We live in a digital world. This one sentence makes perfect sense for people over forty years old, since they have lived in the previous one, as well. They can compare and understand the strength and weaknesses from this new age, and the one before. But for younger individuals, who have only lived in a technological society, they expect everything to be done in a certain way. Which is why companies have to be fully modernized by now, especially in the way they communicate with their customers.
Follow the Customers’ Journey and be present Every Step of the Way
If you think about how many times that you will see brands appear in front of your eyes during a day, you will be either amazed or afraid. That is because they find their way to you, through so many forms. On the internet only, you will be flooded, from the moment you open your browser. On social media, you will find paid posts as well as brands that you follow. If you do a search on Google, the first page will be mostly made-up of advertisers. And if you close the PC for a few hours, you will still find them everywhere, from your TV set to advertising on the radio, and they will follow you as you move to reach your destination, in public transport.
All these various modes of communications also create a new way for consumers to come in contact with brands as well. So many, that if they don’t use a tool like an interactive voice response system to control them all, they will most probably forget to respond to some of the customers query that they received. There will be messages coming in from Facebook Messenger and all other social media, but also e-mails and phone calls. Don’t forget the various apps like WhatsApp, which enables you to connect with brands as well. If a brand wants to grow, it has to be found on every step of the customer’s journey, and to make sure that it doesn’t forget anyone along the way.
Tell Stories to Your Customers
In the old world, competition was more local, which meant that there were fewer companies that wanted to take over your market. Today, your biggest competitor might be living on the other side of the planet, and there will be many in-between. How can you remain in your customers minds and hearts? By building a story that they can follow through time, instead of simply changing the message, every time you create a new campaign.
To do so, there is nothing better than fiction branded content. By creating a fiction character that represents your brand, you can tell stories to your customers, who will be looking forward to every new chapter. It is also a lot less aggressive than pure advertising, as you don’t need to talk about products and services exclusively. In fact, the more your character grows and the less you will need to mention your brand, since they will relate him or her to your company, immediately.Â