Tag: marketing trend

With the New Year comes many New Year's resolutions. Lose a few pounds, be more financially responsible, etc. This year, why not improve your websites customer experiences. Your customers are the heart and soul of your business and the key to your businesses success. The development of multiple channels is important, but many small businesses discount the value of site redesign strategies and simple modifications that can dramatically improve customer experiences and increase conversion rates. For many small businesses, site redesign and digital strategies will deliver the best return when timed with seasonal shopping trends. But any digital effort that target improvements to the customer experience will inevitably drive traffic and revenue gains throughout the year. Personalization. Online retailers are always coming up with innovative ways to personalize the customer experience. Larger retailers like Amazon were early adopters of personalized site features, but now many smaller online retailers are getting in on the personalization game through site redesign projects. Awareness and the right use of relevant customer information through features that provide personalization, segmentation and targeting are high return on investment site design objectives. Low Click Counts. Get your visitors to complete a transaction in the least amount of clicks as possible. A high click counts create unnecessary hurdles that discourage consumers. A great customer experience means that users have the ability to convert in four clicks or less. Align Your Marketing Efforts. Alignment is key for small businesses. You can deliver a seamless customer experinece by strategically coordinating site content with a device-agnostic approach among other tactics. You can also promote cross-selling or upselling opportunities. Recommendations and Reviews. On-site reviews enhance the customer experience because they give consumers insight and comfort. Rather than relying just on brand messaging, consumers can confirm product characteristics with their peers. Engage in Social Media. Social media links improve the relationships between you and consumers. Although some have been disappointed by the results they've seen from social media efforts, nearly everyone agrees that it’s important for small businesses to incorporate social media links. Doing so builds deeper brand connections and provides opportunities for sharing of customer experiences with other consumers. Get a review of your website with our Website Review Services.

Check out this great post from small biz blogger extraordinairre, Starr Hall

As an entrepreneur there are a few critical tasks that you need to turn into a daily habit in order for your business to keep moving in a positive direction and to make you money.

You probably know your customers, but do you really understand them?  Knowing your customers -- information typically collected by a business -- means you generally know who they are demographically, their age, gender, location, etc.  Most small businesses do a good job on this front.  When it comes to understanding customers, however, many companies come up short. If you desire to possess a true understanding your customers and their needs, it is essential that you interact with them as often as possible. Moreover these interactions should be deep, broad, and come via a number of different methods. If you want to get inside the heads of your customers, try implementing any or all of the following tactics: Use Social Media and Networking to Your Advantage: Your social media platform is an ideal way to interact with your customers. Encourage real-time input from your customers. You can also use these channels to address conflict or misperceptions among your customers. If you don’t have a social media strategy, check out several of our previous blog posts to help you get started. Customer Surveys: Whether conducted in person at your store, via the phone, on your website, pushed out during a webcast, through direct mail, or through any other medium, a properly structured survey will allow you to elicit answers to your most important questions. What better way to find out what your customers are thinking than to ask them. Surveys today are relatively inexpensive and easy to implement. Form a “Beta” or “Test” Customer Group: Offer incentives to get your customers and prospects to join a group that will help you generate new ideas, provide feedback on your products and services and collaborate on marketing approaches. Gaining direct insight from the market you’re selling into is invaluable. Annual Customer Reviews: If you are in a service business, annual customer reviews are an invaluable way to gather feedback.  Customers will appreciate that not every contact has to be about a new sale. An annual review is an opportunity to connect, or reconnect, with your customers in a way that encourages their participation. Incorporating reviews into your business process allow you to close the loop on any knowledge gaps on a regularly planned basis. Gather Intelligence: Whether it is competitive intelligence, market research, or other forms of business intelligence, the more you know about your customers the better you will be able to meet their needs. Bottom line…Only by truly understanding your customers, will you be able to exceed expectations and build real loyalty.