Increasing Customer Engagement for Small Business Owners

No, I'm not talking about weddings. I'm referring to customer engagement in terms of digital marketing. Many small businesses and entrepreneurs struggle when it comes to engaging with customers online. They treat it like advertising in the 1980s where it was all about pushing product. Today, it is very different and what we want is to create a friendship because people buy from companies and people they know, like, and trust.

Have you heard of Dale Carnegie? He wrote the book "How to Win Friends and Influence People" and we can take a few tips from him even though he was born over 100 years ago. Dale knew how to engage with people. Some of his tips were to ask people about themselves, find out what their interests were, be helpful and make them feel important.

Digital marketing is not that different. One thing I want you to think about it how you can help or add value to your potential customers?

Are you fun or funny?

Can you help save them time or money?

Can you help them feel important or accomplish their goals?

Can you help them win friends or influence people?

Once you know how you can be useful or helpful do just that. Don't ask for anything from them. You have to give to get. Keep giving advice, how-to videos, and ask questions about them. It's the Engagement is not the Wedding. When you start dating, you ask a lot of questions and get to know each other. After a while you might consider getting married. The same is true in marketing. You have to get to know one another before asking for the sale. Reveal your company's personality, how you can help and your interest in your clients and only then ask for the sale.

Some sample posts might include:

Articles

Tips

Questions

Surveys

Here is a infographic to help you.

Now go and start helping customers and be engaging!

By Liz Kohler

Liz is a freelance marketing consultant at Kohler Marketing. She has taught Digital Marketing Strategies at Kellogg Business School and been an entrepreneur, real estate broker and consulted hundreds of small businesses.