CHAPTER 4
Engage People
In the last two chapters, you learned how to use WOW! experiences to entice people to keep in touch with you. Now it’s time to engage! What do we mean when we talk about engagement? We mean reconnecting with people by delivering content that they find interesting and relevant—and, when we hit the target, something that gets them to take an action. These actions can range from very simple to very rich. An action can be as simple as someone reading your blog post and nodding her head in agreement, or as rich as inspiring a customer to share your content with her network or posting a review on Yelp, TripAdvisor, or Amazon to share with friends and colleagues. Engagement also includes everything in between, from Likes, comments, and shares to downloads, event registrations, and online purchases.
Online participation often translates to offline engagement when your customer responds to something you sent out or posted by making an appointment or reservation, stopping by your business, or calling to say, “I’ve really enjoyed your e-newsletter about what’s going on in our industry; I’m ready to talk about how you can help us.”
Why Engagement Matters
Engagement pulls people back into your business (Figure 4.1) and ultimately leads to repeat sales. And with the power of social media, engagement can drive visibility that brings you new customers. Engagement also reinforces your customers’ positive experiences with your business. It makes good on the promise that ...
