Let’s Talk Business for July 28, 2023

A business is nothing without its customers — that’s why establishing relationships with your customer base is crucial to your business’s success. Brands that build relationships with their customers will find that consumers appreciate having their concerns and needs acknowledged, adding a personal touch to the customer’s experience with the brand.

Social media is a great tool for conducting market research, learning more about your audience, and establishing and growing your brand’s reputation. By opening the lines of communication via social media and providing valuable content to your audience, customers can get to know your brand in a more intimate and personal way, which can lead to increased customer engagement.

Conducting surveys is an effective method for learning about customers’ preferences regarding the products or services. Through a series of targeted questions, brands can discover their customers’ likes and dislikes and determine how their audience is receiving their offerings. This information can then guide product/service development in a way that better serves their target audience’s needs.

Modern-day customers are not only looking for personalized content/messaging but also for personalized experiences. Customers want to support brands that provide value to them and care about their individual needs. Hosting an event is a great way to demonstrate your brand’s value, promote its identity, and gain traction with new audiences.

Hold classes, workshops, webinars, or an open forum either online or in person, and create space for customers to ask questions. Doing so will allow your customers to become acquainted with and interact with your brand face-to-face, learning more about your products or services, as well as your company mission and values, which can win them over.

Businesses should read and respond to reviews promptly to understand how consumers view their business. Reviews — both positive and negative — help businesses understand the customer experience and uncover shortcomings that may be hindering its success they are not aware of. Additionally, customer reviews highlight what the brand is doing right that customers would like to see more of.

Talking to customers is a direct, yet effective way to get to know them and make them feel valued. By connecting with customers through conversation — be it in person or via social media — brands can reach their audience to learn valuable information that can be used to improve the business.

Offering personalized deals and discounts, such as birthday and anniversary discounts, loyalty programs, and deals based on prior purchases, can attract your target audience and keep customers returning. Customers want to feel appreciated, as an individual, and they want to know that their business matters.

By finding ways to reach customers on a personal level, you can boost your sales and customer engagement.

The Emporia Area Chamber of Commerce offers many resources to help you run your business–including our annual Leadership Emporia Academy, monthly Group Lunches, Ribbon Cuttings, Business After Hours events, Legislative Dialogues, and more. Stop by the Trusler Business Center at 719 Commercial St., call 620-342-1600, or visit our website at www.emporiakschamber.org to learn more.

“Let’s Talk Business” is a weekly column of the Emporia Area Chamber of Commerce and Visit Emporia. The mission of the Chamber is to be proactive in creating an environment for business and community success, guided by the vision that positive attitudes promote positive actions. Contact us at 620-342-1600 or chamber@emporiakschamber.org and visit our website at www.emporiakschamber.org.