Brand loyalty can be hard to come by now that millions of advertisements can reach anyone, anywhere, anytime. Recent studies have shown results that favour this notion, discovering that 79% of the millennials surveyed considered the quality of the product over the brand name associated with it when making a purchase.
Other studies have contradicted this information, finding that 77% of the consumers surveyed use the same brand countless times, and 37% of that group labeled themselves as brand loyalists based on the fact that they’d stick to their typical brand even when offered a similar, better product. Assuming the second findings are more accurate, there are a few things about brand loyalists that businesses and every advertising agency should know to better understand them.
Reeling in customers starts with presenting your product as a novelty. It may not be the first of its kind, but perhaps it has a unique feature or design that your competitors’ products don’t have. If neither of these things is applicable to your product, find an atypical way to advertise it and create novelty that way. This novelty, when repeated, will be stored in the consumer’s memory, and their mind will begin to equate happiness and quality with your brand.
The second most important step to building brand loyalty is harnessing the power of association. Humans are conditioned by their life experiences to associate certain things with emotions or reactions. Association happens over time, so you’ll have to consistently pair your brand with words, phrases, images, and identifiable emotions when marketing to your audience. A few weeks or months later, your targeted consumers will immediately feel positive emotions when exposed to your brand, strengthening the bond they have to it.
Identify is the final component of brand loyalist creation, and it can be what makes your customers stay. When we’re adopted into a group we like, we feel compelled to remain a member for not only the benefits the group provides us, but also for the label we retain for doing so. Reinforcing brand identity through advertising can be done with the right words, colours, pictures, and ideas. Make your brand out to be an exclusive group that your customers would love to be a part of for the products and the name they’re given.
While there are only three key elements to the subconscious minds of brand loyalists, there are many ways your company can promote its products and services to gain more of these dedicated customers. Be bold, unique, and interesting in your advertisements and product design, putting extra effort into accommodating your target audience with group-specific elements. Create a brand community by encouraging your customers to connect with one another on social media. And, of course, relate your brand to positive feelings and a personal identity to keep your customers coming back for more.
Despite the rising popularity of pop-up brands and social media exposure, brand loyalists still exist today, and you can create more for your company by understanding and playing into their psychology.