

Three: Personal.

Always put your customer at the centre of your communications. Ask yourself, are you communicating because you want to say something, or because your customer wants to hear something? Is the message you’re sending relevant to them? Does it tap into their needs?

Getting these things right will mean you’re giving your customers an enjoyable, easy experience that works for them. And that’s how you’ll loyalise your customers and turn them into advocates 🙌🏻 Because the experience is genuinely good. So they’ll come back, and shout about you.

Of course, you can layer in other tactics such as an effective email marketing programme, loyalty offerings, referral incentives and review mechanics, but I’d get the foundations of your business squared away first so you can knock people’s socks off from the get-go.

What next?

If you’d like to chat more about how to build loyalty, boost retention rates and put solid processes and communications in place to create effective, consistent engagement with your customers, feel free to give us a shout. We’re always up for a chat 👍🏻.