Top 3 Ways to Increase Customer Loyalty in 2024

5 percent.

Increasing customer retention by just 5 percent can increase profits by up to 95 percent. However, brands today struggle with understanding the needs of their customers. One reason? They’re not listening, or at least not listening to the spaces where customers are lending their voice: online reviews and social media.

The avalanche of customer feedback coming in from review sites and social media has been just too much to dive into for insights—until now. These days, AI can not only automate tasks like responding to reviews or writing social posts but also analyze the feedback and provide real, actionable insights.

Chatmeter platform user Carla Lestinho, a Client Experience Manager at H&R Block Canada, has experienced this first hand, saying, “Keeping pace with the evolving software and the technology landscape, including advancements in AI, have enabled us to stay ahead in providing exceptional service to clients.”

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So, what are the top 3 ways brands can increase customer loyalty in 2024 and beyond? 

1. Make Online Reviews a Priority

83% of people expect businesses to reply to social media comments within 24 hours. When brands prioritize reviews, customer pain points get addressed, successes get celebrated, and customers remember it. It’s all about building customer trust.

Some ways to stay on top of your reviews and hold on to customers are:

• Respond quickly: Chatmeter’s AI Generator review response tool allows you to respond in seconds in your brand’s voice and tone.

• Always reply: Negative or positive, it’s imperative brands reply to reviews and comments. Your customers will feel heard and valued and are far more likely to remain loyal.

• Listen closely: Insights gleaned with AI sentiment analysis tools like Chatmeter’s Pulse solution let brands quickly eliminate blindspots and uplevel their marketing strategies.

Darian Newstead, Senior Marketing Manager at MR MIKES restaurant, knows the importance of staying on top of reviews, saying, “It is vital to our business that we stay up-to-date on customer reviews and respond quickly, whether they are positive or negative, to show we are engaged and that our guests are looked after, even when they are not physically in our restaurant.”

2. Survey Your Customers

Consumers want to be heard. Surveys are more than just a way to get feedback; they’re an opportunity to make customers feel like their opinion matters. Multi-location brands don’t have to ask a consumer for their opinion, so when a business does, it sticks with consumers.

Secure your customers with these survey tips:

• Design matters: Use your brand colors, logos, and images. Have a yummy new food item to test? Make your respondents salivate; they won’t forget it.
• Use templates: Net Promoter Score (NPS) and Customer Satisfaction (CSAT) surveys are industry standards for knowing how you stand up against the competition, what you need to improve, and where you’re shining. 
• Allow comments: The voice of the customer is everything, so let them use it. Allow for comments to questions customers know you really want to hear what they have to say.

3. Be Better Than the Competition

Don’t lose your customers to the hotel with the loyalty program or the local coffee shop with a better social media presence. 

Keep your customers devoted to you and stay on top of the competition by :

• Maintaining listing accuracy: One of the easiest ways to lose a customer is by having out-of-date information listed when they want to find you.
• Getting the inside scoop: With Chatmeter’s Location Comparison solution— from reviews to social, Pulse to your Local Brand Visibility (LBV) score, it’s all there. 
• Quickly fixing the problem: Chatmeter’s AI-powered Detractors Are Saying solution looks over a year’s data to find customer complaints and provides recommended solutions.

Master AutoTech Marketing Manager Tyler King knew the value of driving reviews to stand out from the competition during their Company rebrand, “We want to match or exceed the number of reviews compared to local competition. We can quickly see if a location isn’t operating at a level of 4.5 or above, pinpoint customer complaints, and address them immediately.”

Now more than ever, a customer needs to feel valued, heard, and made to feel unique. By utilizing the benefits that AI-powered solutions offer, brands have the ability to not only retain existing customers but also turn them into brand advocates who contribute to your business’s long-term success. Remember, customer loyalty is an ongoing journey, and it requires consistent efforts and a customer-centric approach. Don’t stop listening, and your customers will thank you in 2024!