Millennial customers are powerful influencers when it comes to sales and customer experience. As a generation expected to spend more than $10 trillion during their lifetimes, they are continuously redefining customer experience through their needs and values. Yet millennials are much more than a population of consumers who simply like to spend their money. For this generation, customer experience needs to have a genuine touch and a driving purpose: Simply put, millennials need to trust brands and feel their authenticity in order to support them. Here are five tips for winning millennial customer trust and long-term loyalty.
Millennials want to know that your brand cares and takes responsibility for its actions. For this reason, being apologetic and transparent about brand issues actually builds their confidence as your brand demonstrates value for honesty. For example, if customers leave negative comments on social media, millennials want to see your brand acknowledge the concerns publicly and then take steps to correct them. Allowing people to see negative comments, making the effort to address them, and accepting responsibility show that your brand is humble enough to accept criticism and therefore worthy of customer trust and respect.
What’s the best way to build millennial customer trust? Give them exactly what they want. One reason conversational commerce has become so popular is the simple fact that it caters to people’s common messaging habits, making shopping and customer service easier than ever. Millennials are especially keen to this trend, given their preference for a mobile lifestyle and quick service on the go. Every step of the way on the customer journey, put yourself in the millennial’s shoes. Be present on their favorite social channels, make the customer experience mobile-friendly, and be quick to respond to their requests. Give them great experiences that make them want to tell their peers about your brand.
Millennials love their smartphones, and they also love saving time. A key step to building millennial customer trust is therefore offering seamless and effortless customer experiences. Don’t make them search for answers on your brand website. Offer comprehensive FAQs or live chat options in addition to tapping into messaging apps and SMS for modern conversational commerce. Be proactive by offering personalized product recommendations and marketing offers, detailed delivery and tracking information, and easy access to customer service agents whenever desired. The smoother the customer experience, the more loyal your millennial customers will be.
Millennials are sympathetic to the brands they support for a simple reason: Those brands show a genuine human touch. This may be the most critical step to building millennial customer trust, as this generation tends to value authenticity and an emotional connection more than any other. A Cone Communications study found that 87% of millennials purchase products with an environmental or social benefit. Your brand should make every effort to connect with millennials on an emotional level by sharing your brand’s vision, demonstrating your value for social responsibility, and sharing information about eco-friendly business practices and philanthropy, to name a few. When millennials find brands that match their values, loyalty is often won.
Millennials like to be heard, so listening to their feedback and engaging in conversation are important to building their trust. Always be responsive to their comments on all channels, especially social media where numerous studies have found millennials to be quick to comment on brands. Don’t be afraid to be proactive either: Asking for their feedback directly shows you value their opinions, and getting them involved in marketing campaigns that feature competitions or votes for favorite products are winning ways to engage with them and hear their voices. Building customer trust is essential to winning long-term loyalty, and millennials are the perfect example of a generation that counts on brands to deliver on their promises. With a human touch, customer-centric approach, and commitment to providing creative and effortless customer experiences, your brand can build millennial customer trust and win their loyalty for the long-term.