Courting. Dating. Escorting. Going out with. Whatever you want to call it, commitment is the common denominator. Though we typically correlate these terms with our personal lives, as marketers we need to make commitment a part of our professional lives as well. Consumers are not as easy as they used to be. You can’t just go into any bar and pick one up. They are looking for that promise, pledge and assurance and they are asking you as a brand to provide it.
‘One Night Stand Marketing’ is something of the past. Althought it’d be great if they did, the truth is your target market is not likely to immediately act upon seeing your product or service advertised. Even if they see it twice.
Paul Adams recently posted about how multiple, lightweight interactions over time and is changing the way of advertisers approach their market. These short but frequent interactions build deep relationships and loyalty between you as a brand and your consumer. Adams mentions that successful advertising in the future will need to be personalized and be based off your current relationship with that potential consumer. Adams acknowledges this is not the approach many brands are taking and there are not many success stories surrounding this approach. But, he suggests that brands who practice this early will see great success.
Can you ignore this consumer commitment idea? No. In fact, you will fail as a company if you do not practice this marketing approach. How many one-hit wonder brands tried introducing themselves in one 30-second spot during the Super Bowl and survived? I can’t name any, can you? It’s because they’re gone.
How can you as a brand go about developing these relationships? Think about how you developed your close friendships or relationships with people you care about. You were probably introduced through a mutual acquaintance or maybe you approached them. You casually ran into this individual more and more and started noticing you have common interests, you make plans to do something fun, and from there, the relationship blossoms. Your relationship development as a company should mirror this process. Though this may take time, the loyalty you gain outweighs the effort you put in to it.
How are you ensuring you are building long-lasting relationships? Tell us how you’re building brand loyalty in the comments.
