Despite the digitization of commerce, consumers aren’t satisfied with a hands-off relationship with companies. Instead, they’re craving authentic connections and emotional alignment with their favorite brands. It’s a twist from the traditional buyer-brand transactional relationship — and a major opportunity to gain more market share if you’re competing in a crowded industry.
With that being said, it can be difficult to genuinely connect with target audiences. People are fickle by nature. That’s why it’s essential to examine how other brands have overcome consumer skepticism and built raving, loyal fan clubs. One standout that’s rising in the gifting space is Spoonful of Comfort.
What makes Spoonful of Comfort so successful in driving bonds with its buyers? Above all else, it lives up to its people-driven core values.
Spoonful of Comfort’s values are elegantly simple and direct. From working with love and embracing continuous improvement to doing the right thing, the company’s values collectively serve as a visionary lens for all internal decisions. In fact, Spoonful of Comfort constantly leans on its core values for guidance to ensure that with every experience, buyers become more emotionally linked to the brand.
Interested in finding out more about Spoonful of Comfort’s specific processes that promote warmth and customer loyalty? Check out five of the company’s most innovative customer-centric, connection-promoting strategies.
1. Every gift package is meticulously arranged.
There is nothing left to chance when it comes to Spoonful of Comfort’s products. Unlike some gift package companies, Spoonful of Comfort’s team strives to ensure every package is both thoughtfully and artfully arranged to maximize the emotional reaction of gift recipients.
Consider their signature “get well soon” soup gift package. Beyond the core comfort foods of soup, bread, and cookies, the package includes a ladle and personalized note card. Plus, the cheery packaging itself is reusable as well as eco-friendly. Accordingly, the presentation isn’t just one-of-a-kind. It’s memorable — and effective as a way to make both the giver and giftee feel a part of the Spoonful of Comfort family.
2. All delivery logistics are carefully mapped.
In the gifting world, timing is critical. Consumers who send “thinking of you,” birthday, and other themed packages want their gifts to arrive on time and ready to use. To meet their needs, Spoonful of Comfort controls every logistics puzzle piece possible. From the minute a package leaves the company’s processing center to the minute it arrives at the recipient’s door, every moment and touchpoint has been orchestrated.
This penchant for perfect and detailed timing extends to the methods used to protect and preserve Spoonful of Comfort’s perishable products. Soups and other items are flash-frozen and then packed with exactly the right number of ice packs. By the time they reach their destination, they’re ready to be enjoyed, thus prompting the emotional benefit of instant gratification.
3. Quality control is prioritized to promote safety and consistency.
When you’re selling anything, you have to maintain the highest quality standards you can. But when you’re selling food products, you need to go the extra mile. For this reason, Spoonful of Comfort follows exacting recipes and carefully sources ingredients. Additionally, each recipe batch produced is overseen by USDA supervision to give peace of mind to senders and receivers.
How does this kind of quality control translate into improved and lasting customer connections? Customers begin to see that they can trust Spoonful of Comfort to live up to its promises. And trust can be a key differentiator when customers are deliberating between brands. The more trust that consumers feel toward a business, the more likely they are to continue making purchases and referring it to their friends.
4. Customers are assisted through informative, useful content.
Spoonful of Comfort was built around the “care package” concept. In fact, founder Marti Wymer was inspired to launch the company after her mother’s cancer diagnosis. Wymer wanted to mentor and guide others through the sometimes-challenging experience of showering their family, friends, and coworkers with love through bespoke gift packages.
To make sure customers are able to find the right products (and even the right words to use in their customized gift notes,) Spoonful of Comfort puts an emphasis on publishing valuable, self-guided content. Whether it’s located on their branded website, social media pages, or other owned media, all content is created to inform and inspire users. Consequently, customers know they can rely on Spoonful of Comfort’s advice as they would rely on tips from a friend.
5. Repeat buyers can earn easy-to-redeem rewards.
Many buyers will remain faithful to brands even if they don’t receive special attention. Nevertheless, generous rewards programs can prompt tighter connections and help increase customer lifetime value (CLV) rates. That’s why repeat customers of Spoonful of Comfort are invited to join the business’s robust loyalty club. The club allows for the rapid collection and redemption of points, making it fun and more economical to use the company’s site as a primary gifting source.
Customers can earn points in various ways, including by following and liking the brand on certain social media sites. Points can add up fast, helping remove financial barriers to placing repeat orders. Plus, buyers who spend at least $500 annually are automatically bumped up to a VIP status, giving them even more reason to stay connected with the brand.
If you’re trying to improve your long-term sales, put effort into getting closer to your target audiences. After all, that’s what consumers want. And as Spoonful of Comfort shows, putting customers first can turn any “do good” company into a powerful and profitable “feel good” one, too.
