article
15 customer engagement examples to try
How corporate sales and marketing teams can better engage customers
December 03, 2024 • 6 minutes
[Updated] Originally posted on May 1, 2024
Time is money. That’s the mantra of every busy business, especially those in the fast-paced world of sales. But in today’s competitive landscape, simply selling a product isn’t enough. Customers crave engagement, a connection that fosters loyalty and repeat business.
Customer engagement: What it is and is not
What is customer engagement?
Customer engagement is the cornerstone of building strong, lasting relationships between businesses and their customers. It involves creating meaningful and personalized interactions that span the entire customer journey, from initial contact to post-purchase support. By understanding customer needs and preferences, businesses can deliver tailored experiences that foster trust, loyalty, and satisfaction. Effective customer engagement also emphasizes accessibility, using omnichannel strategies like live chat, email, and social media to ensure seamless, convenient communication. Beyond transactions, it focuses on creating value through educational content, proactive solutions, and exceptional service.
What customer engagement is not
Customer engagement should not be confused with superficial or short-term marketing tactics. It is not about pushy sales methods or generic strategies that fail to address individual customer needs. Ignoring customer feedback and failing to act on insights diminishes trust and satisfaction. Similarly, engagement cannot thrive on disjointed communication across channels, which frustrates customers and erodes loyalty. Finally, it’s not a one-time effort but an ongoing commitment to providing consistent, meaningful interactions that enhance the overall customer experience.
Now, how do you increase customer engagement?
Think of it as a two-way street. It’s about building meaningful customer interactions throughout their entire buying journey, from initial contact to post-purchase. Whether it’s an individual or B2B business, an effective customer engagement strategy starts with understanding customer needs, exceeding expectations, and creating a positive experience that drives customer loyalty, keeping them coming back for more.
15 of the best customer engagement examples
An engaged customer can generate up to 51% more revenue and sales than a disengaged customer. The key lies in deeper connections within the customer experience. There are countless ways to achieve this, from personalizing interactions to fostering community. Here are 15 of the best customer engagement examples to improve your business:
1. Personalize the customer experience
One-size-fits-all is a recipe for poor customer engagement. Today’s customers expect a personalized touch. Leverage customer data to understand buying habits and preferences if you want to encourage engagement. Proactively recommend products they might genuinely like, and tailor your communication accordingly.
2. Be there when they need you
Your customers are busy people, and questions can arise anytime. Offer multiple channels for customer support: phone, email, online chat, and 24/7 messaging option. This omnichannel experience allows customers to engage instantly, on their terms.
3. Master the art of active listening
Every customer engagement is an opportunity to learn. 70% of consumers say a company that understands their needs influences customer loyalty. Actively listen to customer concerns and feedback during sales or support interactions. AI-powered tools like LivePerson’s Conversational Intelligence suite can make understanding your conversation data at scale even easier. This valuable information can be used to refine your approach and identify areas to improve customer satisfaction.
4. Engage customers on social media channels
Social media isn’t just for cat videos. It’s a powerful platform to engage your audience, answer questions, showcase your brand personality, and run targeted customer engagement marketing campaigns.
5. Gamify the buying journey
A little healthy competition can go a long way. Consider implementing loyalty programs with meaningful and desirable rewards or gamified promotions that encourage repeat purchases and improve customer engagement.
6. Leverage the power of customer UGC (user-generated content)
People trust their peers. Encouraging current customer reviews, testimonials, and social media mentions are great ways of creating UGC engagement. Showcase this user feedback on your website, social channels, and marketing materials to build trust and credibility.
7. Respond to reviews promptly
Both positive and negative reviews deserve attention. 72% of customers say that positive responses to negative reviews make them trust a business more. Thank customers for positive feedback and address negative concerns promptly and professionally. This shows you value their opinion and are committed to improvement.
8. Offer educational content
Become a resource for your customers by providing valuable educational content, like blog posts, webinars, or ebooks. The value added from this content can boost user engagement and help with website SEO. Plus, it positions you as a thought leader and keeps your brand top-of-mind.
9. Host engaging events for your target audience
Organize online or in-person events like product demos, Q&A sessions, or exclusive workshops. This fosters a sense of community and strengthens customer relationships. LivePerson hosts webinars and podcasts to create digital customer engagement while sharing insights, new products, and more. LivePerson’s product launch event, Spark, for example, often keeps customers engaged in both an in-person and virtual format.
10. Run targeted email and messaging campaigns
Email and SMS marketing remain successful customer engagement examples for many B2B and B2C companies. Send targeted email and proactive messaging campaigns as part of a customer engagement strategy or marketing campaign with personalized offers, educational content, or exclusive early access to new products.
11. Run referral programs
Word-of-mouth marketing is gold, so look for ways to encourage it in your customer engagement methods. Incentivize existing customers to refer friends and family with referral programs. Loyal customers are your biggest advocates — leverage their power. Another excellent customer engagement example is to share these stories of loyal customers in the form of case studies.
12. Offer seamless omnichannel customer support
Customers expect a smooth transition between different communication channels. Companies with strong omnichannel customer engagement strategies enjoy a 10% year-on-year growth in revenue. In fact, 8 out of 10 consumers are more likely to purchase from a business that connects all their interactions across phone, email, and messaging channels. Ensure your support system includes omnichannel solutions, allowing customers to seamlessly switch from email to chat or phone without starting from scratch.
13. Embrace the power of AI chatbots
Artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots can be a game-changer for customer engagement. They can answer basic questions 24/7, freeing up your sales team to focus on complex inquiries. Concurrent messaging with AI chatbots across channels can lead to a 10x sales conversion increase and 20% customer satisfaction boost.
14. Gather customer feedback
Actively seek these insights through customer feedback surveys, polls, or social media interactions. Use this information to identify areas for improvement and tailor your approach.
15. Reward customer loyalty
Loyalty deserves recognition. Implement a customer loyalty program that rewards repeat business with exclusive discounts, early access to new products, or special events.
LivePerson: The all-in-one solution
Want to take customer engagement to the next level? The examples above offer a roadmap to deeper customer connections, but implementing them all effectively can be a challenge. LivePerson can help you bridge the gap.
LivePerson’s Conversational Cloud® seamlessly integrates with your existing tech to make it easy to connect with your customers on their preferred channels. Go beyond conversations — our Conversational Intelligence unlocks powerful customer insights to help you truly understand and engage your customers.
