How can brands keep customers engaged with science?
Tags: Science, B2B, Brand Strategy, Healthcare, Marketing

How can brands keep customers engaged with science?

The coronavirus pandemic has catapulted science into the cultural lexicon, shining a light on it like never before. You could even argue that it’s one of the few silver linings born out of Covid-19, as we place more emphasis on understanding how to separate information from misinformation.

Businesses find themselves in a similar boat, needing to offer authenticity and trust at a time where both are lacking severely. These traits have become just as important as shiny new product features, with the consumer experience evolving from mere A-B interactions.

Now, customers want more engagement from the brands they spend their money with. But that interaction only comes if it’s worthwhile, which means brands need to continue being relevant and find new ways to add value to the customer lifecycle.

Which leaves the question: how can brands keep customers engaged, and what role does science have to play? This is a story about brands and how they can improve relationships with customers through engaging, science-led content.

Why is customer engagement important for businesses with a web presence?

Everything about a brand comes down to the value it offers, and not just from a monetary point of view. Social media has blurred the lines for businesses, with customers expecting brands to get more involved in conversations.

Forty-four percent of consumers said they feel more connected to a brand when it creates and participates in conversations online. The more engaged a customer, the more they are likely to spend money on your company.

Brands should embrace this desire for connection, especially as they have an ability to create a tribal feeling amongst their audiences. You only need to look at Apple and Samsung to see how brand allegiances are forged.

That’s not to say you need to start a culture war with your competitors. But regularly engaging online with customers can lead to higher loyalty and a better bottom line.

What are the most common customer engagement mistakes businesses make?

With more than half the planet using the internet, reach has never been an issue for businesses online. Instead, it’s often a case of oversaturation. Too many options available for communication often leads to common customer engagement mistakes.

It’s a bit like logging onto Netflix, spending 15 minutes trying to find something to watch, only to end up doing something else entirely. There isn’t a lack of great shows; the problem lies with the sheer amount of options available.

Brands face similar problems online. You’re constantly being told you need to communicate on social media, send out regular email marketing newsletters, create on-site content, write an ebook, and it can all become a little overwhelming.

The result is often disjointed messages, as the focus on conquering the entire sphere of digital marketing, rather than excelling in one or two areas at a time, can leave muddled messages.

Data from multiple channels often doesn’t align and, consequently, the result is poor analysis, hasty decision making and a lack of customer engagement as you struggle to create content that resonates.

How to fix engagement issues with AI chatbots, customer intelligence and science content marketing tools

One of the primary issues around customer engagement comes from trying to understand just what it is that consumers want to see and interact with. And improving technology means there are smarter ways to hone your message. Take chatbots, for example…

Why AI Chatbots help with engagement

By 2021, it’s expected that chatbots will handle 85% of customer interaction. And 64% of internet users favour an approach that provides a 24/7 service — something you get with an automated chatbot.

AI chatbots are helping to resolve engagement issues, acting as the first port of call to decipher a customer’s needs. It’s a form of automation that leads to improved service from humans, who then take on the customer role at a more defined stage in the process.

How customer intelligence can help you better understand your audience

A chatbot can collect customer intelligence, such as data and valuable insights to their behaviours. Data is a primary source for brands to understand their target market better, and having insights on your customers from chatbots will help refine marketing approaches.

Why Science marketing tools provide compelling content

If you’re a brand who relies heavily on science, a chatbot can provide engaging, science-based content that captures your audience’s attention with informative, factual-led information. You can also use the data received from customers to create better content.

Use insights to craft compelling content in the form of emails, blog posts and reports in a much more concise way than if you were trying different marketing approaches across several channels. With the right data points, everything ties together more seamlessly.

How to convert website visitors into leads

Chatbots are proving their worth for customer engagement, helping move consumers to the next stage in the pipeline. But they can also act as a conversion tool, boosting revenues and increasing customer count.

Find out more about our Science Chatbots here.