What is brand equity? Why is it important for your business? What does CX have to do with it?
Brand equity refers to the worth or value of your brand. There’s both positive and negative brand equity based on how a particular brand/business is perceived in society. Positive brand equity is when a business has a good standing in the market and among its customers. It is a roundup of many factors such as popularity, recognition, quality of services or products, and strength in the market.
Brand Equity and Customer Experience (CX)
Brand equity, above all, is shaped by your customers’ perceptions. It stems from how you treat customers, how you make your brand memorable, and how you do business differently from others. Therefore, Customer Experience and Emotional Experience are two factors that have a significant impact on your brand equity.
Positive brand equity promises you more profit as it retains existing customers and attracts new customers easily. Moreover, customers will even be willing to pay a higher price for your products or services.
So, if you want your venture to succeed, positive brand equity is paramount. Here are some ways in which you can improve it!
1. Listen to your customers
Happy customers are the pillars of your success. Consider brands such as Apple, Amazon, Nike, and McDonalds. They enjoy strong and positive brand equity in the global market because they have managed to create happy customers. They have addressed and continue to address the pain points of their customers effectively.
Therefore, the primary step is to pay heed to what your customers have to say. Engage with your customers on social media and other communication channels. Gather feedback via different types of surveys to gain a well-rounded idea. Take action based on their feedback and acknowledge both good and bad comments with respect.
2. Evoke the right emotions
Your customers should be happy and excited to browse your products, shop them, and use them. These emotions should be consistent throughout the customer journey. In order to do this, you first have to find out the types of emotions that your brand evokes in customers at present.
The Emotional Value Index (EVI®) is the ideal metric for this purpose. It shows the emotions behind customer satisfaction and customer churn. You can track them, compare, and make the necessary improvement to evoke emotions that drive loyalty, brand equity, and sales.
3. Engage with customers
Invest in connecting with your customers. Listen to what they have to say and engage with them before purchase as well as after purchase. To know what your customers care about, ask it from them! Ask questions and learn about your customers on your social media feed or use feedback surveys. Engage by responding to their feedback and talking about the topics that they care about.
Sometimes, it is important to be vocal about topics that your customers are concerned about and take a stand in them. For example, many brands are altering their business models, so their operational activities have minimal impact on environmental pollution, climate change, animals testing, etc. It’s a part of responding to your customer’s values in a positive way.
Maintaining a strong online presence is important for brands to be recognized in the present times. This way, your customers can engage with you via multiple platforms.
Takeaway
Evoking the right emotions can contribute greatly to building good brand equity for your business. When your customers have a streamlined and enjoyable experience doing business with you, it persuades them to come back. Customers are more loyal to brands that treat them well. Build a customer journey that customers fall in love with by providing a fabulous customer experience. It’s the simplest and easiest way to increase brand equity and increase your profit. Your happy customers are your brand equity!
