Want to create a buzz about your business and boost website engagement? Then you need to get creative with incentives for your customers.
I am passionate about time-management so, for my site Productivity Theory, I created a free mental focus challenge, complete with short, daily exercises to help readers make the most of their limited time. I had a blast putting it together, and to date, more than 60 people have signed up.
I’m always thinking about how to build more interactive features to attract more users. Here are five creative ways to get readers engaged with your website or business:
1. Built-in communities
One of the primary purposes of the internet is to connect with others and develop personal networks. Creating an interactive online message board is one of the most direct methods of driving your customers’ interest and engagement. A forum gives your target audience an opportunity to ask questions, express concerns, and receive customer service. It also lets them interact with one another.
2. Try-before-you-buy tools
Allowing customers to test a product before they buy it not only gets them engaged with your website, but ensures they order a product they’ll love. For example, Clopay, a popular garage doors manufacturer, provides an easy-to-use interface that lets customers test different garage doors on their homes using their door imagination system.
3. Effective email marketing
Establishing a link to your customers’ personal email addresses and mobile phone numbers is critical when launching a new marketing campaign. Apart from raising initial interest, such information can be used in the future to provide time-sensitive emails or texts, deliver digital coupons, and even host online flash sales. When done sparingly, businesses can offer important value to their customers.
4. Research tools
By promoting a cause, such as education, many business are bolstering their own reputation, while giving back to their community. Offering free tools can generate interest in your business. For example, in the education field, apps that check for spelling, grammar, proper formatting and appropriate citations, can be highly useful.
5. Creative thinking tools
Some companies have embraced their own creativity by bolstering the imagination of their customers. For example, Portent’s Content Idea Generator creates interesting and sometimes quirky titles from one or two simple words. This fun tool can also be used to facilitate brainstorming sessions. It even goes one step further, by providing cliff notes for each word that is generated, giving you even more to think about.
