Speaker 1: What's up brand builder Stephen Horahan here at brandmasteracademy.com and in this video you're going to learn the power of brand loyalty and how to grow it. So you can piggyback off the hard work you've done to gain a customer and turn them into loyalists who want to spend money with you and not your competition. Now brand loyalty is like a magical ingredient in the world of branding. It's the key to unlocking long-lasting success, keeping customers coming back for more and more and creating an army of brand advocates who rave about you and your company to anyone who listen. But what is brand loyalty and how can you grow it for your business and brand? In this video we'll explore the power of brand loyalty, provide examples of brands that have absolutely nailed it and share tips on fostering and growing it for your own brand. So let's dive in. So what is brand loyalty? Well brand loyalty is the strong emotional connection and commitment that customers have towards a specific brand. This brand loyalty leads to customer retention and consistent and repeated purchases of the brand's products and services even in the face of competitors offerings that could be appealing to that audience. So why is brand loyalty so important? Well the answer is pretty simple really. Loyal customers continue to come back to you time and again spending their hard-earned money on your products and services boosting that bottom line and profit margin as well. Customer loyalty to a brand extends into customer lifetime value as well or CLV meaning that every loyal customer is worth more to the business increasing that revenue and profitability over time. Brand loyalists also become advocates who bring in new customers to your brand by shouting about your brand from the rooftops or at least from their keyboards through social media platforms and review forums. And these positive reviews help your business to grow so it's a win-win situation for both your customers and for your company as well. So let's really flesh out the importance of brand loyalty and explore its power for brands. Here are five reasons to cultivate brand loyalty. Number one increased customer lifetime value. Now we've covered this already but making a sale and gaining a customer is really hard work. The processes involves showing them that you understand their challenges and convincing them to trust you to deliver on their desired outcome with your promise. Now there are very few obstacles in branding or even business for that matter that are more challenging than that. The task from there becomes significantly less challenging and the solution is very very simple. Deliver on your promise with a satisfying brand experience and you become the obvious choice for future purchases of the solution that you offer. The difference in value to a business of a customer who purchases just once compared to a customer who comes back to purchase time and again can be significant. The measure of this value is known as customer lifetime value or CLV. A loyal customer is the most valuable asset to your business because they'll likely spend more money on your products and services over time than a one-off customer leading to that higher customer lifetime value. In other words the longer a customer sticks around and the more they spend the more they're worth to your business because of the compounded impact on your profits. Number two, lower marketing costs. Now building on CLV having an army of loyal customers is cost effective for a brand because it lowers marketing costs. Acquiring a new customer is expensive but retaining existing customers is significantly cheaper. Loyal customers come back for more and they spend more as well and many of them act as brand advocates spreading the word about your brand and if you can add this element to your marketing strategy it makes your budget go a lot further. In today's highly competitive market brand loyalty also gives you an edge over your competitors. When customers are loyal to your brand they're less likely to switch to your competitor even when faced with similar offerings. For loyal customers your brand always stays top of mind when making that purchasing decision and you'll remain their preferred brand as long as you continue to deliver on your promise and this helps you to solidify your market share and keeps your business thriving. Number four is word-of-mouth marketing. Loyal customers are often the best promoters of your brand. They'll gladly share their positive experiences with friends and family and their social networks exposing your business to potential new customers and this kind of word-of-mouth marketing is priceless and it can significantly boost your brand's reputation as well. Number five referrals and advocacy. Loyal customers are more likely to refer new clients to your business acting as powerful advocates for your brand. Their testimonials and their reviews can greatly influence prospective customers purchasing decisions further improving your brand's reach. Okay so brand loyalty is a bit of a no-brainer you know that you need to do it but how do you actually go out and build brand loyalty? What's going to actually determine brand loyalty levels amongst your target audience? Let's look at some of the most important factors to help you build brand loyalty. Number one brand promise. It's not rocket science if you say that you're going to deliver on a promise then you would better be backing that up. Whatever you say you're going to deliver is a promise made and a promise made is a promise kept whether that's through your experience, high quality, convenience, price or any other proposition that you offer for your customers. Failure to deliver on your promise comes at the cost of brand loyalty. Number two is consistency. Now consistency is key to building and maintaining brand loyalty because customers want to know what they can expect from your brand and they appreciate consistency in your products and your services and your overall customer experience. If they know that they're buying something from you and they're confident that they're going to get the same experience time and again they'll keep coming back for more. Landing on a brand experience that keeps people happy and keeps people showing up as expected through every interaction is the key. Number three is customer service. Now this one is pretty simple. Look after your customers, make them feel taken care of and they will develop a sense of loyalty towards your brand. If you think about the experiences that you've had in your life with various brands I'm sure you can think of experiences that have left a bad taste in your mouth and experiences that have left a good taste in your mouth and it's those experiences that generate and foster this sense of brand loyalty. If you have a good experience with a brand, if you feel taken care of and if you feel that the customer service is there to look after you chances are you're going to go back to that brand time and again because that builds trust. Number four emotional connection. Now a strong emotional connection between your customers and your brand can significantly increase their loyalty. When customers feel a sense of belonging and an attachment to a brand they're more likely to stick around and support it. So build an emotional connection with your audience through a compelling brand story and engage with them, create that connection and show them that you understand the journey that they're on, the pains that they're going through, the challenges that are standing in their way and really evoke those emotions but also show that you know the way to the outcome that they're trying to achieve and you have the solution to get them there. Now no doubt there is a brand in your life that you keep going back to time and again where the next best option is simply not an option for you. Let's take a look at some brands absolutely nailing brand loyalty. Number one is apple. Now apple is the absolute granddaddy of brand loyalty. If you think about apple owners maybe you have an iphone yourself maybe you have a macbook or if you don't if you're a pc user or an android user i'm sure you know apple users and you know how devoted they are to the brand. Now this in part is part of the apple strategy it might be part of the ecosystem that they've built and the simplicity that they've built into their products but make no mistake apple customers are loyal customers. They won't jump ship for any other brand and they go back to that brand time and again and they pay a premium price for that as well. Part of this has got to do with the experience that they offer, the support that they offer and the consistency that they offer as well. You know when you go into an apple store the service that you're going to get, you know when you buy one of their products the service that you're going to get. So apple is a prime example of a brand that knows how to generate that loyalty. Another example of brand loyalty is amazon. Now one could argue that amazon hasn't generated loyalty because of the connection they have with their customers and the devotion that their customers have to the brand. They've generated brand loyalty because of the service and the convenience that they offer. Customers come back to them time and again because they know they're getting that consistency time and again. They know that they're getting that convenience time and again. So it just goes to show that if you double down on your products and you commit to your products and you commit to delivering a consistent experience time and again, even before you get to the communication, the emotion and the brand loyalty that you develop through those human connections, you can still generate brand loyalty through that consistency and through those products. Now look in reality not every brand can build cult-like loyalty like apple can but here are a few guiding principles that you can follow on your way to building brand loyalty for your brand. Number one get intimate with your audience. Now look I'll be the first to admit that recommending you know who your audience here is not exactly groundbreaking advice but when it comes to brand loyalty it really is important. If you know who your audience is and you know that the struggles they go through, the challenges they have, the pain points they have, then you're able to design an experience to connect and resonate with those challenges and with those pain points and provide a pathway to overcome them. If you're able to do that in a way that resonates with who they are and if you're able to build a consistent experience around that you create the environment for brand loyalty. Number two build a strong brand image. Now strong brand image and brand identity in the market helps customers to recognize and remember your brand. So establish a clear and consistent brand message voice and visual identity that sets you apart from your competitors and connects with who your audience is and what they want. Make sure that your brand's personality runs through everything you do as a brand and through every single customer touch point and this significantly increases the chances when your customer sees your brand name or comes across any of the brand assets that you have or any of the touch points that you have out there in the market they'll make that connection to the experience that you offer which starts to generate and foster that brand loyalty. Number three be transparent and authentic. Now everybody likes to be spoken to directly we all want to feel that whoever's speaking to us there is a sense of authenticity about what they're saying they're not trying to pull the wool over our eyes they're straight shooters whatever they say we can believe that's what we want to feel from the brands that we do business with we want to feel that sense of authenticity and that transparency so be open about your company's values your mission and the practices that you have and strive to build trust through honest communication and genuine interactions. This perceived authenticity is more important than ever to building brand loyalty amongst modern and younger consumers who expect brands to stand up for the things that they believe in as well. Number four provide exceptional customer service. Now I've touched on this already and I'll do it again excellent customer service is crucial for fostering brand loyalty so train your teams to go above and beyond in addressing customer concerns and providing timely personalized support wherever it's needed and really give that extra value really show your customers that you care about their experience that you care if they've had a bad experience that you want to make it right or if they've had an okay experience you want to make it better. In a world where social proof is all important building a reputation as a brand that cares for their customers is vital to building that brand loyalty. Number five create a reward system. Incentivize loyalty through customer loyalty programs. Rewarding your customers for their loyalty effectively encourages repeat business and strengthens their connection to your brand. So implement a loyalty program or a rewards program or offer exclusive benefits discounts or perks to your repeat customers. Number six engage with your customers. So regularly engaging with your customers through social media email marketing and other channels really helps to keep your brand present and relevant and reinforces the relationship between customers and the brand. And don't forget to collect and implement feedback. Listen to your customers concerns and collect their feedback on your products your services and overall customer experience. Use this feedback to make improvements and to show your customers that their opinions matter and this leads to two benefits. You improve your offerings while strengthening their loyalty towards your brand. Number eight encourage customers to get involved. So user generated content such as reviews testimonials and social media posts can help to build trust and foster loyalty. Encourage your customers to share their experiences with your brand through various mediums and incorporate these into your marketing campaigns. And don't forget to use these positive reviews to your advantage by showcasing them on your website and your social media channels as well. Number nine build a community. Now building a community around your brand can strengthen your customers emotional connection with your company. Leverage online forums social media groups and events to unite your customers and encourage them to connect with each other through your brand. Many brands rely on thriving brand communities to solidify brand loyalty and to spread their message. So brands like Harley Davidson, Red Bull, Patagonia and Lululemon they all invest heavily in growing their brand communities. Now look brand loyalty is a powerful force that can propel your business to new heights. By understanding its importance and using strategies to foster and to grow it you can create a loyal customer base to support your brand for years to come. Remember it's not just about providing great products or services it's about more than that it's about building an emotional connection with your audience. Delivering exceptional customer experience and ensuring that your brand's values align with those of your customers. That's how the big brands of the world make those connections. That's how the big brands of the world get their customers coming back to them time and again. And that's how the big brands of the world build brand loyalty. If you want to dive deeper into brand strategy then this video here will help you out. Before you click it if you want to become a master of brand make sure you hit the like and subscribe to get notified when new videos just like this are released. Until next time brand like a master and I'll see you in the next video.