It’s often easier to keep the audience you have now than to tread new ground with every campaign. Once you’ve established your identity as a brand, whether you’re selling trendy apparel or otherwise, your buyers need reasons to stay with you over competitors. What attracted buyers to you first? And how can you build on that promise to earn their brand loyalty?
How to Earn Brand Loyalty
Whether you’re a small clothing boutique, a major tech startup, or anywhere in between, you don’t need a full marketing team to keep customers on your side. Let’s talk about some simple tips you can work on right now to earn brand loyalty for your startup.
- Own your brand identity
When you already have a rapport with your buyers, it’s important to be consistent. Many big brands suffer the consequence of alienating their initial audience in an ill-thought-out attempt to gain new ground. Consider the Gap logo rebrand from a few years ago–who would have wanted a beloved and classic retailer to shed its elegant design for a bland sans-serif font?
This means more than just logo and design rebranding–it’s also about character and values. Over half of most consumers would switch products or services if they believed a brand did not match their personal values. Once you attract a group of people to your core principles–whether it’s sustainability, quality, affordability, or others–you stick by them if you want their brand loyalty.
- Build your team
How does a brand showcase its values and unique selling proposition? While things like packaging and social media presence may reinforce brand identity, it’s the people you work with who define it. This means everyone from account managers or front-end workers to even suppliers and designers.
If you’re still developing your brand and want to expand your team, always consider what new members bring to your customers. Do their values align with the company? Do they believe in your brand in the same way you and your customers might? How are their forward-facing skills when talking to buyers? This is especially important if your team directly interact with customers, but it’s good to have these principles in mind for backstage players too.
- Work on your customer service
When you’re starting out, you may only have a small team interacting with customers. Maybe you’re doing it yourself directly. Whatever the case is, you want your buyers to feel appreciated with every purchase. Answer texts and DMs frequently, use polite and enthusiastic language, and offer advice when buyers seem to be looking for something specifically.
You’ll find out that all of these things not only build brand loyalty but also lead to more purchases and engagement when done right. People naturally like helping friends. Unsurprisingly, they’re more likely to buy products from a brand they have positive, friendly experiences with than others. And they’re more likely to keep buying for a very, very long time.
- Make things easy and convenient
Did you know that a little over 70% of all shopping carts are left abandoned on e-commerce websites? That’s thousands of dollars down the drain, and a major cause of this comes from small inconveniences like confusing website interfaces or drawn-out surveys before checkout. Longer decision-making time leads to higher cart abandonment rates, and complex checkout processes chase off 17% of potential buyers.
In short, make sure your website or purchasing platform is as simple and uncomplicated as possible. Be clear about your rates and make sure your forms are as simple as a few clicks and a little necessary info.
- Create a community for your brand
A brand is only as approachable and likable as its people. This includes not only your employees but also your community. How many people comment on your brand’s social posts? Who do they show your brand to, and what does your brand mean to them?
Building a strong community around your brand is an evergreen way to maintain brand loyalty. 66% of brands find that their communities decide brand loyalty in the long term, and over 20% of customers felt the same. So when you’re considering your next marketing campaign, consider hosting a social event or creating a space for mutual engagement and communication between you and your community.
- Always personalize when possible
If there’s one thing small brands have over big ones, it’s how personally they treat their buyers. Every purchase counts in the long run, and that kind of love gets greatly appreciated over time.
Beyond just great customer service, when you’re selling apparel or other products, consider creating personalized notes or packaging to thank your buyers. Do follow-ups, reply to comments and DMs, and genuinely engage with your audience.
Making great packaging personalized for customers can be challenging for startups. Talk with merchandising services like Shirtual to create perfectly personalized packaging for your next lineup.
- Reward customer loyalty
Many brands have one or two ways to reward their most loyal customers. This can be in the form of loyalty programs, which are great ways to motivate buyers to come back and chase after certain rewards. You can consider implementing a points-based system, cashback programs, or even discounts and subscriptions to bring your customers back to your storefronts.
Of course, some of these programs can get costly over time, and they may create expectations of value you may want to revise in the future. Sometimes the simplest way to thank your buyers for their continued loyalty is through gifts. Gift merchandise and promotional material last for years, and over 85% of customers remember brands they receive merchandise from. That’s significantly higher than numerous other forms of advertising and branding, including digital advertising like in social media.
That being said, you’d want whatever gift customers receive to last as long as their trust in your brand. Only 21% of all promotional or gift merchandise stays in customer’s hands, while most are often given away.
If you want your customers to fondly keep your merchandise and remember them, find high-quality merchandise to leave a lasting impression. Outerwear and shirts leave an especially strong impact on buyers, giving over six thousand and three thousand impressions every time they’re worn.
Need great merch for your next campaign? Our collection at Shirtual sports high GSM with premium quality and unparalleled printing options for your brand. Book an appointment with us here–consults are free!
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