Working through the loyalty loop in social media

More than other marketing channels, social media offers marketers the ability to nurture potential customers, gather data from them and move them through the funnel in a methodical and integrated way.

What is the loyalty loop?

The loyalty loop boils down the steps for acquiring new customers to just three steps: Consider, Evaluate, and Buy. This is particularly relevant to social media.

Let’s look at two real-world examples of this.

A Design Studio

On Twitter, you share a compelling blend of your original work along with content from other sources, curated to reinforce the design aesthetic and explore wider influences.

Initially, the objective is to have the content seen so that potential clients know that they exist. So you measure this in reach and impressions.

Data and insights

Over time, you receive growing engagement and an ever-stronger indication of specifically which pieces of content drive this. You measure these successes in likes, comments and shares.

Armed with this insight you become more and more effective at posting shareable content, which generates higher engagement and in turn moves prospects further along the loyalty loop.

While the consideration and purchase phases of the customer lifecycle are directly driven by sales in this business, and many in the B2B sector, the authority and persistent awareness that social facilitates is a powerful brand tool when influencing major procurement decisions.

An E-commerce Business

On Facebook, you post a range of content – both useful and entertaining – to delight and engage fans of all things cycling-related. This content is served as both organic and paid (‘boosted’) content, to ensure it has levels of reach that justify its production.

When you have a new product line in stock, you create a short video exploring the most interesting aspects of the product. The video post is boosted at a low cost to reach 1,000,000 cycling fans.

Facebook Business Manager

In Facebook Business Manager, a custom audience is created which includes only those people who watched 75% of the introductory video, and these people are then shown a conversion-focused ad offering an exclusive price on the new product.

Similarly, those who go on to convert – purchasing the product from the brand’s website – can be specifically targeted with social marketing that incentives them to share and become brand advocates.