23 Feb Your Customer’s Hierarchy of Needs
You’re probably familiar with Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Think back to your Psychology 101 class, and if you’re still drawing a blank, here’s the 10-second overview. The basic idea behind his hierarchy of needs, which usually manifests itself in the color-coded, neatly divided pyramid below, is that there are various levels of human needs. If, and only if, the basic physiological needs on the bottom portion of the pyramid are met, can the individual focus on higher level (non-basic) human needs. I believe this same concept can be applied to how your customers relate to your brand.
Replace the human levels of the pyramid with levels that are applicable to your brand. This is how I see each level shaking out:
Bottom tier: Consumer Awareness. This level, which is focused on basic needs, relates to brand and product awareness. After all, in order to sell your products and services, consumers have to be aware that your company exists. It’s safe to say most companies have this covered, and the start-ups are working on it.
Second tier: Customer Application. Now that consumers are aware of your company and its products and services, you have the challenge of turning your prospects into customers. This is the natural progression from brand awareness.
Third tier: Successful Customer Application. You have customers who have tried your products. The product lives up to its name and intended use. Voila, you have, in theory, satisfied customers. But is that enough? No. Customer Satisfaction doesn’t matter, when your gadget is just as good as your competitor’s gadget. Heaven forbid they come out with an enhanced gadget. Suddenly, your seemingly satisfied customers are some other company’s “satisfied customer.” Is your brand losing satisfied customers? If so, keep reading. Once you graduate to the next tier, the customer loss slows significantly.
Fourth tier: Customer Loyalty. Turning your happy customers into brand loyalists is crucial for your business. Dedication to your brand and products will make your retention efforts much easier, and help you to convert customer transactions into customer relationships.
Top tier: Customer Advocacy. I’m sure you thought customer loyalty was the crème de la crème for your brand. It’s not—customer advocacy is. At this point, you have gone from making consumers aware of your products to having your customers inform other consumers about your product, and in a positive way. Now that’s when you know your brand has arrived!
Many brands are using social media to meet customers and prospects exactly where they are on the pyramid. There are 4,905 businesses on Twitter, according to Twibs.com, so 4,905 brands are at least gaining brand awareness from Twitter. Is your brand included in this 4,905?
If so, kudos! The better question is, are you engaging with your customers and listening to them on Twitter? I hope so, because in today’s world, that is how brand loyalists and evangelists are built.
Take Dell for example. It is just one of the brands that, with the help of its digital media team, is creating dedicated Dell loyalists and evangelists. By interacting with its customers on blogs, Twitter and other social networks and websites Dell is using real people to build brand relationships. As a Dell owner, I love knowing that I can connect with @richardatdell on Twitter or on his blog. He’s listening to the online chatter, product questions and service concerns. This takes not only my opinion of Dell and its customer service to new heights, but it makes me, as a customer feel appreciated. And when I feel appreciated by your brand, I will not only choose to continue our relationship, but I will tell my friends about it.
H&R Block is another good example. Its VP of Marketing, Paula Drum, is helping the brand work its way up the pyramid with customers by engaging with them on Twitter. She forms a relationship with its prospects and customers by sharing information and listening to what the Twitterverse is saying.
It’s no surprise then that both brands were featured on a list of the 40 Best Brands on Twitter. So where is your brand on the hierarchy of customer needs? Are you using social media to connect with your customers and move up this ladder? If not, start with our post from last week about best practices for branded Twitter accounts. Then listen, engage, act and, hopefully, your brand will reach the summit—and your brand evangelists will tell the story.
