If you’re like most businesses, you’re always on the lookout for new and effective methods to connect with your customers. Proven tactics, such as customizing messages to small sections of your audience and looking for new techniques to add value, are all well and good. 

But how do you engage with customers in such a way that causes them to respond positively toward your content? In this article, we’ll explore six unconventional strategies to better relate to your customers and keep them coming back time and time again.

Label Your Customers

If you ask anyone point-blank, they’ll probably say that they don’t like to be labeled or compartmentalized. But recent research paints a decidedly different picture. When voters were designated as “politically active,” their turnout was 15% higher than those not given a specific label.

From a marketing standpoint, when a business chooses to label a customer or group of customers as “elite” or “platinum,” it provides these individuals with feelings of superiority. This may prompt customers to view themselves as specifically catered to by your company.

Serve As Your Own Devil’s Advocate

Social psychologist Charlan Nemeth discovered that interjecting a devil’s advocate into a debate doesn’t typically compel a person to reassess their particular way of thinking. Rather, it has a tendency to toughen the resolve of the individual being questioned.

When your business puts forth a brand statement like – “Some might say that our Rocket Blaster is complex, but let’s face it…rocket scientists aren’t known for being simple!” – you’re encouraging your customers to go all out in supporting your brand and not disparaging it.

Cultivate Reciprocity

It’s one of the more enigmatic of customer responses, but offering patrons a small, complimentary gift has been legitimately proven to boost response rates. As surprising as it might sound, even something as simple as a free soda can heighten a customer’s sense of commitment to your company.

You can experiment with a wide range of fringe benefits, from stunning your customer with an overnight delivery simply to dazzle them, or adding in a bonus “Thank You” gift as part of their shipment.

Identify an Adversary (Or Even an Archenemy)

People are deeply connected to their social groups, even when the dissimilarities of “outsiders” are seemingly negligible or even irrelevant. Roasting a rival company or simply declaring “this is how our customers differ from our competitors’ customers” can be an effective method for fostering brand loyalty.

This technique isn’t necessarily about discrediting your competition. In fact, it’s much more productive when you employ it as a method to demonstrate your core values and how they set you apart from the rest.

Stand For Something

Taking a stand for something offers advantages far beyond eliciting a customer response. Allowing your customers to join you in a cause is an ideal way to form a lasting connection. In recent years, consumers swarmed to purchase Toms footwear not just because they were comfortable shoes, but also because the brand provided a convenient way for customers to embrace its overarching mission: to donate a pair of shoes to someone in need for every pair they sold.

If you haven’t already pinpointed a way to give back to the community, make sure to opt for something that dovetails with your brand. For example, if your business specializes in organic, homemade pet treats, consider how you might be able to support a local animal shelter by organizing a puppy food drive or spotlighting pets that need to be adopted.

Acknowledge Your Shortcomings

When something goes awry, you can transform it into an opportunity to engage with your customers. While you might be inclined to respond defensively or clarify why what transpired isn’t truly your fault, that’s not your wisest move.

Based on research from social psychologist Fiona Lee, customers will respond more sympathetically toward a business that assumes responsibility for a slip-up and outlines how they will rectify it. While it may be true that outside forces precipitated the problem in the first place, a company is more likely to be regarded by customers as capable of overcoming the issue when they are willing to take ownership of it.