Thankfully, when you use data collection and analysis techniques, it’s possible to aggregate data and extract intelligence from it in order to get to know what your customers like, what they respond to and, ultimately, how you can foster a happy, long-term relationship with them – even if there are thousands of them.

Here are a few ways you can use data to connect and nurture your customers, and leave them wanting more.

Customer Engagement Tip #1: Track Every Onsite Action

Before you can start using data to increase customer engagement, you need to start collecting the data! While leading eCommerce companies, like Amazon.com, were early adopters of what we now call big data techniques, you don’t have to be a large online website or the size of Amazon to start collecting data. Free tools, like Google Analytics, are a great place to start. You do need to implement it correctly on your website, but it can tell you everything from how long users are on your site to what pages they are landing on or leaving from, to their overall behavior on the site, and much more.

If you have the technical team or budgetary flexibility, then go the next level. Find the right tools and processes to track users and gather the data that is meaningful to YOU in order to learn more about what resonates and engages your customers.  In doing so, you will want to try some A/B testing to play with different wording, offers, pricing, etc.

Regardless of the tools you use or data you collect, make sure you start by identifying the questions you want answered. One of the biggest mistakes many marketers make in data analysis is not starting with the end business goal in mind.

Customer Engagement Tip #2: Personalize the Experience

There’s a reason Amazon.com has become the world’s leading e-tailer, serving 137 million customers a day, with web sales five times that of Wal-Mart, Target and Buy.com’s web sales combined (MichaelHyatt.com).

This was not luck. Early on, Amazon.com mastered the science of not only tracking every customer’s onsite actions but using that data to personalize all of their experiences individually.

Let’s test it right now.

When you are on the Amazon.com site, you’ll notice your home page is completely personalized based on your pervious onsite actions. These may include:

• Saved cart items
• Promotion items displayed based on what you have viewed previously
• Items displayed inspired by your wish list
• Recommendations for books based on what you purchase and search for on your Kindle
• Ads based on your searches
• And much more

My profile for today, posted below, shows that I typically search for toys for my daughter, I often read business and marketing books, and I am looking to buy some high quality markers for an art project.

This personalization makes future purchasing easier for me, and it makes advertising easier for Amazon. Win-win.

If we learn anything from Amazon, it should be that when you both track consumer data and personalize the user experience based on their browsing data, site actions and search terms, your customers will be happy, and your sales will increase.

Customer Engagement Tip #3: Make Advertising More Personal

Whether we want to admit it or not, the main reasons for gathering consumer data is to advertise more effectively, and to use your advertising budget more wisely.

One way to do leverage data for more effective advertising is to group your website visitors into different segments, and then serve up targeted ads based on which segment each user fits. This simple funneling process goes a long way in serving up the right ads to your visitors.

Additionally, it’s important to note that customers will often read several pages of website content before making a purchase. This means that not only can you use data to target your ads, but also you can use the same data to write compelling content.

Thankfully, this process is circular. As you post relevant content, you can also personalize the ads that appear on your blog. According to AdAge.com, when electronics marketer Lenovo tried this approach, their click-through rates increased by 30%, and resulted in greater conversions and sales, which indicates this approach resonated well with consumers.

Jump On the Data Train Today!

While these are just some of the most popular ways to use data to lure in customers, the most important thing to note is that big data truly is the key to understanding your customers, increasing customer engagement, and building a lasting relationship with them. If you haven’t invested in any tools or data software to help you, now is the time. You’ll be surprised how much a difference it makes in your marketing strategy . . .and results!

The post 3 Ways to Use Data for Improved Customer Engagement appeared first on Rival IQ.

While gathering, analyzing and strategically using personal data offers vast insights into how to run your marketing campaign, it can also be a sensitive area for many potential customers. After all, how many times have you heard someone say something like, “It’s super creepy when I am searching for a product, and then the next day an ad for that very same product is hovering about everywhere I go on the Internet. It’s like they are watching me.”

Many consumers don’t know exactly how online data collection works, and that can be unsettling for them. As a marketer, you definitely don’t want to cross the line into creepiness and scare off customers, but you also want to gather the right data in order to find people who are interested in your products, and then advertise to them. This conundrum begs the question, “How do I make sure I protect the privacy of customers while collecting personal information to use in my advertising strategy?”

Here are just a few ideas to help you earn the trust of consumers and to incentivize them to knowingly and willingly share data that will help you help them to make great purchasing choices.

3 Ways to Collect Personal Information Confidently

1.  Be Transparent and Give Them Control

One of the best ways to foster trust and encourage loyalty is to simply let your customers know you are collecting data, and to let them know how you are doing it and why. According to a recent report by Evidon, a large percentage of consumers are more likely to buy from businesses that are transparent about their data collection methods, and that offer control over that collection.

It may seem like a big win to collect a large amount of consumer data, but when consumers don’t know about it, it can backfire. To avoid any problems, simply disclose.

2.  Lean Toward First Party Data Collection Methods

Image source: Buffer

When you use first-party data collection methods, like social login and social account linking, you are not only letting your customers know you are collecting information, but you are letting them agree to exactly what type of data you will be collecting. This helps ease the minds of customers, because they understand exactly what is going on with regards to their personal information.

Additionally, there is an added benefit to using first-party data collection methods, because first-party data is typically more accurate than third-party data. When you use a method like social login, the customer is giving you direct access to their likes, interests and more.

3.  Gather Person-Provided Data

Image Source: http://www.1to1media.com/weblog/2013/01/surveys_are_here_to_stay.html

If you are genuinely interested in personalizing your data to reach your target market, try your hand at gathering person-provided data.

When you request specific information from your customers that is relevant to your brand, you gather information about how consumers would like to be marketed to that comes directly from the horse’s mouth. Once you’ve gathered this data, you can use it to personalize your campaigns to the very people who offered you such valuable information.

According to research from MyBuys, 40% of consumers buy more from retailers that comprehensively personalize the shopping experience. That logic should also apply to your email marketing. Want to increase your open and click through rates? Then make the email more relevant. A recent Exact Target study revealed that 25% of consumers unsubscribe from emails because they are not relevant to them.

Customers want a personalized and relevant shopping and communication experience, and what better way to provide it to them than by taking their recommendations?

Start Today!

These are just a few ideas on how you can both put customers at ease by ensuring them you are protecting their private information, while simultaneously gathering vital intelligence about them in order to make your marketing more relevant.

If your data collection methods are in need of some tweaking, start changing today! You’ll be surprised at how much more you are able to accomplish when you are collecting data in a way that keeps customers feeling secure and positive about your brand.

The post Collecting Personal Information While Protecting Privacy appeared first on Rival IQ.

Do you have the time to nurture “Superfans”?

The ideal fan for every social media marketing professional is what Moontoast so aptly calls a “Superfan.” These superfans are the customers who not only have liked your page, but have also granted you data permissions, purchased from you, and even led their friends to your page as well.  Nurturing this type of fan should be part of your strategic Facebook marketing plan. But that’s easier said than done. 

While these superfans are definitely the ideal, they don’t just magically find your page, and start advocating your brand no questions asked. As any social media marketer understands, this kind of brand loyalty only comes with a huge investment of time and effort.

In fact, social media marketing can be such a time suck that 43% of small business owners are spending at least 6 hours or more a week on social media, and 1/3 of these business owners say they want to spend less time on social media (Vertical Response).

5 shortcuts to save time and bring results

Here are just 5 shortcuts to help you save time on social media marketing, while maintaining a strategy that will still result in these superfans touting your name.

1. Recycle and Reuse

Image Link: http://easyasone.wordpress.com/tag/recycle/

3. Be wise about your branding

There are thousands of ways to promote your brand, but with little time (and sometimes little budget), you have to focus on consistent and clever branding. 

Your Facebook page should mirror your website. Use the same colors, fonts, and images to create synergy between your website and Facebook page. When your website and Facebook page mirror each other, it sparks a familiarity that makes customers feel comfortable.

This same principle applies to all of your social media outlets. Be consistent with your branding across social media channels, so followers who know and love you on Facebook can find you easily on Instagram or other networks.  This applies to your logo, the “name” of your social handle and the way you position and message yourself across channels. 

Starbucks, one of the best consumer marketing companies, does this very well, so their fans know they are following the true Starbucks on any social channel.

Source: Rival IQ Coffee Landscape

Other things you can do is create custom tabs on Facebook that showcase your products and services. Make who you are and what you are all about obvious. Do this by including custom images.

4. Take advantage of Facebook buttons

This shortcut is so simple, yet is often overlooked. If you want more engagement on your Facebook page, then it is vital to provide your followers with easy ways to get to your Facebook page. You can do this by adding Facebook buttons to your website, mobile site, and blog.

You can also link your other social media accounts back to your Facebook page. For example, if you have a Pinterest page, make sure you link your Facebook page. That way your Pinterest followers can easily find and follow you on Facebook as well.

It’s common to assume you know what your customers want, but it’s a lot easier to follow the data in order to truly understand exactly what it is your customers need and want. Use Facebook Insights and other tools to really understand what content is driving the most engagement with your target audience.  Also, don’t just look at your own content.  Track and learn from the competition and what they are doing to attract and engage fans.

Facebook Most Engaging Posts – Rival IQ Retail Landscape

The more you monitor, track, and measure your results, the less time you will spend coming up with a social media strategy that works for your followers.

Implement these 5 shortcuts today!

If you are part of the 1/3 of business owners who would like to spend less time on social media, and I dare say, make sure the time you are spending is spent wisely, then start implementing these shortcuts into your Facebook strategic marketing today. Also, if you have any social media time savers that have worked for you, we would love to hear about them in the comments.

The post 5 Shortcuts for Strategic Facebook Marketing appeared first on Rival IQ.

It’s no secret the main reason businesses should maintain a healthy social media presence is to engage with customers and foster customer loyalty. But, the real question is: what is the best way for brands to genuinely increase social media customer engagement? Here are five ideas that will help you reel-in those social media followers and build a community more effectively.

Best Practice #1:  Be Authentic

No one likes a fake person, and the same applies to social media business profiles.

Social media is one of the best places to present your brand to your audience as it truly is (or as you want to position it). This means telling your audience what your business is doing in fun and creative ways, asking pertinent questions, acknowledging the answers you receive, and sharing awesome content that reflects your brand and helps consumers.

What you share is in your hands. Just make sure your brand can back up what you put on your page. The more authentic you are, the more your customers will love you and engage with you.

Birchbox adds a personal twist with pictures of team members.

Best Practice #2:  Get Visual

Did you know that 90% of information transmitted to the brain is visual and processed 60,000 times faster than text?

Photo from RivalIQ.com

So, if you want people to respond to your content on social media, add some pictures! According to Social Media Examiner, Facebook posts with a picture receive an 87% engagement rate, and tweets with a picture boost your retweet rate by 35%.

If you are struggling to find visual content that represents your brand, consider hiring someone to help you. It will be worth it in the long run! 

Best Practice #3:  Participate

If you start to see a lull in your social media customer engagement, take the time to evaluate how much you are participating on social media yourself.

It’s true people love to consume great content from your brand, but that’s only half the battle. Make sure you take the time to follow other interesting brands back, comment on content others post, and do your part by contributing to other industry-related social media profiles. The more people see your brand, even if it’s not on your own page, the more chances they will have to interact with you.

One great example of a brand that is succeeding because of their participation on social media is Intermountain Moms. Not only do they respond to comments on their page, but they also offer live Q&A sessions with helpful nurses. It’s a wonderful resource for mothers. 

Best Practice #4:  Respond

Increase engagement by responding to your followers!

Asking a thought provoking question is a great way to get people to engage on your page, and responding back is a great way to keep the conversation going, while letting them know you care about their answer.

Consumers are starting to use social media more and more as a way to express how they feel about a particular brand. Seize this opportunity to respond to customer comments and reviews, both positive and negative. Think of social media as a free customer support platform! 

Best Practice #5:  Reward Loyalty

One of the best ways to increase customer engagement is to reward followers for their loyalty.

So, what does this really mean? It means running social media contests! People love getting free stuff, and if you’re willing to be a bit generous, people who enter your giveaway can easily turn into a lead.

For example, I am a dedicated Facebook follower of Absolute Air — an HVAC company near my home that I would have never come in contact with if it weren’t for Facebook. Absolute Air hosts a weekly giveaway where they choose one winner from the comments, and sends them a gift card.

Recently, I entered, won the giveaway, and was treated with such kindness that they gained my loyalty. When I need a new furnace tune-up, which company do you think I am more likely to call? Absolute Air or someone from the Yellow Pages? 

Start Engaging!

Try these five tips and tricks today to increase your social media customer engagement and generate more leads from your social channels. What other strategies do you have for engaging customers on social media?

The post 5 Best Practices for Social Media Customer Engagement appeared first on Rival IQ.