Implementation of conversational marketing strategy has been on a rise. Since the outbreak of COVID-19, the way consumers shop changed dramatically. Lockdowns, reduced social interactions, change of habits resulted in all of us adopting new ways of buying. As a result, e-commerce has exploded all around the world. According to Shopify, the sales online of consumer-packed goods (CPGs) in the US doubled due to the pandemic.
These new purchasing habits are here to stay. Even once the pandemic is over, the change in how we buy will become the new normal.
Therefore, brands need to shift their energy from the traditional B2C (business to consumer) selling model and develop a strong D2C (direct to consumer) channel. At least when it comes to communication.
In a nutshell, the D2C e-commerce model is when the manufacturers (or producers) sell their products directly to consumers from their web store, essentially cutting out the middleman (wholesaler). Not only does it reduce the price of the goods, but it also unifies and improves the quality of service and gives unique access to consumer data directly to the manufacturer.
Research has also shown that 55% of consumers prefer to shop directly with the brand manufacturer over retailers.
What are the benefits of D2C?
- Truly know who your customers are – manufacturers will have access to the consumer data, which will help them understand the buying patterns, ensure better marketing, and improve their products based on the feedback received. Currently, such consumer data is only available to wholesalers who have a direct engagement with the customers.
- An omnichannel experience – manufacturers will be in control of the entire process from production to marketing and sales of the product. By having this control, they will also be able to offer an omnichannel experience to their customers.
- Complete control of your brand – traditionally, manufacturers have little control over their brand because they cannot ensure a good purchasing experience since they are not selling the product directly to the customers. However, in the D2C model, brands will be in charge of all marketing activities, including purchasing experience, and therefore will have greater control of their brand.
Marketing becomes an essential component of D2C sales success. Therefore, only having a user-friendly website, great product, and a reasonable price won’t be enough to skyrocket your sales. Profound relationships with your customers will make your sales shoot up!
Today, marketing is all about engagement with the customers and building trusting relationships with them. The D2C e-commerce essentially needs a personal link that connects brands and consumers.
How can you build a relationship with your consumer?
Based on a study from Accenture, eight out of ten shoppers are happy to share their personal information if brands can ensure more personalized shopping experiences. In return, these customers want relevant offers and more value.
Start conversations with your customers to build relationships. A conversational marketing strategy is an effective way to engage with your audience, gather consumer data, and guide your shoppers down the sales funnel.
Your shoppers are used to exchanging short text messages. Texting has become a norm in today’s communication thanks to tools like Messenger, WhatsApp, and more. Therefore, automating your dialogues with your consumers is the most natural way to build long-lasting relationships.
You can use dialogues at each stage of your sales funnel. For example, you can build more solid brand awareness, educate, advise or drive repeat purchases – all through dialogues.
Nevertheless, your D2C strategy also can be vastly complimented by dialogues. Since you’ll have direct contact with your shoppers, use that opportunity to gather some information about them and their preferences, e.g., contact details, name, location, what they are interested in, how your product solves their issues, etc.
Having this information will have a massive impact on your further marketing automation, as you’ll be able to offer a highly personalized shopping experience that is relevant to each shopper.
How will conversational marketing strategy complement your D2C strategy?
Collect data about your customers
D2C is all about selling directly to your customers. It means that you’ll be required to gather as much information about your shopper as possible. Shooting generic marketing campaigns expecting to appeal to the masses won’t really work out, as today’s consumers are thirsty for relevance.
Dialogue automation is an exceptional way to get to know your customers better.
Once they visit your website, your chatbot should greet them and offer assistance. If you’re a brand with thousands of different products, chances of a customer finding what they exactly need are slim unless you make it easy for them.
Imagine a chatbot asking a couple of simple questions about the pain points that the visitor faces only to offer highly personalized and relevant solutions to address that issue. It indeed is a direct way to wow your shopper and leverage on the outstanding shopping experience.
Once they share their pain points and your brand suggests what they need, ask your customers to keep in touch with you. They will be more than happy to share their contact details that you can use for your e-mailing campaigns.
By knowing their contact details and the pain points they face, you will be able to ensure highly personalized communication, resulting in high e-mail open rates, repeated sales, and customer loyalty.
Fun fact: personalized e-mails result in revenue and transaction rates that are six times higher than non-personalized e-mails.
Offer a highly personalized shopping experience
By gathering information about your customers, you are able to personalize their shopping experience. Brands that are able to offer relevant recommendations to their shoppers are at the top of the game.
Did you know that a product recommendation can bestow up to 31% of e-commerce revenue?
However, by only knowing your customers well, you won’t be able to recommend the most relevant option. Therefore, you should also know your products exceptionally well and handpick those that solve the issues your customers may face.
For instance, if you sell hundreds or thousands of types of healthcare products, you should build up a system of matching each product with the specific healthcare issue that your customers may have. Having thousands of products available on the website will confuse your shoppers, and a robust system of categorization and recommending will play to your advantage.
Educate your customers to facilitate sales
Dialogues can also be used to educate your consumers. In fact, you should use dialogue automation to showcase your expertise and authority. By understanding the main pain points and proposing relevant solutions, your brand will simplify the shopping journey.
Your chatbot must be “trained” to answer the main questions and show suitable options to the consumers. Thus, it should become a “virtual consultant” that replaces shopping assistants in brick-and-mortar shops.
In times when the shoppers aren’t sure what’s best for them, your chatbot should educate and reassure the customer that the proposed product will be a relevant solution to their pain points. In fact, 92% of shoppers have been convinced by well-executed personalized recommendations.
Having a “Recommended for me” section on the website that is based on customers’ stated preferences and background is a great way to persuade the customers.
How to build Dialogue Automation with DiALOGiFY?
DiALOGiFY can be easily integrated into websites powered by Shopify, WordPress, and WooCommerce. Our technology is here to help you bring your marketing strategy to a new level.
The user journey can often be complicated, shifting across different touchpoints (website, social media, physical retail stores, e-mail, print ads, etc.). Still, all of these can be integrated with the DiALOGiFY framework.
With multiple functionalities and workflows supported by data and technologies, DiALOGiFY uses playful elements (such as gamification) and behavioral science to kick-off, automate, and analyze conversations. Nevertheless, by integrating DiALOGiFY technology with your existing marketing systems, you will enhance them with essential functionalities, making your data more accurate and campaigns more effective.
By using dialogue automation strategies, you’ll put your customers at the center of attention and reduce any confusion they may have at different stages of their buying journey. Be prepared to establish multiple different automation types that will correspond to varying stages of the customer journey.
Here are the ten most popular dialogue automation use cases for engagement with your customers:
- Lead activation – “Start Now!”
- Abandoned shopping cart – “Still Not Sure…?”
- Onboarding – “Welcome to Our Website, Your Benefits…”
- Repeated purchase incentive – “Buy Again!”
- Personalized events – “Congratulations on ….!”
- Seasonal greetings – “Merry Christmas!”
- Loyalty – “Thank You for Your Trust; Could You Share More About Your Experience with Us?”
- Referral marketing – “Friends Refer Friends.”
- Cross- and upselling – “Recommendations for You.”
- Re-activation – “It’s Been a while; We Miss You!”
The key to success in your D2C strategy is determined by how your brand engages with the consumer. Generally, online engagement has been decreasing; however, it should not be the case if you properly plan how and where to engage with your shoppers. In addition, DiALOGiFY technology is ever-evolving to cater to the latest market changes and, as a result, ensure the highest customer conversions for your brand.
How can your brand establish a solid conversational marketing strategy?
The pandemic has reshaped how we do business. In order to survive, brands have to adopt these new ways and build genuine connections with their shoppers. COVID-19 has brought D2C from 2030 to 2021 and just accelerated its importance, growth, and popularity. We are witnessing the world’s largest and most spoken of brands abandon legacy platforms and reshaping ways of how they do business moving on.
Knowing your customers, personalizing their experience, and providing suitable options is something that every brand must now have in its marketing strategy. Gone are the days when sales were made solely by wholesalers, where knowing your customer was unimportant, or when generic marketing campaigns brought whooping results.
DiALOGiFY dialogue automation is much more than a chatbot. It is a conversational software that providers data analysis and insights required to build solid consumer profiles and establish highly personalized marketing campaigns.
Remember, direct-to-consumer marketing strategy is much more than brands just talking to customers; it is about listening and personalization that brings mutual benefit to both parties.
Are you ready to start a dialogue with your consumers?