Today, organizations need to continually focus on improving customer experience if they want to remain relevant, competitive and ultimately successful. This means they have to build, as well as maintain a good relationship with their customers.

But, relationships cannot be built in silence. Digital communication can help you build and nurture those customer relationships through effective engagement.

Here are 6 ways digital communication can boost customer engagement

1. Starts a conversation

Use digital communication to reach customers who are disengaged and thus not thinking about your brand. Simply start a conversation. Provide them with relevant and useful information at a time when they need it most.

2. Stitches journeys together

Managing customer journeys relies on a combination of channels to move customers from the beginning to the end of the journey. Digital communication helps to stitch these journeys together and engage the customer asynchronously (when the customer is not actively engaged within your ecosystem). It also enables you to nudge them back to where they left off and help them re-enter the journey.

3. Builds long-lasting relationships

Building relationships goes far beyond offering a great product or service. You need to speak to customers. It’s not possible to build a relationship in silence. Communicating with customers regularly will show that you care. It also allows you to add value to their lives – for example providing them with relevant information that enables them to make good, informed decisions.

4. Drives digital adoption

When a customer isn’t using a channel, such as your portal, it’s important to find a logical entry point (possibly through their statements or invoices). This will allow them to see the benefits thereof. It does not mean that just because it is there, customers will use it. You have to actively drive the adoption and digital communication is a great way to do this.

5. Influences behaviour

Digital communication can help drive customer behaviour in the right direction. Remember, the goal is to create an engaged, and profitable, customer. Reminders, notifications, and relevant information, all help to engage customers. You cannot influence the behaviour of a disengaged customer.

6. Creates convenience

Today, customers can access virtually anything they want at their fingertips, so it’s imperative that you don’t make them work to use your services. Use digital communication to create a layer of convenience for your customer. Secure, personalised, interactive communications can help them take the next step and direct them to the most relevant, convenient channel.

Leverage the power of digital communication

When it comes to leveraging the power of digital communication, it’s pivotal that each communication your organisation sends out resonates with your customers. If it is not engaging at its core, it will not drive engagement. In other words, the content must be relevant, presentation thereof must be engaging, and ultimately, the communication must motivate the response you want from the customer.