3 reasons you need to court brand ambassadors
April 27, 2018
Effective brand ambassadors don’t cost big bucks
You know who they are. Those customers who like everything you post on Facebook. The ones who come to every event and bring friends. Those shoppers who can’t say enough wonderful things about you. They’re your brand ambassadors.
Often, they are highly paid celebrities who love the brands they’re endorsing. Think Taylor Swift and Keds. They’re different from a spokesperson. Spokespeople merely talk about a product. Brand ambassadors live, eat and breathe the product they’re promoting. Guess what? You don’t need a highly paid celebrity to market your store. You already have customers ready and willing. Now, it’s time to court them and here’s why.
Younger generations rely on the advice of others
Today’s consumers see right through advertising. Leary of marketing, studies show Millennials (ages 22 to 37) and their younger siblings (Gen Z) mainly rely on the advice of others when making a purchase. Almost half of Millennials say social media definitely influences their decisions. If you’re someone they can relate to and you like it, most likely, they’ll like it too. Truly, upcoming shoppers would rather hear from a stranger with experience than you.
User-Generated Content (UGC) is the best marketing
In Customer content is the best way to promote yourself, I offer a couple of suggestions for getting customers talking about your business. UGC uses customer testimonials, tweets and retweets about your store, photos using your merchandise and even Facebook comments. According to Adweek, “85% of users find visual UGC more influential than brand-generated photos or videos.” Brand ambassadors supply the positive word-of-mouth marketing you need.
Brand Ambassadors give you credibility
Not only do your brand ambassadors bring out your best qualities, they also make you real. They’re like a customer, a marketer and a sales rep rolled into one. Shoppers want authenticity, so let them do the selling for you. Real people talking about you.
Getting to know them
If you don’t know who your ambassadors are then you’re clearly not paying attention. Every successful business has them. Now’s the time to court them. Reach out. Get their feedback. Listen to what they like and don’t like. Have them share their experiences, especially their photos and videos. If you’re fortunate to have SimpleConsign software, we’ve created a special area for Customer Notes. You can keep track of comments, photos and activities for each ambassador.
