Your products and services are amazing — but without engagement throughout the customer journey, you may not see the results you need to reach your business goals.
According to our State of Customer Experience Report, good customer experiences evolve based on changing customer needs and CX technology. That includes customer engagement.
A successful customer engagement strategy leverages every touchpoint — your website, product design, or social media — to foster positive emotions and build trust. The goal is to consistently deliver outstanding experiences that create loyal customers who advocate for your brand. Our guide offers tips for businesses of all sizes and examples to help you visualize and create your a successful customer engagement strategy.
What Is a Customer Engagement Strategy?
A customer engagement strategy is a plan that outlines how a company will interact with its customers across various channels. The goal is to create positive, engaging experiences that encourage customer loyalty, increase satisfaction, and ultimately drive revenue growth.
Main elements of a customer engagement strategy include:
- Personalization
- Omnichannel experience
- Feedback
- Proactive communication
- Loyalty programs and incentives
Customer Engagement Strategy Tips for Startups
Startups have a unique opportunity to build strong relationships with their early customers. By focusing on personalized communication, community building, and active listening, startups can create a loyal customer base and drive growth.
1. Share your company’s mission and vision
A clear and compelling mission and vision can help you attract like-minded customers passionate about your brand. Share your company’s story and values through your website, social media, and other marketing channels. This will help customers understand why your product or service exists and how it can benefit them.
2. Build a community around your product
Create a space where your customers can connect with each other and share their experiences. This could be a forum, social media group, or online community. By fostering a sense of belonging, you can increase customer loyalty and generate valuable word-of-mouth marketing.
3. Hyper-personalize communications
‘As a startup, you have the opportunity to build personal relationships with your customers. According to our State of Customer Experience Report, 20% of businesses say delivering empathy from customer reps is the biggest priority of a personalized CX. Using their data to send personalized emails, recommendations, and offers shows that you care about their needs and preferences — and are more than just a sale.
4. Listen to customer feedback
Pay close attention to customer feedback through surveys, reviews, and social media. Use this information to improve your product or service and address any pain points. By actively listening to your customers, you demonstrate that their opinions matter and that you are committed to providing a great experience.
5. Optimize customer onboarding
The onboarding process is important for setting the tone for the customer relationship. Make it easy for new customers to get started with your product or service and provide them with the resources they need to be successful. When they know how to use your product (and get the most out of it), it can lead to higher customer retention and satisfaction.
Customer Engagement Strategies for Small- and Mid-Sized Businesses
Small- and mid-sized businesses (SMBs) can leverage customer engagement to build strong relationships, increase customer loyalty, and drive growth. By focusing on targeted marketing, loyalty programs, and effective communication, SMBs can create a positive customer experience and differentiate themselves from competitors.
6. Take advantage of social media
Social media platforms offer a powerful way to connect with customers and build brand awareness. Engage with your audience by sharing valuable content, responding to comments and messages, and running contests or giveaways. Use social media analytics to track your performance and identify areas for improvement.
7. Reward and incentivize customer loyalty
Loyalty programs can encourage repeat business and foster customer loyalty. Offer rewards such as discounts, exclusive offers, or points customers can redeem for products or services. Consider using a customer relationship management (CRM) system to track customer interactions and personalize rewards.
8. Implement the right customer engagement tools
There are various customer engagement tools available to help you manage customer communications. Consider using a CRM system, email marketing software, or social media scheduling tools. These tools can help you streamline your processes, track customer interactions, and measure your results.
9. Create a customer journey map
A customer journey map visualizes the steps a customer takes when interacting with your business. This can help you identify pain points and opportunities for improvement. Creating a digital customer journey map helps you understand the online customer experience from beginning to end, allowing you to tailor your engagement efforts to meet their needs at each stage.
10. Maintain a consistent brand voice and message
A consistent brand voice and message helps you build a strong brand identity and create a memorable customer experience. Ensure you align your messaging across all channels, from your website and social media to customer support interactions. This will help customers recognize and trust your business.
Customer Engagement Strategies for Enterprises
With their large customer bases and complex operations, enterprises require sophisticated customer engagement strategies. By leveraging technology, data analytics, and omnichannel approaches, enterprises can create personalized experiences, build customer loyalty, and drive business growth.
11. Leverage AI and automation
Artificial intelligence (AI) and automation can help enterprises streamline their customer engagement processes and provide more personalized experiences. For example, many businesses use AI in customer service, such as chatbots, to handle routine inquiries, while AI-powered recommendation engines can suggest products or services based on customer preferences.
12. Define and track customer engagement metrics
To measure the effectiveness of your customer engagement strategy, it’s essential to define key performance indicators (KPIs). Key customer engagement metrics include:
- Customer satisfaction (CSAT)
- Customer lifetime value (CLV)
- Customer churn rate
- Net Promoter score® (NPS)
Use data analytics tools to identify trends and areas for improvement.
13. Take an omnichannel approach
Large organizations should develop a seamless omnichannel customer experience across all channels, including online, mobile, and in-person interactions. They should also ensure that customer data is integrated and accessible across different platforms, allowing for personalized communication and service.
14. Offer mobile apps
Mobile apps can provide customers with convenient access to your products or services and personalized content and offers. Consider developing a mobile app that aligns with your customer’s needs and preferences.
15. Host marketing events
Marketing events, such as webinars, conferences, or workshops, can be valuable for engaging with customers and building relationships. These events offer opportunities for networking, education, and showcasing your brand.
The Benefits of Building a Customer Experience Strategy
Creating an effective customer experience strategy can profoundly impact your business. By focusing on creating positive customer interactions, you can drive loyalty, customer retention, and revenue growth.
⭐ Improve the customer experience: A strong CX strategy ensures customers have a positive and seamless experience with your brand. This includes everything from easy navigation on your website to efficient and helpful customer support. By understanding your customers’ needs and preferences, you can tailor their experience to meet their expectations.
☺️ Create customer loyalty: When customers have positive experiences, they are more likely to become loyal to your brand. Loyal customers are more likely to make repeat purchases, refer your business to others, and become brand advocates.
🥰 Increase customer retention: A focus on CX can help you retain customers and reduce churn. You can build trust and loyalty by addressing customer needs and resolving issues promptly, leading to longer-lasting customer relationships.
👍 Build positive brand perception: A positive customer experience contributes to a positive brand perception. When customers have positive interactions with your brand, they are more likely to view your business favorably. This can help you build a positive brand reputation and increase brand awareness.
💲 Boost revenue: A strong CX strategy can directly impact your bottom line. You can increase customer lifetime value and drive revenue growth by improving customer satisfaction and loyalty. Additionally, positive word-of-mouth from satisfied customers can attract new business and boost sales.
Customer Engagement Strategy Examples
Explaining the key components of customer engagement strategies is one thing, but showing successful examples in action is another. Here are a few brands that implemented their customer engagement plan to perfection.
Lou Malnati’s
Lou Malnati’s, a renowned pizzeria chain, prioritized customer experience and efficiency by transitioning to Nextiva’s Contact Center solution. Their customer engagement strategy focused on these elements:
- Identifying and addressing communication challenges: Lou Malnati’s identified communication challenges with their legacy system, which couldn’t handle complex call flows, and prioritized finding a cost-effective solution.
- Implementing the right contact center solution: Nextiva’s contact center solution provided superior call quality, advanced features, and seamless integration with existing systems to enhance customer experience and agent performance. The transition was seamless, supported by Nextiva’s 24/7 support team and comprehensive employee training, while implementing customized call flows for optimized service.
- Leveraging analytics: Lou Malnati’s leveraged real-time metrics and analytics from Nextiva and Akixi to gain valuable business insights and improve customer experience.
Lotus
Lotus of Dallas’ customer engagement strategy revolves around providing a seamless and reliable experience for their high-end clientele. By implementing these strategies, the dealership has established a strong presence in the luxury vehicle market and delivered exceptional customer service. Here are the key elements of their CX strategy:
- Prioritizing customer experience: Lotus of Dallas recognized their luxury clientele’s demand for high service standards and addressed the issues with their previous provider, which caused dropped calls and poor customer experiences.
- Investing in a trusted communication solution: The dealership invested in Nextiva’s Unified-CXM platform for its reliability and advanced features, seamlessly integrating it into its operations to enhance communication.
- Delivering on customer expectations: The switch to Nextiva significantly improved reliability by 90%, enhanced customer experience with advanced features, and allowed the IT team to focus on critical tasks by eliminating previous communication issues.
Taylor Swift
Taylor Swift has cultivated a dedicated and passionate fanbase, known as “Swifties,” through a strategic approach to customer engagement. She engages her fans by offering personalized experiences, such as exclusive content and merchandise, and by sending personalized gifts. She maintains a strong online presence, actively engaging with fans on social media and creating interactive experiences.
However, one of the most unique elements of her engagement strategy is including easter eggs and hidden messages in her social media content, music, live shows, and more. This encourages fans to decipher and feel involved in the creative process.
Elevate Customer Engagement with Nextiva
Customer engagement is more than just a tactic — it’s a necessity for businesses of all sizes. Companies can drive customer loyalty, increase revenue, and achieve long-term success by fostering meaningful connections, creating a sense of community, and providing personalized experiences.
A customer engagement platform like Nextiva enables businesses to deliver personalized experiences at scale by providing a unified view of the customer, proactive workflows, and AI-driven interactions. It enhances customer satisfaction and agent efficiency by offering real-time insights, seamless channel transitions, and continuous improvement tools. The platform is scalable, flexible, and integrates easily with other systems, making it a comprehensive solution for optimizing customer engagement.
Customer Engagement Strategy FAQs
Want to learn more about customer engagement strategies? Check out these frequently asked questions.
Customer experience refers to the overall impression customers have of your brand, encompassing all interactions they have with your business.
Customer engagement is a subset of CX, specifically focusing on building relationships and creating meaningful customer interactions.
While CX encompasses the entire customer journey, customer engagement focuses on specific touchpoints and interactions designed to foster loyalty and advocacy.
The 4 P’s of customer engagement are:
Personalization: Tailoring interactions and experiences to individual customer needs and preferences.
Proactivity: Reaching out to customers before they have a problem or need assistance.
Proactiveness: Anticipating customer needs and providing solutions before they are requested.
Persistence: Following up with customers to ensure you have met their needs and that they feel satisfied.
The 3 C’s of customer engagement are:
Consistency: Providing a consistent brand experience across all channels and touchpoints.
Clarity: Communicating clearly and effectively with customers, avoiding jargon or technical terms.
Convenience: Making it easy for customers to interact with your brand and access your products or services.
Here are a few creative ways to increase customer engagement:
– Incorporate gamification elements into your customer experience, such as loyalty programs, leaderboards, or challenges.
– Encourage customers to create and share content related to your brand, such as reviews, photos, or videos.
– Provide customers with access to exclusive deals, products, or events.
– Use customer data to suggest products or services that are relevant to their interests.
Net Promoter, Net Promoter Score, and NPS are trademarks of NICE Satmetrix, Inc., Bain & Company, Inc., and Fred Reichheld.
