Go to any startup conference and there is bound to be someone giving a talk on ‘growth hacking’. But what is growth hacking and how can it drive your company forward? Well, the simple answer is that growth hacking is about igniting the fire within your customers by transforming them into evangelists.
However, this means that you need to find that spark within yourself and in your startup and no fire can start without a bit of kindling. With that in mind, here are some tips to turn your customers into evangelists and grow big in the process.
What is Brand Loyalty?
You can’t hack your growth if your customers aren’t loyal to you and your brand. Ok, this is not rocket science but you would be surprised how many people forget to focus on customer experience when they are trying to grow big.
As such, you not only need to listen to the ‘voice of the customer’ but also understand how customers in different cultures show that they are satisfied and are supporting your brand. Knowing this will help you to stand out from the crowd and at the same time foster the kind of brand loyalty that will turn your customers into evangelists for your cause.
What are the tips? Well, read on:
- Make Your Customers the Star
It’s not enough to bake social media tools into your customer experience as everyone is doing this. Instead, you need to find ways to make your customers, not your product or service, the star. This might sound counterintuitive but by putting the spotlight on your customers you are telling the world how your product or service helped to brighten their days.
This is extremely powerful stuff as you are not only helping your customers but you are also giving them an ego boost and this means that they will be more likely to think of you or even recommend you. This leads to a level of reciprocity which can drive your business to new heights.
- Be Thoughtful
One of the best ways to be thoughtful is to send you customers something they didn’t even know they wanted. Think about the last time you received an unexpected gift. Not only did it brighten your day but it also made you feel a connection to the person who gave you the gift.
Well, the same thing works when you are trying to turn your customers into evangelists and doing so is bound to get them talking about you. Just remember not send your customers something which feels too much like a promotion. Instead, send them something which might not even be related to your business but will get your customers thinking about you nonetheless. A perfect example would be sending something which supports a hobby or a passion of your customers – this will show them how much you really care about them and not just their money.
- Give Credit Where Credit is Due
It’s not enough to listen to your customers, you also need to give them credit for great ideas. Doing so will turn your customers into owners as they will see that their ideas are helping to improve your company.
Making this happen is really easy. For example, look at your web hosting and your website set up to see if it supports creating a blog.Hostgator, one of the world’s largest hosting companies concurs. “Web design services are integral to creating an engaging blog. Consumers of content want to be engaged far deeper than just the written word. Incorporating ‘how to’ design images, infographics, and short form video clips engage the reader to completely finish the article; increasing SEO, CTR and eventually conversions.”
From there you can blog about some of the ideas you are looking to implement and let your customers decide on which ones will make their lives better. Just remember to leave room for additional comments as you will be surprised how passionate customers can be.
Then what you want to do is to push your blog through your marketing channels as this will let people know where to get involved, then send your customers a thank you for getting involved, and finally a big shout out when the decision is finally made.
- Be There for Your Customers
While blogs and social media might be the main way that you communicate with your customers, you want to make sure that you are using these same platforms to create feedback loops. Doing so will allow you to be there for your customers without needing to redirect them to customer service.
This sort of responsive support will show your customers that they are important and that you are always there for them. Not only will this help you to win the hearts and minds of your customers, but it will get them talking to their friends about their experience with you.
By the way, you can also go one step beyond and that is to follow your best customers back and use this as an opportunity to engage with them even when they issue they are facing isn’t directly related to your business. Show your customers you care about them and not their money and this will turn your customers into evangelists who will help your company grow big.
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