Brand loyalty in today’s shifting landscape
Companies today confront a host of considerable challenges when it comes to achieving brand loyalty. Because consumers now have an increasing wealth of information at their fingertips, they are enabled to be much more critical in regards to their purchasing habits and interactions. As a result, customers are continually reevaluating their needs and looking at competitors to see what new innovations and experiences are available to them.
Create valuable experiences
In today’s marketplace, brands must focus on actually improving the lives of customers, through meaningful interactions and engagements. This means putting the emphasis on the customer experience, and not just on messaging. Brands such as Google and Facebook rely very little on traditional advertising. They are almost entirely experiential, where the focus is on providing real, tangible value to people’s lives.
Establish trust
It’s also important for brands to understand that their promise is being delivered to customers at multiple points of engagement. The brand promise needs to be reliably communicated and experienced at every customer interaction in order to be successful. It’s through these various touch points that brands are able to earn the loyalty and lasting engagement of their audience. Companies have the ability to say all sorts of things about their products, but if they fail to deliver on their brand promise at the point of engagement, consumers will quickly shift their allegiance.
Differentiate from competitors
In today’s cluttered marketplace, brands must differentiate themselves in order to survive. A focused brand identity coupled with a unique customer experience will allow a brand to stand out from the competition. Airstream is a great example of a brand that has successfully differentiated itself within the sector of RV’s. By creating a quality product that is instantly recognizable, Airstream has earned a cult of devoted followers that is unlikely to subside.
Airstream’s Pledge:
To place the great wide world at your doorstep for you who yearn to travel with all the comforts of home. To strive endlessly to stir the venturesome spirit that moves you to follow a rainbow to its end…and thus make your travel dreams come true.
In the end, it is the customers who will define the success of a brand, and not what the company claims to deliver. Achieving brand loyalty depends on a unique customer experience that is authentic, consistent, and meaningful to the customer’s needs.