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11 customer engagement strategies to

help increase conversions
Posted July 2, 2023

By Cari Murray
Senior Editor at Outreach

Customer engagement and conversions go hand-in-hand, but building a loyal customer

base doesn't happen overnight. There are myriad other theories that estimate the minimum
number of times a customer must engage with your brand before they make a purchase:
While the actual number of interactions needed is debatable, there's no doubt that
customer engagement is essential for moving prospects through your buying cycle.
With a strategic customer engagement plan, brands can leverage each interaction with a
lead as an opportunity to meet their needs and expectations and, ultimately, increase
customer conversion rates.

What is a Customer Engagement

Strategy?
A customer engagement strategy organizes interactions and activities into a streamlined
plan to create the ultimate customer experience, including before and after the purchase.
The process involves various communication channels to build a relationship, improve
satisfaction, and proactively nurture your customer base. A successful strategy is
measurable and responsive to customer needs, allowing you to collect feedback, input, and
relevant customer performance data to pivot your plan accordingly.
The Benefits of Implementing a
Customer Engagement Strategy
Utilizing a customer-centric approach gives your company a competitive edge in a world
where consumers have tons of product options. But implementing a holistic customer
engagement strategy not only improves consumer relations but is also beneficial for
businesses looking to increase conversions. With an active customer base, companies may
see various improvements across the company:

Improve the overall customer experience

When customers have a satisfactory experience, they are more likely to make a purchase,
but it doesn't always happen immediately. Sometimes customers have to experience your
brand many times before they place an order. On the other hand, it only takes one negative
experience to discourage customers.
It's essential to note customer experience and customer engagement are sometimes used
interchangeably, but each has its distinct role in the customer cultivation process. Your
customer experience is how consumers perceive your brand, or how your brand is viewed
and received from their perspective. Customer engagement is how the customer interacts
with the experience and brand, including their decisions and how they communicate and
react to your products and services.

Boost the quality of your customer relationships

No one likes a pushy, disingenuous sales pitch. The empty promises fall on deaf ears, and
customers who do make a purchase aren't likely to buy from you again anytime soon. They
don't have a connection to your company, making you only one of many options instead of
their number one choice.
But when customers know and trust your brand to provide value, it makes a huge difference
in their purchasing behavior. No matter the new trends, promotional sales, or competitor
promises, customers are 23% more likely to spend money with brands they trust. Business
is about relationships, and relationships thrive on give and take. Customer engagement
allows you to shift your focus from what you're getting from the customer to what you're
giving to them.

Increase the Likelihood of Referrals

When customers have a good or bad experience, they want to share it with others; whether
it's an Amazon product review or sharing the experience with their peers. When you exceed
a customer's expectations, they want others to experience it as well. They refer to their
friends, family, and co-workers without being prompted. What's more, a decision-maker
who loves your brand is more likely to be a lifelong customer, even if they start a job at a
new company.
In the age of social media, especially sites like Yelp, Google, Facebook, and LinkedIn, allows
people to publicly document their experience with your company. Like in-person
interactions, positive feedback goes a long way, as 86% of people say they review a
business online before a purchase. On that same note, negative reviews can be detrimental
to your business, and bad news spreads fast, threatening causing irreparable damage to
your reputation.

Keep a Customer-Centric Mindset

Customer engagement forces you to put on your consumer hat and approach sales and
marketing from the buyers' perspective. The only way to ensure that customers are satisfied
with the experience is to provide them with what they want. From data collection (via your
CRM, sales engagement platform, or sales automation tools) to customer feedback and
forums, creating an engagement strategy involves just as much social listening and research
as it does brand promotion. Some would argue even more. The more you learn about your
customer, the better you're able to target your message and experience.

Foster Sustainable Growth

Customer relationships built on discounts and repetitive sales pitches don't last long
because they're not memorable. Your customers will be hard pressed to forget quality and
personalized services, and they'll keep coming back for the experience. It's hard to scale
your business when you constantly have to look for new revenue sources. By investing both
money and resources in improving customer experience and engagement, you can build
your company's success on a loyal customer base that is willing to grow with your business.

Improve Your Brand Value

An efficient customer engagement strategy centers on value and not just the bottom line.
Your business is more than a product or service provider; you are a solution to your
customer's problem and an invaluable resource. Traditional marketing tactics prioritize the
transaction, but customer engagement is about providing the customer with significant
value so that they want to purchase your product or service. It gives the consumer power
and purpose in the process, making them an active decision-maker and not merely a
recipient of the experience.

Boost Revenue
Engaged customers are your business's bread and butter. They're loyal to your brand and
more likely to purchase than a disengaged audience. It's also easier to upsell to customers
who already believe in your product. Attracting and converting new leads is the nature of
business, but retargeting current customers requires fewer resources and has a shorter
conversion time. Companies who improve customer engagement may see a 22% increase
in cross-sell revenue, a 38% increase in upsell revenue, and a 5%-85% jump in order size.

11 Proven Customer Engagement

Strategies That Increase Your
Conversions
Your engagement strategy should act as an all-in-one solution that aligns with your
customer's interests. Consider their needs throughout the process: What do they find
valuable? What are some of their common concerns? Craft a customer-centric approach
that provides your customers with value and makes them want to engage with you more.
While your approach may differ slightly depending on your sales team, customer base, and
product or service, there are some tried-and-true strategies to get you started:

1. Share Your Company's Story, Mission, and

Vision
Stories are memorable and relatable. They give customers a reason to believe in your
company. Humanize your brand with messaging that highlights your mission, vision, and
story. Help customers understand your why for the business. Be sure to incorporate your
customers into your story and give them a starring role: Take the opportunity to relate, listen
to their goals and frustrations, and ultimately form a shared vision.

2. Personalize Interactions
Generic customer experiences blend into the noise of ads, email newsletters, and social
shares. You want customers to feel like they matter and aren't just one of many. The key to a
successful personalized experience is listening, and providing customers with the unique
touches that connect with them. Use data and customer surveys to gain buyer insights and
tailor customer interactions to their liking, focusing on preferred cadence, format, and how
they're best served. From custom communications to curated online and virtual events,
create personalized customer experiences that let consumers know that you are in tune
with their needs and interests. And remember: sometimes personalization doesn't register
with prospects (a key insight that can be gained from collecting data), so don't force it!

3. Practice Active Listening

Customers are very vocal about what they want, so listen. What are they saying and not
saying about your business? How do they compare you to your competitors? Make it easy
for customers to provide feedback, share their experiences, record responses, and follow
up. A timely follow-up communicates to your audience that you've heard what they said,
and you're committed to improving the customer experience. When confronted with
unfavorable feedback, be sure to listen to solve the problem, not just calm the customer
down.

4. Offer Lots of Helpful Content

Your customers don't buy products; they buy solutions. Customers aren't as likely to search
for your specific product as they are to seek out answers to common questions or
challenges. Providing helpful, authentic resources to address these needs positions your
company as a solution. Distribute content across channels to reach all corners of your
customer base. Create videos, blogs, and social posts that share proven tips and practical
techniques that your customers will find helpful.
Producing relevant content will also keep you top of mind. For instance, flagging key
feature/product updates or industry news for existing customers can help ensure they'll
continue to look to your company for answers. Be sure that you're continuously reviewing
content performance to assess customer response and modify your approach, when
necessary.

5. Collaborate to Define and Mutually Agree on a

Plan that Works
Your customer engagement strategy should be a collaborative effort that includes input
from the buyer and seller. A mutual action plan (MAP) helps both sides identify the
resources, milestones, and other information required to fulfill customer needs. This
approach removes the guesswork and makes the process of closing deals faster and more
straightforward, as customers can trust you will provide them with exactly what they need.
 9:05

Want a crash course on all things mutual action plans? Watch the full webinar on demand.

6. Provide Free Benefits to Users

Reward users for being loyal customers by giving away something for free: not ink pens or
water bottles, but things that your customers actually need. Offer them free information on
how to get the most out of your product or a resource on cost/benefit analysis. Free
benefits are also a way to attract new customers. Give leads a taste of what you have to
offer without giving away the whole farm. If your customers are new business owners, a free
webinar on planning and resource management might pique their interest, or if they work in
the manufacturing industry, consider providing a white paper on new industry regulations.

7. Take a Social Approach

Sites like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram have become platforms for people looking to
express their concerns with a business or share their praise. Either way, these tools give you
direct access to your customer's raw thoughts and feelings. Respond to comments, repost
user content, show support for a cause, and provide helpful resources to nurture an even
deeper relationship with customers.

8. Collect and Address Feedback

User feedback is a way to gauge your customers' satisfaction. Collect a blend of technical,
quantitative data (through your CRM, sales engagement platform, etc.) and anecdotal,
qualitative feedback to fully understand your customers' experience. Implement a system of
checks and balances that ensures follow-up and proper communication. Remember, even if
negative, feedback is an opportunity to learn more about the customers and make
adjustments that will increase your success.

9. Host a Virtual Customer Engagement Event

Many businesses have been hosting online events for years, but the COVID-19 pandemic
took even more people online, and companies had to elevate their virtual events to new
levels. With online engagements, companies can maintain a connection with customers
from any part of the world. But online events shouldn't just replicate your in-person
experience. Each customer engagement should be intentional and have a purpose. Why are
you hosting the event? What do you hope to accomplish? Events give your customers a
chance to see your products and services in action, improving conversions and brand
exposure. Furthermore, it allows them to network with others in their industry, creating a
community of support for your audience.
Want to see how Outreach hosts virtual events? Check out Explore+ 2023.

10. Create a Customer Success Center

Set up your customers to win. A customer success center helps customers access
resources and get answers to their questions. The goal is to ensure customers have all that
they need to make a sound buying decision or utilize your products to their full potential.
Without the proper support, communication, systems, and information, your customers may
be lost or hesitate to take action. A customer success center also keeps your team from
having to answer the same questions, and ensures timely access to customers most
pressing needs.

11. Use The Right Tools to Better Engage Your

Audience
A customer engagement platform helps you organize and automate your strategy to
maximize each touchpoint throughout the process. With the right tools and technology, you
can create a seamless experience across channels for your customers and serve your sales
team's needs by managing workflows and reducing repetitive tasks. Manual tracking may
work initially, but modern tools help you optimize activities and provide access to revenue
growth through buyer sentiment data and analysis.
Implementing a Customer
Engagement Plan for Success
Customer engagement involves leveraging interactions to create a rewarding experience for
your audience. Companies who need a better way to manage their process should consider
engagement platforms that combine all strategies and make it easier for their team to serve
prospects along their journey
Outreach's Sales Execution platform helps teams efficiently create pipeline and predictably
close more deals. With Outreach's industry-leading sales engagement capabilities, teams
can increase productivity, optimize interactions throughout the cycle, and scale team
collaboration to new levels.
Learn more about how your sales team can boost engagement with customers, get the
ultimate guide to creating pipeline that will actually close, or request a demo today.

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