4 Innovative Ways To Connect with Customers During a Crisis
Connecting to customers, even at the most favorable times, is already a challenge for most brands. In the midst of a pandemic, this challenging task is even more difficult. With people spending most of their time at home and practicing social distancing whenever they go out, brands must find new ways to engage their customers.
Small businesses and established companies must learn to recognize the situation at hand. It’s not just about selling your products or services, but also being of help to your clients. To put it simply, show the efforts you’ve made that support the best interest of your employees, your clients, and your community.
Here are 4 things you can do to create meaningful connections with your customers.
- Understand where your consumers are coming from
We are all consumers, and all of us have been affected by the crisis in different ways. As consumers face an unseen threat, the products and services we need change drastically. Your job, as a brand, is to find out the concerns and considerations customers make when buying products during this crisis. By asking your customers about the troubles they are facing, you can find concrete ways to address them.
One way to do that is to check the comments in your social media pages. From there, you can find the ones that you have the capacity to solve. You can also check your customer journey and look for issues they may face. For example, if you are a real estate company who gets customers by physically showing them the house, you can use visual tours to emulate the experience.
In this time of need, your consumers will appreciate this effort because they’ll see that you actually are listening to them.
- Take care of your employees
As cliché as it may sound, a happy employee is a happy customer. Your employees are your first line of defense. Without them, you have no business to run, so always take into consideration their health and needs.
To reassure them, always make them feel that you have their backs. Create a setup that they feel safe and well-taken care of. Ensure that you keep their workplace clean and that you give them flexibility when it comes to working arrangements. If your business allows you to have them work from home, do so. If not, make sure to show them your gratitude through the posts you share or the benefits you give them. Most importantly, never dismiss their concerns. They are as scared and stressed about the situation as you are. If an employee has concerns about the virus, make them feel that their worries are taken seriously and that the management will create measures to solve it.
Remember, your customers will navigate towards a brand that cares for their employees for most of them are employees too. They’d want to see if the brands they are consuming are concerned with the welfare of their own people.
- Help your community
More than ever, consumers are looking for brands that will step-up to the situation. As a brand, who is also part of the community, there are many ways that you can help fight off COVID-19.
If your company has the means, you can help out by giving donations to frontline workers or to those in need – restaurants are giving out free food; manufacturing companies are doubling their efforts to produce alcohol and other sanitary products; and hotels are offering free accommodation to frontline workers.
On the other hand, if your company doesn’t have the means, you can still help out. In times where fake news are rampant in social media, educating the public with infographics or videos about the virus is a must. You can also opt to offer discounts to help consumers who are most in need.
Whatever your capacity is as a company, show your customers that you are doing something to help. Consumers are looking for brands to trust in this pandemic and they’ll do that if you show them that you don’t just see them as profit makers.
- Show your customers that you care
The times we are facing is no joke. It presents a lot of challenges with the way we interact, communicate, work, and travel. As a brand, you must understand the burden these challenges give to your consumers.
To help them face these challenges, show them empathy by giving or suggesting ways to lift their burden. For example, you can give tips on how they can take care of their mental health or you can make videos that’ll help them learn a new skill to relieve stress.
These simple ways may not appear to have much impact on you, but it actually helps alleviate the stress your customers feel because of the virus. By doing so, you will be able to show them that you care about their well-being.
The main goal of these efforts is to create a lasting relationship with your customers even after the pandemic ends. Understanding your customers; taking care of your employees; helping your community; and showing your customers that you care, can make them feel that they can count on your brand at all times, especially during times of need. This type of bond between brand and consumer will be long lasting. By having a customer-centric attitude, it will show that you are handling the situation for their benefit and not just for your own gain.
If you are still having trouble thinking of ways to connect with your customers in this pandemic, Thirty One Digital can help. To learn more about our services and process, you may read our “Finding the best digital solutions” article or you may get in touch with us at hello@thirtyonedigital.com or visit us on Facebook and Instagram.