How do you use social media to engage with your loyal customers?

Incentives are different than bribes. Be careful you're not caught "bribing" a customer for a positive review. Just give them an incentive to leave an honest review. If you are good enough to receive positive reviews consistently, congratulations! Then, keep doing more of the same!

It's almost a requirement for businesses to ask their customers to leave an online review. Reviews benefit the business by providing content that lifts their online visibility, gives unbiased feedback that potential customers want to see and helps them improve their operations and the customer experience.

Loyal customers actually WANT to help promote your brand. Loyal customers view themselves As co-owners of your brand and as such, they will act in what they perceive to be your brands best interests. Here’s an example: A few years ago I worked with a Fortune 50 company to facilitate a day-long meeting with select customers, getting feedback from them on all areas of the business. As the day ended, I asked the customers to tell us one area they would like to see the brand improve on. The first answer was “You guys have to give us better tools to help promote your brand.” You could have heard a pin drop. Brands do not understand their fans WANT to promote them. Give them the tools they need to do so.

Everyone wants to be acknowledged and appreciated. When you spotlight your beat customers, you are encouraging them to continue to promote you. If you see a tweet from a customer promoting your brand, quote the tweet and reshape it and tell them thank you. That will validate their love of your brand, and it will encourage them to promote your brand again. Which leads to more online word of mouth for your brand.

Social media is an excellent platform to engage customers and build brand advocacy. Contests like "Upload your image wearing the apparel or jewelry you purchased" are extensively used on the brand's social media pages. Physical fashion and jewelry retailers often create "Selfie Zones," where customers can pose with characters the brand has partnered with. In the age of Web3, virtual avatars of the brand's ambassadors present another exciting opportunity. The brand can offer both monetary rewards and experiential or prestige benefits to encourage customer participation.

One effective way to showcase the human side of your brand is by actively engaging with your loyal customers in the comments and content they share. Brands that excel in this area respond to customer content on a personal level, avoiding scripted or generic replies.

We are asked by our clients how often we should respond to comments and reviews on social channels. The short answer is: ALWAYS! This is especially important for any negative comments or reviews. You want the world to see how you handle problems. And make sure you respond to negative comments quickly. You don't have to respond as quickly for positive reviews but do so in a somewhat reasonable period of time. At a minimum, acknowledge and appreciate the compliment.

The easiest way to engage customers via social media is to RESPOND to the customers who are already engaging with you. Any time a customer leaves a positive comment, review or any type of feedback via social media, your first response is to say THANK YOU to them! Reward the behavior you want to encourage. If you want more customer engagement, then respond to the customers who reach out to you. This encourages them to engage with you more, and often, they will create new content acknowledging that you responded positively to them. If anyone shares any of my content online or promotes me or mentions me positively in any capacity as a speaker, consultant, trainer, etc, I always tell them THANK YOU. You should too.