When asked the question: “What does your company do?” by family and friends, what would be your initial reaction and answer? Take a moment to ponder on it, or maybe even write it down – we promise it’s important.
Now look back at the hypothetical answer that you’ve come up with. Are you merely listing down the products and services your company offers, alongside the different achievements that the company has attained since its infant stages?
This is perfectly understandable. After all, we are oftentimes incredibly proud (and deservedly so) of the mini-empire we’ve built from scratch, so much so that our knee-jerk reaction would be to highlight the company’s products, services, and achievements.
With that being said, when considering the answer that you’ve formulated in your head or penned down, the next question that you should ask yourself is: “Can my clients and consumers relate to whatever I just said?”
The Importance of Two-Way Communication
Think back on the late nights that you’ve spent, hanging out with a bosom buddy. Most of the time, the both of you would be sharing the weight of the conversation more or less equally, trading stories and listening to each other throughout the night.
It’s the same for brands.
Just as much as you would want your consumers to listen to you – your consumers would love for your brand to pay attention to their needs and wants as well. According to a study conducted by Sprout Social, 64% of consumers want brands to connect with them. In fact, investing in relationships with consumers directly impacts business revenue and strengthens customer loyalty. When consumers feel connected to a brand, more than half of them (57%) will increase their spending with that brand, and 76% of them will buy from that particular brand over a competitor.
Sadly, most businesses are so busy telling customers what they say, the conversation ends up with brands talking at the consumers, rather than to them.
So then, what can be done to ensure that your brand is holding a steady conversation with your consumers, rather than dominating the conversation one-sidedly?
Understanding Your Customers through Market Research
Prior to launching, a brand should definitely conduct market research to understand on-the-ground sentiments toward a new product or service. Market research enables brands to learn critical information about the economic landscape, as well as the industry they are planning to dive into.
More importantly, market research helps brands to understand how to better connect with their target audience and current clients.
In our current time and age, brands who emerge as market leaders are focusing on building genuine relationships with and amongst their consumers, moving away from the traditional emphasis on selling and further differentiating themselves from the competition.
Each and every brand is unique, and there is no set way of strategising and implementing a business’s brand. This is why there are so many competitors for almost every industry. Despite facing
competition, however, what matters is how you do things differently to connect with to your target audience, and how well you manage to do so.
By conducting thorough market research and by understanding what your consumers want, your brand will be able to craft a targeted messaging strategy that will form an emotional connection between your brand and her consumers, earning their loyalty and cementing a bond that goes beyond seller and buyer.
Listening to the Consumers: Elon Musk
It’s undeniably obvious that Tesla is currently one of the strongest brands in the world. An American electric vehicle and clean energy company based in Austin, Texas, the brand was voted as the world’s fastest growing brand in 2021 with a growth of 184%.
At the heart of this brand’s stronghold sits Elon Musk, CEO and head of Tesla’s ingenious initiatives. He’s a rather controversial figure, having received criticism from experts for his views. However, love or hate him, it is undeniable that he holds great sway amongst consumers, particularly the younger generation. With 66.5 million followers on Twitter, it is clear for all to see that he holds great sway in the public sphere.
In fact, it would not be a stretch to say that Elon Musk himself is a brand.
It is extremely difficult to believe that the CEO would personally respond to complaints regarding the products or services that Tesla has. After all, it’s often seen as a task left to the hordes of customer service officers over the phone, before being sent up to the respective engineer or technician.
However, the richest man in the world certainly had no qualms responding to a complaint posted by a Tesla consumer… exactly three minutes after it was posted.
The best part? It wasn’t a cursory reply. The CEO soon followed up the reason as well as an apology. Netizens were impressed, with many of them praising the CEO for his prompt reply, and for the fact that he was willing to get gritty for his consumers. One netizen even noted that Musk is “more connected to the people than any other CEO”, which underscores the need for brands to connect with their consumers.
With just two tweets, Musk showed a great example of listening to his consumers and taking their feedback seriously…
…Even if what they want is the occasional oddball tweet.
Every Connection is Unique
With that being said, there are many different brands who exist out there, and there are plenty of great examples of brands connecting with their target audience and cementing a deep relationship with them.
Consider the giants, such as Apple, Nike, or even Dyson. Each of these brands have employed a different strategy to connect with their consumers, almost always beginning with listening to their needs and wants. Their efforts have definitely paid off in the long-run.
Now, you might say: “My business is small… how is it possible for me to connect with my consumers in the same way that they have?”
No matter how big or small a brand is, it is always possible for brands to cement an unshakeable bond with their consumers by actively listening to them, their needs, and their wants. After all, it only takes a spark to get a fire going.
Here at Etereo, we believe in tapping on real, credible data to strategise your brand’s next move to connect with your audience. Are you interested in learning how to connect with your customers? Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Enterprise Singapore has increased the cost defrayed for each branding project from 70% to 80%.
For a complimentary, no-obligations, brand audit, contact us today.
