The Big Fat Retention Love Story, brought to you by WebEngage

What makes customers choose one brand over the other?

It could be the look and feel, the affordability factor, but ultimately, it’s how the brand makes one feel. The feeling of being valued and the feeling of belonging and the feeling of being made special time and again; not just during holidays or special days but throughout the year.

Gone are the days when companies look at their customers as a source of revenue. They instead are value partners who can make or break the way the business operates today. Which is why the ultimate #RetentionLoveStory matters to us today.

To develop a relationship with customers that goes beyond a mere transaction, companies need to adopt a customer-centric approach. This means putting the customer at the center of all business decisions and activities, and focusing on creating positive experiences and building long-term relationships with customers. Moreover, satisfied customers are more likely to recommend a brand to others and become brand ambassadors, which can lead to new business opportunities and increased revenue.

Customers like to feel appreciated

Listening to your customers is a crucial part of demonstrating your appreciation for them. By understanding their needs and preferences, you can tailor your interactions with them to make them feel valued and appreciated. Even simple gestures like a thank you note or a free gift can go a long way in making a customer feel special.

Harnessing the power of experiential technology

Technology plays a crucial role in unified customer engagement that ultimately improves customer satisfaction and enhances the overall experience. Brands are increasingly gravitating towards emerging technology trends that will aid customers' queries and integrate interactive and personalized features like live chat, chatbots, self-servicing tools that enable access to products/ services on the go with better individualized attention.

Customer Love = Brand Love to the power of infinity

To increase engagement, foster brand loyalty, and eventually hit sales targets, business leaders obsess over data like impressions, likes, video plays, and open rates. While they are critical in measuring success, it is effective for companies to strive for love rather than engagement. Customers who simply love your brand are what matters today; it's not about people who like it. Brand love leads to enduring loyalty, the desire to pay a premium price, and eventually recommendations through word-of-mouth.

Customer engagement principles, like marketing and communications will keep evolving, but the core principle to build meaningful relationships with customers will continue to define how important it is for brands that their customers love them.

The next few days, we will bring to you stories of brands from across the board on why they believe customer love is the ultimate love saga and why they believe it matters to them in the long-run. After all, there is no other love story like these #retentionlovestories.