Brand loyalty only happens when you know your audience and what they want. So, when should a company end a practice they’ve been using for many years to reach out to and communicate with its consumers? When its consumers tell it to!
According to a BizReport article by Helen Leggatt, Ben & Jerry’s has stopped sending its email newsletters because their customers expressed that they would rather be reached through social media sites like Facebook and Twitter.
I think this was a very smart move for Ben & Jerry’s. They discovered that a long –standing business practice of sending emails to its customers was no longer effective and therefore, are no longer wasting time by continuing to send them. Now they can spend more time enhancing their communication efforts on Facebook, Twitter and their website. Using these social media outlets allows Ben & Jerry’s to really engage with their consumers the way they want to be engaged. Ben & Jerry’s showed that they value their consumers’ opinions and as a result, responded to their needs. Consumers who feel like they are valued and have a voice are much more likely to be loyal to the brand. They will always come back for more…and in this case it’s ice cream!