The Key To Retention: Turning Your Client Base Into A Community

There’s more to customer retention than mailing lists and loyalty programs. The brands that win long term nowadays are the ones that transform their client lists into real, engaged communities. Your customers are less likely to look elsewhere if they feel a sense of belonging and connection to your company. Fostering this fandom requires a unique marketing strategy. In this post, we’ll offer a few tips on how to create a community around your brand. 

Establish a shared mission

Start by establishing values and goals that you and your customers can work towards together. Common examples include living healthier, saving the environment, donating to charitable causes or saving money. Don’t just aim to solve short term issues with your product or service – aim to support long term goals that keep your customers coming back.

Be social on social media

Too many companies use social media as a news bulletin, when it should be used as a digital meetup spot for conversations. Rather than just posting promotions and company updates, use social media to ask questions and share opinions that entice your followers to respond. Consider viral topics that are relevant to your shared mission. Make sure to reply to comments and follow back users that engage with you. To keep track of conversations on different social media platforms, consider using a community platform like Bettermode. 

Bring clients together at events

Physical events that bring your clients together can help you and your customers to feel closer. There are all kinds of events to consider including launch parties, seminars, Q&As or community events that you sponsor. Invite customers who are already regularly buying from you or engaging with your brand in order to further strengthen your relationship. This is how you build advocates who will go out of their way to promote your brand for you. Encouraging clients to befriend each other also creates a stronger unwillingness to leave. 

Inspire user-generated content

User-generated content (UGC) turns passive customers into active contributors. This could include videos, photos, text stories or screenshots shared online that you can repost. To inspire this content, consider running contests (such as asking people to come up with the best caption), ask questions (such as ‘what does your setup look like?’) or consider establishing a Spotify-Wrapped-style end-of-year review feature that encourages screenshots. 

Involve customers in company decisions

Nothing deepens loyalty like having a real voice. Involving customers in company decisions not only helps you to introduce changes that you’re certain your customers will like, but also encourages customers to stick around in order to see the result. You can involve customers in company decisions by giving out feedback surveys, running polls or hosting webinars to discuss changes. You could even run contests to help name new products or to come up with ideas with new products (such as an ice cream shop asking followers ‘what new flavour would you like to see?’). You also reference online reviews or social media comments when making changes to your company to show that you’re listening to your clients.