How To Build A Brand Advocacy Program For Growth

Every business is built to gain widespread popularity among the target audience. Entrepreneurs step up their brand building activities to position their businesses as trustworthy entities. The business's credibility and goodwill help turn buyers into loyal customers. The repeat sales generated through these customers increase profits and help navigate market upheavals. They stay committed to the brand and endorse it among their social groups. It helps get referrals and word of mouth publicity. The business becomes successful when its customers start promoting its products.

However, loyalty must be rewarded to appreciate the effort of the customers. They must be offered incentives for placing repeat orders and creating social proof through customer reviews, testimonials and user generated content. Since most buyers refer to reviews before purchasing, the comments made by satisfied customers can help boost sales. Here is how businesses can build a brand advocacy program for loyal customers. It helps to keep the brand evangelists satisfied and inspired to promote the business.

1. Identify Brand Advocates

Brand advocates are loyal customers who promote a business or product because they are highly satisfied. They want to showcase the benefits of the products to their social groups to help them find an effective solution to their problem or pain point. They post positive comments and product demonstrations online and refer the products to their friends and family members to increase their popularity.

They feel connected to the brand because it fulfils their desires and provides effective service. Businesses can identify these customers by analysing the average order value of each buyer. They must use social listening tools to detect brand mentions and promptly respond to their comments. Customer relationship management tools and data analysis can help identify this audience group. They can be leveraged to increase visibility and awareness quickly.

2. Set Advocacy Objectives

Entrepreneurs who build a brand advocacy program must set objectives to make the process measurable. They must identify what they want to achieve by rewarding the loyalty of their customers to assess their success. It is highly recommended for new entrepreneurs who purchase businesses for sale in Orlando because they have an established customer base. The objectives can range from increasing website traffic to sales and generating leads.

Setting goals can help devise strategies for the program that will resonate with the audience and bring desired results. For example, if the goal is to increase sales, the advocacy program will focus on offering rewards in exchange for referrals. It makes the process streamlined and focused.

3. Build Strong Connections

The next step in the advocacy program is to connect with the brand evangelists and communicate about the brand. They must know the brand values, vision, mission, product lines, etc., to make legitimate content. The business should create several touchpoints to interact with loyal buyers, provide relevant information, and showcase gratitude.

They must be communicated about new product launches, clearance sales, discount offers, business milestones, etc. The business owner must treat them as crucial assets that help maintain stability. They must be given a splendid treatment and memorable shopping experiences for optimum satisfaction and enhanced engagement. These customers can help future proof the business when the market shifts because they maintain brand loyalty.

4. Incentivise Loyal Customers

Rewarding customers is the focus of the advocacy program. Entrepreneurs who purchase an Orlando business for sale must determine the incentives based on the customer’s needs. They must customise the rewards according to the customer persona to ensure the loyal buyers continue to purchase from the brand. For example, price sensitive customers must be offered discounts, while those looking for experiences must be offered giveaways like free dinners or movie tickets.

In addition, businesses can offer gifts, conduct quiz competitions and games. The advocacy program can be points based system, wherein customers earn points for every dollar spent that can be redeemed later. Another incentive option can be offering a discount according to the order value. For example, a fixed discount bill amount exceeding a threshold.

5. Encourage Brand Advocacy

Businesses must encourage customers to utilise the advocacy programs to promote the brand. It involves asking them for customer reviews for the Google Business profile, testimonials for the website and product demo videos for social media pages. They must be inspired to join social communities of loyal customers online and actively discuss the products and their features with peers.

They must be provided with information to share with their groups, such as podcasts, infographics, blogs, social media posts, images and videos. They can share these through online platforms to increase brand awareness and advocate the benefits of the products. Organising online events, live streams, contests and challenges can help increase participation and engagement. It is also helpful in reputation marketing to build a stable and trusted position.

6. Measure Performance

Entrepreneurs must evaluate the performance of their brand advocacy program based on the goals. They must identify if they have achieved the targets. If they did not accomplish the objectives, they should identify the problem areas. Collecting feedback from the brand advocates can help determine the roadblocks in meeting business goals.

Driven individuals who purchase a business for sale in Orlando must assess the success of their advocacy program. It can be evaluated by analysing the increase in reach, customer acquisition, website traffic, leads, and referrals. The program must be adjusted based on the findings to improve its impact and results.

7. Promote the Advocacy Program

Continue to promote the brand advocacy program with improvements among the loyal buyers. It is the best way to reduce churning and increase retention. It can also be expanded to include employees to enhance brand image and increase social proof. A business with a wide, loyal customer network can easily seize new business opportunities in Orlando.

Customers who join the program must be provided with the on boarding process that helps them understand the rewards system. They must be provided with valuable, shareable materials that can be posted as user generated content. The constant interactions and word of mouth publicity help to increase the number of loyal buyers who become brand advocates. It must become an ongoing activity and ensure high recall value for the brand.

Wrapping Up

Brand advocacy is challenging to achieve in the competitive marketplace. Using a brand advocacy program can entice repeat customers to join the program. It helps them enjoy specialised services and incentives for promoting the brand in their social groups.