Gone are the days of push marketing. Two-way marketing, we’ve discovered, is far more powerful, building strong customer engagement.
But what if you don’t already have a loyal following? What if you’re a new business or simply new to the social arena?
If you’re starting from zero, how do you effectively engage with your prospects and customers?
A word about engagement
Engagement is the goal. But it’s also the thermometer. If you’ve developed a loyal following, and if they willingly join your conversations, you can be sure you’ve positively connected with your prospects.
So how do you begin engaging with your prospects? There are 4 keys: communication, education, collaboration and entertainment.
Fortunately, if you have a well-structured marketing plan, you’re probably already doing some, if not all, of these things. You may simply need to enlarge your plan or add a tactic or two.
Build engagement with communication
Engagement begins with relationship. And nothing builds relationship better than two-way communication.
You can communicate with your prospects through blogs, emails, webinars, tweets and Facebook posts, as well as through phone calls and fact-to-face communications. But you must create a steady stream of useful, relevant information.
In trying to build communication, don’t forget that your goal is to create an environment of trust. Try to stay at the front of our prospect’s mind — without becoming a pest. And always focus on your prospect’s needs, not your own.
Build engagement with education
Wondering what to talk about in this steady stream of communications? Consider becoming the go-to resource for information and educational materials that keep your prospect at the top of his game.
When you’re the educational resource in your industry, you automatically build your credibility. And by giving your prospects decision-making tools and teaching them best practice, you can help them see you as a helper and facilitator rather than a salesperson.
Build engagement with collaboration
Collaboration occurs in forums, discussion boards and group sites. Facebook and LinkedIn groups have also become a good tool for collaboration, since they invite discussions. These sites are especially powerful since they allow you to establish personal connection without a hidden objective.
That, in and of itself, builds trust.
Build engagement with entertainment
Entertainment occurs whenever pleasure is associated with an activity. Please note, it doesn’t have to involve humor.
That’s an important distinction, because it’s really hard to accurately hit the funny button of your entire prospect base. Try to be funny and you’ll likely offend as often as you get a laugh.
That being said, entertainment is one of the most powerful ways to connect with your prospects. If you create interesting, compelling content, people will likely come back for more. Just make sure your brand of entertainment blends with and reflects your corporate personality.
It’s best if you don’t make humor the goal, but rather a tool for… well… engagement.
Start by opening conversation
One of the reasons engagement is such a challenge is that it requires you to give up control over what is said about your brand. True engagement allows for and even encourages user-generated content.
That means you must trust your audience as much as you’re asking them to trust you. Engagement is, as we’ve said, built on relationship.
What are you doing to build relationship with your prospects and customers? What hasn’t worked? Take a moments to write your comments below.
