Customer Retention: Turning Customers into Champions with Content Marketing

Customer Retention and Acquiring customers is tough for any business, but it can be especially hard for resource-strapped companies. That makes retaining the customers you do gain even more important. Luckily, content marketing provides a cost-effective strategy to engage and nurture your users beyond the initial sale.

When customers feel engaged, appreciated, and supported, they’re more likely to stick around, spend more, refer friends, and become loyal evangelists.

Here’s how to leverage content to boost satisfaction and retention:

Create a Customer Newsletter

Email newsletters represent one of the most direct ways to engage customers regularly. Use your newsletter to provide tips, product updates, company news, special offers, and links to new content.

Segment your list by user personas, industries, or plan types to tailor and personalize content. For example, an HR software company could have one newsletter for managers and another for employees.

Send a consistent cadence with monthly or quarterly newsletters so users know what to expect. Just remember to avoid overstuffing with too many emails or irrelevant content – you want to provide value, not noise.

Publish Targeted How-To Content

According to Google, how-to searches are growing 70% year over year. Users increasingly look for DIY information online. So create articles, guides, videos, and FAQs that help customers fully utilize your product or service.

For example, an accounting software startup could produce tutorials on reconciling expenses or customizing invoice templates. A website builder could provide step-by-step product walkthroughs. This self-help content builds skill and confidence.

Promote User-Generated Content

User-generated content (UGC) like testimonials, reviews, and case studies are hugely influential because they come from real users, not your brand. According to HubSpot, 60% of consumers believe UGC is the “most authentic” marketing content available.

You can capitalize on this by proactively collecting and publishing UGC (with the user’s permission, of course) through social media, your blog, email, and other channels. Positive UGC provides social proof that you deliver results for customers just like them. It also helps drive conversions for prospects still deciding.

Start an Engaged User Community

Launch online forums, private Facebook groups, or LinkedIn communities to foster peer-to-peer connections between users. This allows customers to discuss challenges, share advice, and brainstorm new ways to get value from your product.

This community model provides built-in support, and users often become advocates for creating content and driving engagement themselves. However, it’s important that you assign community managers to actively facilitate insightful discussions and tackle any inappropriate behavior.

Surprise and Delight

Look for opportunities to randomly surprise customers and delight them beyond expected interactions. For example, e-commerce brands could send handwritten thank-you notes or small gifts to loyal repeat customers.

SaaS companies could grant access to special VIP webinars or sneak peek product demos for power users. The moments of surprise and recognition make customers feel valued as more than just a transaction.

Ask for Feedback

Proactively ask for feedback through surveys, online reviews, focus groups, or customer advisory boards. Identify pain points you can address and features customers want to be added. Then keep them looped in as you make improvements based on that feedback.

Customers want to know they are heard and can shape your product. This brings them into the development process and strengthens their emotional connection to your brand.

Reward Customer Retention with Loyalty

Loyalty programs that offer perks and incentives for committed customers boost retention. Special status, badges, points that add up to gifts, or unlocked platform abilities all make users feel engaged in an experience, not just buying a product.

Tailoring programs to behaviors like referrals or social sharing incentivizes your power users to become evangelists. The longer customers stick around, the more opportunities you have to provide value and enrich the relationship.

In For the Long Haul

Customer retention requires understanding them, anticipating their needs, and constantly nurturing them with relevant content across a mix of channels. But the loyalty, advocacy, and higher lifetime value produced make the effort well worthwhile. Leverage the power of content marketing to turn satisfied customers into champions.