The most important piece of knowledge any business must have is what the behavior of their consumer is as they relate and interact with your business and brand.
What do consumers do when they have a positive experience with your business?
Do they care? Will they come back? Do they tell anyone?
How about when they have a negative experience? What happens then?
Recently Accent conducted a survey to find out what consumers do when they interact with brands before and after a purchase. You can download the survey here.
The survey is full of useful information but perhaps when of the most interesting findings is how people respond to others after a good or bad experience.
Probably not a surprise when a consumer has a negative experience they find multiple people and platforms to complain about their experience.
However when the brand has a positive experience they will tell few others not nearly to the extent of complaining, but more importantly either good or bad they desire more communication.
Perhaps the biggest mistake that most brands and businesses make is they do not follow up. They do not keep those customers in the know, or perhaps they try to do it in the wrong way.
Are you using email? According to the study 1 out of 3 people will subscribe to the brand email list. Having an opt-in email list would be a useful to help people stay up with sales, or factors that may affect their purchase.
Interesting as well is that 12% of the people give a “shout out” on the brand Facebook page. What are they looking for when they do a behavior like this? Answer: They want personal interaction…perhaps the most ignored behavior by brands using social media.
As a matter of fact the entire piece of research seems to point to one thing. Consumers want interaction, before and after they purchase. They want it personal. They don’t want to be just another face in the crowd. Not another voice that cries out in the wilderness, they want to be individually recognized, talked to, dare I say it…engaged in conversation by the brand.
It makes sense, I mean after all it is…wait for it…”social” right….and that is the biggest failure of brands and businesses…they have forgotten the “social” aspects and just want to be another billboard, another place, another slot to put their shingle out.
Look consumers are going to do something whether they have a good or bad experience. You can give your business a huge boost just by being a little more personal and conversational. Even with a bad experience consumers are willing to forgive if you are willing to talk and give a little back.
The point is it is all personal at the end of the day, and being personal may be the best success related decision your business has ever made.
Stay Successful My Friends!
Jay Izso, the Internet Doctor®