Customer intimacy is about building relationships with customers through tailored communications and marketing campaigns. Companies offer personalized benefits and services to increase loyalty and create a sense of group connection. Social media facilitates customer intimacy, allowing companies to interact directly with customers. The goal is to build a loyal customer base who will preferentially select the company’s products and services.
Customer intimacy is cultivating relationships with customers so that they feel that they are in partnership with a supplier rather than a pure business arrangement. Companies accomplish this through communications tailored to customer needs and marketing campaigns that create a sense of connection with the company and products. This concept gained prominence in the 1990s, when many companies began to make it part of their business strategy. Social media in the 21st century has facilitated customer intimacy and also raised expectations on the part of consumers in terms of communicating with companies.
Companies that value customer intimacy want to reach their customers as individuals, not a generic user base. They can offer various benefits and services to their customers; a department store, for example, has personal shoppers, storage areas, free delivery, childcare, and other offerings to make its customers feel invited. This increases customer loyalty as they turn to the department store first, remembering the personalized and personal treatment. These customers, in turn, can recommend the store to others, creating a chain of connections.
In customer intimacy, companies also keep the lines of communication open. They have hotlines and other services for instant contact and can offer services beyond basic responses to customer needs. A credit card company, for example, might offer roadside assistance to premium members. Some customer intimacy strategies also create a sense of group connection through premium services and elite membership. Inner circle customers access more benefits and feel more of a connection to the company as a result.
Social media allows companies to interact directly with customers to foster customer intimacy. They can engage in activities like responding to public reviews, good or bad, of your products. They can also run contests, encourage user feedback, and create online spaces for customers to connect. Many companies work with a social media specialist who can help devise a strategy that is appropriate for the company’s needs.
The goal of customer intimacy is to build a loyal customer relationship for life. The consumer will preferentially select the company’s products and services, when possible, together with those of the company’s business partners. Customers can also share their loyalty with friends and family and attract new customers through their reviews of the company and its offerings. This can allow a business to build a strong customer base.
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