These days, it isn’t enough to have a catchy name, beautiful logo, or robust marketing strategy. Consumers, especially those of younger generations, desire experiences. That’s why you need to transform your brand into a story that draws your customers in, then create an amazing brand experience that boost their loyalty.
Heavyweight players like Apple, Nike, and Netflix have excelled at this approach. When you think of those companies, you don’t think of computers, shoes, and streaming. You think of the sleek, powerful experience of using your iPhone, you feel athletic and ambitious, and you crave a comfortable evening on your couch.
How To Create An Awesome Brand Experience
So, how can you elevate your brand to offer a compelling experience to your customers? Here are some strategies you can use:
Communicate your true purpose
Every company should know their raison d’être — their reason for being. This ties into your brand promise, or what you uniquely offer your customers. Once you’ve refined these two things, you can develop a strong brand experience that brings your customers together.
Can you make them feel like part of a movement or VIP club? How does your brand affirm their interests or goals? When people use your product, will they feel like they’re living their best life? Discovering new things? Changing the world?
Answering these questions can help you create brand loyalty. Like Nike, Apple, or Netflix, a strong brand expresses your purpose more than your sales pitches. By focusing on what you offer your customers, you can stand out from the crowd.
If you haven’t yet, write your company’s mission and value statements. Then, use those to shape your brand experience. Your customers should gain a strong sense of who you are and why you do what you do.
For example, people associate Starbucks with more than just coffee. The brand also means integrity, sustainability, and social justice. Their brand experience encompasses relaxing music, comfortable amenities, and sophisticated beverages and snacks. All that reflects their true purpose: to make people feel cozy yet cultured.
Tell your story
Everyone likes a good story, especially if it’s true. By sharing your company’s unique challenges, history, and triumphs, you can build trust in your brand. Let your story drive your marketing so that people feel like they’re experiencing your success. This tactic is far more effective than simply trotting out sales-y ads.
For example, you can share behind-the-scenes content, the story of how you came to be, or what motivates your latest product. This is great content for social, and it doubles as a key component of your brand experience: It’s how people can engage with your brand every day.
Create an immersive experience for your customers
Experiential marketing is the practice of creating an event, campaign, knowledge base, or other outlet for customers to gather around a brand. It’s a great way to build community while subtly nudging customers along their buyer’s journeys.
Experiential marketing shouldn’t be confused with sales events. Instead, use your core values and brand promise to shape something that people can experience, rather than shop for.
Look into hosting a conference or other event that can bring your community together. If you’re a health food store, hosting a health fair could be a good idea. No matter the topic, strive for an immersive brand experience, not just a promotional event.
You can also crowdsource content around a theme and share it to your social media platforms. This can help your customers feel like they’re a vital part of your brand community.
Refine your Customer Experience (CX)
Whether you have brick-and-mortar stores, an online presence, or both, it should be one of your top priorities to streamline the buying process for your customers. This so-called customer experience, or CX, is increasingly important in today’s market.
Contemporary consumers want highly personalized, ultra-convenient shopping experiences. Can you use your app to offer customized product recommendations? Is the buying experience pleasant? A strong brand offers more than good deals — it’s something that excites and engages loyal customers.
Think about how Trader Joe’s has a distinctive look and feel, as well as opportunities to shop, eat, and enjoy samples. That’s a powerful brand experience that makes customers go out of their way to shop at Trader Joe’s.
Make your customers feel special
Who doesn’t like to feel special? A strong brand not only captures people’s attention but also engages their interest. If you consider two products, will you choose the one covered in phrases such as “Buy Now”? Or the one that invites you to “pamper yourself” or “achieve your goals”?
A brand experience is ultimately about nurturing your customers’ desires and interests. It’s not just good copywriting, though. Consider how Nike has built a culture of passionate athleticism and innovation around its products. People don’t just buy Nike for the shoes. They want to feel like Greek athletes, racing around the arena and achieving godlike status.
Nike has firmly positioned their strong brand as both an affirmation and a challenge. Their customers want to do their best — then get even better. Nike’s overall messaging, aesthetic, values, and even their immersive store experiences all support those goals. So, Nike fans feel special. More importantly, they feel empowered to win.
How can your brand experience give your customers the VIP treatment?
Personalize your marketing
Customized marketing campaigns drive better results. After all, it’s much easier to get people’s attention when you show them products fine-tuned to their interests! Amazon has gotten this down to a science.
However, you don’t need to have an Amazon-sized company to benefit from personalized marketing. These days, you can use various digital tools to track your potential customers’ interests and show them relevant content. Think of it as a conversation. They share their interests, and you personalize your offer to those interests. What better way to forge strong brand loyalty?
You can use a marketing automation tool to gain these insights and automatically send emails or DMs. Need help crafting the perfect graphics or copy? Reach out to Hatchwise or our sister company Flocksy for expertly created assets!
So, What Does This Mean?
Ultimately, creating a brand experience should be a natural extension of your marketing strategies. By leveraging your story and offering experiences to your customers, you can build a community around your brand. That makes it much more likely that people will seek you out, saving you time and money.
Your brand experience is the cohesive set of expectations, symbols, and stories that your target audience will come to expect from you. Be strategic, consistent, and authentic, and this approach will likely boost your marketing results in ways that traditional, ad-driven marketing cannot.
