How do you balance rewarding customer advocates and avoiding over-solicitation or spamming?

2 Offer value and variety

The second step is to offer rewards that are valuable and varied for your advocates. You want to show them that you appreciate their efforts and that you care about their satisfaction. You can use different types of rewards, such as discounts, freebies, upgrades, exclusive access, recognition, or gamification. You can also mix and match rewards based on the level and frequency of advocacy. For example, you can have a tiered system where advocates earn points or badges for different actions and redeem them for different rewards.

3 Be personal and authentic

The third step is to be personal and authentic in your communication with your advocates. You want to build trust and rapport with them and make them feel special. You can use their names, thank them personally, share their stories, or feature them on your website or social media. You can also use personalized emails, newsletters, or messages to keep them updated, informed, and engaged. You can also ask for their feedback, suggestions, or opinions to show that you value their input and insights.

4 Respect their privacy and preferences

The fourth step is to respect their privacy and preferences when communicating with them. You want to avoid over-solicitation or spamming them with too many or irrelevant messages. You can use opt-in and opt-out options, frequency settings, and segmentation to ensure that you only send them what they want and when they want. You can also use clear and concise language, catchy subject lines, and actionable calls-to-action to make your communication relevant and effective.

5 Monitor and measure

The fifth step is to monitor and measure the results of your customer advocacy program. You want to track and analyze the impact of your rewards and communication on your advocates' behavior, satisfaction, and loyalty. You can use various metrics, such as advocacy rate, retention rate, referral rate, net promoter score, or customer lifetime value. You can also use feedback surveys, testimonials, or reviews to gauge their sentiment and satisfaction. Monitoring and measuring will help you identify what works and what doesn't and optimize your program accordingly.

6 Experiment and innovate

The sixth step is to experiment and innovate with your customer advocacy program. You want to keep your advocates interested and excited by offering them new and different rewards and communication. You can use A/B testing, surveys, or focus groups to test new ideas and see how they perform. You can also use trends, best practices, or competitors' strategies to inspire you to create new and better ways to reward and communicate with your advocates.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?