In my previous article I talked about the need to infatuate consumers. But just doing that isn’t enough. Once you infatuate consumers, how do you keep them infatuated?
To explore this question, consider your current product offering. If your customers had to name their ten favorite purchases across all products and services, how many of them would include your offering on their list?
If you don’t think that your consumers cherish you enough to name your offering in their top ten, how can you expect to infatuate them? Consumers have the capacity to bond closely or identify themselves tightly with just a handful of products and services.
And if you’re in their top ten, why not aim to be number one—the offering that your consumers consider their favorite, the most indispensable? It almost goes without saying, but once you’re on that rarefied list of favorites, the strategic possibilities open up immensely. You’ll possess the full attention of your consumers, and they will follow you across markets and industries.
The connection becomes so strong that they will link themselves not just to your offering but to the brand behind the offering. They’ll be receptive to everything you offer because you’ve already won them over to your brand. Moreover, they will be brand ambassadors toward people who aren’t yet customers.
One of the best examples of extending product infatuation is the Virgin Group. Founded in 1970 by Richard Branson as a music mail-order business, the first Virgin Records shop opened a year later. Today, Virgin is one of the most recognized global brands, with diverse businesses in everything from music to mobile telephony, transportation, travel, financial services, media, and fitness.
Virgin succeeded in branding the lifestyle concept of sophisticated fun, which they replicated across market spaces in a way that’s almost unprecedented. And they’re far from done. Virgin’s latest ambitious goal is to make space travel accessible to the public. Virgin Galactic calls itself the first “spaceline” and it aims to give consumers the cathartic experience of looking back on earth from above, continuing to stretch the mortal limits of its infatuating brand. Talk about high aspirations!
Take a look at the amazing video about the service.
In my next article, I will reveal the all-important two words that will unlock the path to consumer infatuation.
Gabor George Burt is an internationally recognized expert on innovation, creativity and strategy development. His spheres of expertise help organizations to overstep perceived limitations and to carve out successful growth strategies. Share the excitement surrounding Gabor’s upcoming book Slingshot at www.slingshotliving.com or on Twitter (@slingshotliving ).