The recent rise of remote working, online marketplaces, and social media has changed how we interact with customers. More often than not, these platforms are where the majority of our marketing efforts are now focused.
In 2023, we’re seeing a trend towards more personal, authentic, and engaging marketing content to better engage with our audience and encourage them to make a purchase decision.
However, to ensure that your marketing dollars are put to good use, it’s imperative to develop a customer-centric digital marketing strategy. To that end, here are ten strong customer-centric marketing strategies that can be implemented today.
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Tailor Your Marketing To Match The Needs And Wants Of Your Target Audience
Your marketing strategy should always match your goals and objectives. For example, if your goal is to increase brand awareness among a specific audience, then your marketing strategy should reflect this.
This might mean that you’re focusing on viral content in the form of videos or memes to reach Millennials. Or, if you’re looking to encourage product reviews, then perhaps your social media strategy is heavily influenced by influencer marketing.
Regardless of your industry, it’s important to consider what your target audience wants. This way, you can match your editorial calendar, social media content, and paid strategies with the right personas. As a business owner, this is something that you need to be mindful of.
Your marketing should always be focused on the wants and needs of your target audience. Never forget: they are the individuals that you’re trying to reach and convert into paying customers. So, it should be no surprise that your marketing strategy is now heavily influenced by research and data collection.
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Look At Different Channels To Identify The Ones That Work Best For You
In today’s digital landscape, not all channels are created equal. Some work better than others, depending on your target audience, industry, and objectives. If you want to maximize your return on investment (ROI) from your marketing efforts, you’ll want to try and use multiple channels to identify the best ones.
For example, if you’re a luxury goods brand, you might want to consider using videos or podcasts to connect with and educate your audience about your products. If your goal is to attract leads into a sales funnel and eventually convert them into paying customers, then consider using content marketing to grow your newsletter list.
On the other hand, if you’re specifically targeting B2B businesses, you might consider using social media to engage with potential customers. In addition to that, you could also use SEO, email marketing, or a combination thereof to grow your bottom line.
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Test Different Formats To Determine What Resonates Best With Your Audience
As we’ve established, not all media channels are created equal. This is especially true when we compare online videos to printed materials or billboards. One of the best things that internet video provided us was the ability to scale and test different formats. This is why, in 2023, we’re seeing video play will play a much bigger role in marketing than ever before.
It’s important to test different video formats to determine which one resonates best with your audience. This is especially critical when trying to appeal to as many people as possible. In general, people love to learn via video, especially when compared to text-based content.
To better understand your target audience, it’s important to look at different metrics. For example, do they prefer learning via video, reading text content, or doing both? Or, do they prefer watching videos of people talking or narrated accounts of events? All of these questions factor into the development of your video strategy.
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Identify The Differentiators — Things That Make Your Product Or Service Unique
As a business owner, product owner, or marketer, you always want to bring a unique selling point (USP) to the table. For that matter, your product or service is most likely the only one of its kind in your industry. So, it is essential that you leverage this uniqueness to draw in customers and convince them to buy your product or service.
In other words, your product or service needs to have something special that makes it stand out from the rest.
Always consider your target audience’s needs and wants before anything else. If you can’t adequately answer these questions, it might be a good idea to seek professional help from a marketing or business advisor. They can help you figure out how to make your product or service stand out from the rest.
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Craft Stories That Will Impress Your Audience
To date, we’ve established that video is the preferred format for content consumption on the internet. Additionally, we’ve learned that people love to learn via video, especially if that video is about a person or a product that they care about.
Creating an informative video can serve as a great primer for someone you hope will become a customer or lead someday.
Stories work best when it comes to engaging your audience. They can draw in, retain, and motivate your audience effectively. So, consider focusing on stories if you want to create videos to market your product or service. This way, you can craft an authentic narrative that will resonate with your audience.
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Identify Your Target Audience’s Needs And Wants Thru Focused Research
As a marketer, it’s your job to know your audience. However, this doesn’t mean you must rely solely on gut instinct. Rather, you can research data and statistics to understand your target audience’s needs and wants better. To that end, you want to focus on the following:
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- Demographics
- Psychographics
- Digital Marketing & Sales Funnel Analysis
- Product Awareness
- Product Trials
When developing your strategy, it’s important to focus on the needs and wants of your target audience. You can use research tools or gather data directly from your website’s analytics to better understand what they want.
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Build A Video Content Library
One of the best things that the internet provided us in 2022 was the ability to publish and share content at the click of a button. This has helped launch a thousand blog posts and videos of all shapes and sizes.
However, being a business owner, marketer, or product owner means you’re responsible for the content you produce. For that matter, it’s essential that you have a video content library that you can draw on to educate colleagues, attract the right audience, and promote your product or service.
Having a video content library lets you keep track of all the content you’ve published and used throughout your strategy. This way, you can quickly find and reuse any material that you may find useful. For example, maybe you’ve created a video explaining the ins and outs of SEO for lawyers.
As a marketing or business advisor, you can now reference this video and use it to educate your colleagues about the importance of SEO to your law firm.
Or, if you’ve created a video explaining how to use a certain hashtag on social media properly, you can now repurpose this video content for other platforms such as Twitter or Instagram.
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Use Video Content As Part Of Your Digital Marketing Channels
In today’s digital landscape, a video is no longer a standalone form of content. This is especially true as platforms such as TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram have shifted the paradigm and made video a necessary part of every digital marketing channel.
For example, if you’re running an eCommerce store and want to attract more customers to the site, you could use video content to educate them about the products that they might want. Or, if you’re creating content for an online magazine or newspaper, then consider using video content to attract and engage your audience.
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Embrace The Power of VR/AR
While social distancing and self-isolation were a reality in 2020, virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) were the future.
Blogs research, in 2021, over 35% of marketers have tried VR/AR technology. With In terms of the future of retail, the report predicted that by 2022, an increase in retail searches would come from mobile VR/AR applications, and people will increasingly prefer to make purchases using their smartphones.
With so many consumers experimenting with VR/AR, developing a strategy for integrating these technologies into your marketing mix is crucial.
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Consider Retaining Customers By Offering Them Something Better
Customers are a retailer’s best friend. With so many new potential customers available online, why should you try to convince them to come back and buy from you? One option is to offer them something better.
Better design, better service, or a better price—whatever it may be, something just to make them feel that your product is the best in the industry. Of course, you’ll also want to keep your existing customers as well.
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Integrate Multiple Channels
Although many retailers are taking a more digital approach to marketing and sales, that doesn’t mean they can solely rely on digital strategies to reach their customers. To remain competitive, they must explore traditional and digital marketing channels to get the most out of their marketing investment.
Traditionally, retailers would advertise in the local newspaper and on billboards along major highways.
However, with more and more people relying on digital resources, many retailers are exploring the power of social media and other online marketing platforms to reach their audiences.
Still, you can’t ignore the importance of opening a brick-and-mortar store if that’s where your customers live. Developing a storefront—especially during the pandemic—can be difficult, but it’s worth it in the end.
A single-channel marketing strategy limited to digital or traditional channels is insufficient today. Customers expect their favorite retailers to have a presence on all platforms and to be able to provide the best experience on each individual channel.
This is why multiple channel marketing is so important—it ensures that your product is in front of as many people as possible, regardless of their device.
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Reduce Decision-Making Processes
Customers don’t have the attention span of a goldfish. They want and need value quickly and easily. To satisfy their demands, you should consider reducing decision-making processes. In simpler terms, you can provide choices to your customers, so they don’t have to think as much about what they want.
If you want to reduce the number of customers who leave your site without making a purchase, you could start by simplifying the website’s navigation or the emails they receive from you.
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Build Trust Through Authentic Communications
According to HubSpot Blogs research, 69% of customers don’t trust online marketing messages from brands. That puts a heavy emphasis on communicating with your customers in a transparent and unaltered way.
However, 68% of customers report that they don’t always trust what they see and hear from brands, so it’s necessary to develop a strategy for gaining their trust. To gain trust, you must communicate both effectively and reliably.
When consumers hear generic marketing messages that don’t match the experience of those advertised, they tend to see that message as a lie. In truth, many marketing campaigns aren’t as transparent as they can be, hurting your credibility as much as it helps.
possible, you should work to eliminate this problem by being open about the details of your strategy and the results of your efforts. Your goal should be for your customers to perceive your marketing messages as honest, which means you must be open about your strategy and the results of your work.
Develop A Culture Of Customer-Centricity
You’ve probably heard the mantra “Customer centricity” multiple times today. From humble beginnings as a focus on “customer experience” to cementing the importance of “customer-centricity” in the marketing language of 2020, the concept is as relevant now as it ever was.
To remain competitive, retailers across the globe must adopt a customer-centric approach. Simply put, everyone in the organization—from top-level management to shop floor employees—must understand customers’ values and act accordingly. Creating a customer-centric culture starts from the top and filters its way throughout the entire organization. Don’t wait any longer! Get started today!
