5 Ways to Stay Connected with Your Customers

Especially during a Time of Social Distancing

In the last couple of months, have you wondered how your marketing tactics can be influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic? Or if your business is even going to survive?

Nobody wants to run out of business. Ultimately, it is your job as a business leader to change with the times and keep your business afloat. You have to find ways to still be relevant to your customers, show you care and stay connected to them. 

The pandemic has all of us adjusting to a new normal. Social distancing keeps people physically apart, which makes it might seem difficult to make meaningful connections with clients and customers. However, we know this doesn’t have to be the case. The big question: how do you stay connected with your customers in a social-distancing time? 

1. Understand that this is the time to offer HELP, not hype…

The first thing a marketer looks at is an opportunity, and many companies have used the pandemic as an opportunity to sell. Take for example how companies promoted masks, sanitizers and other essentials. Prices hiked and all marketing materials related to only those products. At first glance, this seems like a good strategy. You make an enormous amount of sales for a short time and then what?

Rather than creating a short term hype, we believe you should create long term connections by offering actual help to your customers. Find common ground and offer help and solutions to problems they might be facing at the moment. Make your solutions known to them with an entry level offer. 

Let say you have a small business that provides baby clothing. A new mom will be wary of going to public places to buy clothes, offer FREE shipping/Delivery on purchases. This will provide a solution to a problem or concern the mom or mom-to-be is facing.

2. We all love a Good Story – TELL YOURS

Our human brains are hardwired for stories. We all enjoy a good story and now we’re all sharing a similar experience. Connect to your customers by sharing your personal version of what is going on. How are you managing to work from home? How do you keep active? How are you spending your evening? Tell people what your new normal is like so that they can identify with you.

This will give viewers something that they can relate to and engage with. How you are handling a situation can be a solution or inspiration for someone else. (keep that in mind)

3. Be present. Be visible.

If you don’t show up in this time of need, how can you expect your customers too? You should be approachable, visible and easily accessible. This is the perfect time to boost your social media presence, share info about your company and post visuals about your products. Virtual consultations and easily accessible information with a strong strategy, will help keep your customer connections strong.

You can use social media campaigns to boost your social connections with customers by using the right strategy. Go beyond just posting organic content, make use of advertised posts and get your message out there. This is an exciting way to connect to a wider audience.

4. Use Emotions & GIFs

Face it, you have been flooded with emotions and GIFs these last couple of months. Feelings of fear, distress, sadness and worry is a quick summary of emotions we’ve all been feeling.  Companies that are using fear and uncertainty to promote and sell their products won’t be winning long term loyalty from customers. To genuinely connect with your customers you need to show that you care and value their safety. 

Marketing messaging that conveys a feeling of care, safety, trust and comfort will help customers and prospects perceive your company as genuinely caring. This will improve your long term customer loyalty as people will remember you as being there for them in their time of need. This will also help you build long standing relationships with your customers…

5. Offer Options and Answers

With this pandemic in mind, we’re all in the same storm but in a different boat. Each person, household and business are going through the same pandemic but how it affects each of them is different. Think about your customer demographics and how they might experience the pandemic different to someone else. Say for example in a household the parents have to suddenly homeschool their children whilst working from home. Or people of old age are particularly vulnerable to the virus but are still in need of basic home essentials. You can use this information to offer a solution to the problem they are facing. 

While things change day by day we as business leaders need to adapt to the new normal. We may be physically separated from our loved ones, colleagues, clients and everyone else but now is the opportunity to be closer and more authentic than ever. 

Something to keep in mind with your marketing strategy; if you take care of your customers in the present, they’ll be there for you in the future.

Need help to stay connected to your customers with an updated marketing strategy? We can help create a personalised and well-strategised marketing plan to keep you connected.