Listening to Your Customer (or Donor, Volunteer, etc.)

Your stakeholders are your best resource for information regarding your brand. Their insights into how you should create or change your messaging is unmatched in value. This is true for every kind of organization, for profit and nonprofit, small to large, local to multinational. When you ask your stakeholders the right questions, they'll tell you all you need to know.

Savvy marketers create a brand persona to use as a resource for creating messaging. This brand persona is a fictional profile of the people with whom they want to engage. These personas often include not only demographic information but also personality traits, common attitudes, and online behaviors, all within the context of how the organization's mission, product, or service can benefit them. Personas are a great starting tool for marketers, and I'm not here to diminish their importance.

They'll Tell You What They Care About

However, to be effective, there's more to learn than just demographics and personality traits. And this is where talking to your stakeholders comes in. They can tell you which product benefit or mission-driven program is most important to them. They can also tell you when a benefit is not really a benefit or if there are unexpected benefits you didn't know about. They'll tell you the final benefit factor in their decision to purchase or donate and if that benefit was actually received. For example, a nonprofit I worked at assumed that the donors to the homeless shelter cared about housing people in need. So, much of our messaging was around how their donations assisted us in sheltering local adults. However, after surveying some of our regular donors, we learned that many of them were more interested in hearing about the meals the shelter provided to the community and the folks in the shelter. They responded more favorably to messaging around the number of meals served and the local families we fed. So, with that bit of critical information, we amended our donor messaging and fostered a deeper connection with our donors.

They'll Tell Others About You (and You About You)

But there's more that your stakeholders can tell you. They can also tell you how they talk about your organization to their friends and family. Think of all you can do with this information! It's so valuable!

Today's stakeholders rely on peer reviews and recommendations to make purchase or donation decisions. They're going to ask their family and friends before committing their hard-earned dollars or limited time to an organization. Many of your stakeholders are probably very willing to tell their friends and family (and you!) what they think about your brand. So, just asking for a testimonial or review is a significant first step. You'll learn how your stakeholders talk about you AND gain a powerful marketing tool to earn more stakeholders' trust and commitment.

Build a Consistent Feedback Loop

But let's take it a step further. What about stakeholder satisfaction surveys? These do not have to be as complicated as you think. It's a matter of creating a feedback loop that offers you a constant flow of valuable stakeholder communication. First, identify the details you need to know. Are you interested in brand perception or brand awareness? Are you interested in learning your stakeholders' thoughts about a particular product/program you offer? Do you want to know their experiences as donors, volunteers, or customers? Do you want to know if your perceived stakeholder journey (awareness to conversion) is actually what is happening? Maybe you need information on your stakeholders' preferences for your next product or service.

Prioritize your strategic subject(s) and write questions that will get you those answers. Narrow down the questions you would like to ask at any time to less than five. Then, find touchpoints to ask those questions. For example, include a few questions in your e-newsletter or post a weekly survey on Facebook. If you send thank you emails for a donation or purchase, add a question or two to the bottom of the email. Create a survey page on your website and offer an incentive for stakeholders to take it. The goal isn't to have every single person who receives the questions answer them. A reasonable response rate will depend on the survey vehicle and your sector. Shoot for 25% until you learn which vehicle works best for you.

Store your data in a spreadsheet or your CRM so that you can spot trends and other valuable information. It may take some time to collect enough information to be statistically sound, but each stakeholder's point of view is valuable on its own. Always include a note asking your customer to agree that you can use their comments and feedback in marketing and sales messaging.

Ways to Use Stakeholder Feedback

Here are some interesting and effective ways to leverage the feedback you receive. If you ask open-ended questions and certain descriptive or unique words keep coming up, use those words in your ads and marketing. If a product/program benefit seems to be the most important decision-maker at the end of the stakeholder journey, a spotlight that benefit in end-of-the-funnel marketing materials. If your stakeholders report confusion over a certain element of your product, service, or mission, create marketing content explaining that detail. If your brand awareness doesn't seem to be where you'd like it to be, invest in a brand marketing expert (like me!) to help you refine your brand and get it in front of more people.

When I work with clients, I ask for their stakeholder personas and any surveys or feedback they may have collected from them. Ideally, I'd also love to talk to a stakeholder or two or at least submit some questions for them to answer. I really feel this information is critical to me being able to make informed brand decisions and write effective messaging. It's challenging to do either if I don't know who their important stakeholders are. Remember, your stakeholders (donor, volunteer, customer, etc.) are the heroes of your brand story.

How do you listen to your customers? Let me know in the comments or contact me to chat more. For more information about my brand strategy services, please visit https://www.pamgeorgiana.com.