Consumer Engagement Tactics

Cold digital interactions will destroy your D2C brand. Your beauty product is at risk of failing if you don’t address this. Industry is rooted in enhancing self-image and boosting confidence, goals that are inherently emotional. While online shopping is undeniably convenient, it often comes at the expense of personal interaction. This is especially problematic in the beauty sector, where purchasing decisions are often influenced by sensory experiences, personalized recommendations, and emotional connections. +64% consumers believe brands are losing touch with customer experience. +85% higher sales achieved by brands that emotionally engage. +68% women & 56% men choose beauty products based on how they make them feel. >>Online emotional challenges << →Lack of personalization in online transactions. E-commerce lacks the personal engagement of in-store shopping, such as trying products and consulting with beauty experts. →Absence of sensory experiences. Customers are unable to explore key sensory elements like texture, scent, and application when shopping online. →Overwhelming variety. The sheer number of options online can confuse customers and lead to decision fatigue without proper guidance. >>Strategies to build emotional connections<< →Transform brick and mortar stores into immersive experiences. Redefine your physical stores as experiential hubs where customers can enjoy personalized consultations, interactive product trials, and even beauty treatments. +30% boost in sales is seen in flagship stores that offer immersive experiences. →Retail as entertainment, retailtainment. Host creative pop-up shops, in-store events, and experiential retail activations to engage customers emotionally with unique deco, exclusive product offerings, and hands-on activities. +70% of beauty consumers value in-store experiences over online alternatives. →Leverage influencer trust. Partner with influencers who bring authenticity to your brand by sharing personal stories, reviews, and tutorials. Their relatability and trustworthiness create stronger emotional ties with consumers. +49% customers rely on influencer recommendations for beauty product purchases. →Build community through social media. Use social media to foster continuous engagement through live Q&A sessions, interactive content, user-generated campaigns, and community forums. +72% of beauty consumers discover products through social media. To finish. Despite the challenges of the digital era, the industry is finding ways to close the emotional gap with creative solutions like flagship experiences, influencer collaborations, virtual consultations, and community-driven marketing. Check out my curated collection of visuals to spark your next big idea. Featured brands: Benefit Glossier Kylie Cosmetics Marc Jacobs Molecula Miu Miu Nina Ricci Laneige Rhode #BeautyBusiness #EmotionalConnection #SocialBeauty #ExperientialRetail #InfluencerMarketing

Generative AI has spawned thousands of new products. But outside of ChatGPT, what are everyday consumers using? What's growing, and what has flattened? I crunched the numbers to find the top 50 consumer AI web products by monthly global visits - here's my learnings: 1. Most leading products are built from the “ground up” around generative AI - of the 50 on the list, 80% are brand new as of the past year. Only five are owned by big tech companies (ex. Google, Microsoft), and of the remaining 45, nearly half are bootstrapped! 2. ChatGPT has a massive lead, for now…representing 60% of traffic to the entire list! Character.AI comes in at #2, with ~21% of ChatGPT's traffic. Compared to mainstream consumer products, even the top AI products are fairly small - ChatGPT ranks around the same traffic scale as Reddit, LinkedIn, and Twitch, but far behind Facebook and Instagram. 3. General assistants (ex. ChatGPT, Bard, Poe) represent almost 70% of traffic, but companionship (ex. Character.AI) and content generation (ex. Midjourney, ElevenLabs) are surging! Model hubs are also a category to watch, with only two companies on the list (Civitai, Hugging Face) but both in the top 10. 4. While some early winners have emerged, most categories are still up for grabs - with a <2x gap in traffic between the #1 and the #2 leading players. Use case or workflow-specific platforms are also emerging alongside more horizontal players - ex. Leonardo Ai has taken off in image generation for games assets, while Midjourney continues growing as the leading generalist platform. 5. Acquisition for top products is almost all organic - with the median gen AI company on the list seeing 99% free acquisition! This compares to 52% for the median consumer subscription company before AI. Consumers are also showing significant willingness to pay for genAI, with 90% of products monetizing, and at a ~2x higher ARPU than non-AI consumer subscription comparables. 6. Mobile is still emerging as a platform for AI products - only 15 companies on the list have an app, and just three (PhotoRoom, Speechify, Character.AI) saw >10% of traffic from their app versus website. Given consumers now spend 36 more minutes per day on mobile than desktop, we're excited to see more app-first AI products emerge soon. For the full post and more stats, check out: https://lnkd.in/gR6Paycc #ai #genai #startups

What if your biggest competitive advantage is hiding in plain sight in your competitors' customer complaints? While most B2B executives chase the latest growth tactics, strategic leaders are systematically mining competitor trust gaps to win enterprise deals. In today's procurement environment, trust isn't just a vendor evaluation criterion—it's become the decisive factor in contract decisions worth millions. The reality of enterprise buying is stark: procurement teams have stopped believing vendor promises. They demand transparency in pricing models, proof of service delivery capabilities, and verification of product claims. Most vendors fake this transparency with polished sales decks and case study theater. The winners convert their competitors' credibility deficits into contract wins. Here's how B2B growth leaders are operationalizing trust to capture enterprise market share: Audit Competitor Credibility Gaps. Deploy systematic analysis of competitor RFP losses, customer churn patterns, and service delivery failures. Every trust breakdown in their client base represents a qualified prospect for your pipeline. Engineer transparency into your sales process. Move beyond vendor presentations. Provide independent verification of ROI claims. Offer transparent pricing with no hidden implementation costs. Make radical honesty your competitive differentiation in the procurement process. Align revenue operations around building trust. Tie sales comp, customer success KPIs, and product delivery SLAs directly to trust-building behaviors. When trust becomes measurable in your CRM and tied to quota attainment, it becomes operationalized. Build enterprise trust intelligence. Create account-level dashboards tracking trust indicators across your target prospect base. Monitor competitor service failures, contract disputes, and client satisfaction scores to time your outreach perfectly. The enterprise opportunity is massive: procurement teams are actively seeking vendors they can trust with mission-critical initiatives. While competitors struggle with credibility issues, you capture their displaced enterprise accounts. Ready to transform competitor weaknesses into enterprise wins? Start with a systematic audit of trust vulnerabilities among your top 50 target accounts. The pipeline impact could be transformational. Read more: https://lnkd.in/eRV9sWAK __________ For more on growth and building trust, check out my previous posts. Join me on my journey, and let's build a more trustworthy world together. Christine Alemany #Fintech #Strategy #Growth

This is the most underrated shift in marketing, and no one is talking about it. - We talk about brand vs. performance - We talk about whether demand can be created or tapped into - We talk about zero-party data and the death of cookies But there's a bigger conversation we're missing: the fundamental SHIFT in consumers themselves. The internet's novelty has faded. It used to feel like a small town where everyone knew each other. Today, it's more like New York City, and everyone has to find their version of Cheers. (The bar where everybody knows your name!) Scrolling short-form videos is the new normal, but comments and public engagement are declining. In every keynote, I bring this up, and the audience nods collectively because they know it to be true. We consume publicly but engage privately – in Slack channels, LinkedIn DMs, Team calls, and good old email forwards. Marketers, wake up! We need to adapt to this new reality: 👉🏽 Focus on creating content that resonates deeply. Establish a POV, not just chase trends. Make viewers stop and think, even if they don't leave a comment. 👉🏽 Infiltrate the "private spaces." Find ways to reach consumers in their preferred communities through targeted messaging, earned media, and influencer marketing. 👉🏽 Rethink what engagement means. Likes and shares are just the tip of the iceberg. Focus on brand loyalty, third-party credibility, and positive word-of-mouth, knowing this happens behind closed doors. This fundamental shift in consumer behavior is the marketing game-changer we've all overlooked. To address it, we must embrace new rules of influence. #marketing #b2b #consumerbehavior #socialmedia #contentmarketing

Both AI and neuromarketing are playing transformative roles in the world of advertising, reshaping strategies and enhancing the effectiveness of campaigns. What do you think about this Ad? Here's how they contribute: Personalization: AI algorithms analyze vast amounts of data to understand individual preferences, behaviors, and demographics. This information allows advertisers to create highly personalized and targeted campaigns, delivering content that is more likely to resonate with specific audiences. Predictive Analytics: AI can predict consumer behavior and trends based on historical data. Advertisers leverage predictive analytics to identify potential customers, optimize ad placements, and allocate resources more effectively. Chatbots and Virtual Assistants: AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants provide personalized interactions with consumers. They can answer queries, recommend products, and guide users through the purchasing process, enhancing customer engagement. Content Creation and Optimization: AI tools can generate and optimize content for advertising. From writing ad copy to creating visuals, AI algorithms analyze data to determine what elements are most effective in capturing audience attention and driving conversions. Programmatic Advertising: AI-driven programmatic advertising automates the buying of ad space in real-time. This allows advertisers to target specific audiences across various channels and optimize campaigns for better performance. Emotion Analysis: Neuromarketing, particularly through the use of neuroimaging techniques, helps advertisers understand how consumers emotionally respond to advertisements. This insight enables the creation of emotionally resonant content that has a stronger impact on the audience. Eye-Tracking Technology: Neuromarketing studies often involve eye-tracking technology to understand where individuals focus their attention in an advertisement. Advertisers can use this information to design layouts that draw attention to key elements. Neurofeedback for Ad Testing: Neuromarketing techniques, such as neurofeedback, are used to assess the neurological responses of individuals to advertisements. This data helps in refining and optimizing campaigns by understanding which elements evoke positive or negative reactions. Voice and Visual Search Optimization: AI is integral in optimizing advertising for voice and visual search. As more consumers use voice-activated devices and visual search tools, advertisers need to adapt their strategies to be discoverable through these mediums. Dynamic Pricing and Offers: AI algorithms can analyze market conditions, demand, and competitor pricing to dynamically adjust product prices or offers. This dynamic pricing strategy can be implemented in real-time to maximize revenue. #ai #marketing #technology #innovation via @ marketing.scientist

Wingstop just sold for £400M. But most people are missing the real story here. Everyone's focused on their expansion  (57 locations in 5 years). Or their revenue  (£84.6M, up from £38.1M). But that's just the outcome. The strategy? Way more interesting... They optimised for cultural relevance. 1/ They didn’t just target culture. They became part of it. ↳ Collabs with streetwear brands for exclusive merch. ↳ Live rap performances by M Huncho, Cat Burns. ↳ Content with Stormzy, AJ Tracey, Michael Dapaah. 2/ Genius strategic partnerships ↳ JD Sports for street cred. ↳ Xbox for gaming authenticity. ↳ Gymshark for lifestyle alignment. 3/ They empowered Gen Z voices internally. ↳ Young creators lead content strategy. ↳ In-store music curated by Gen Z staff. ↳ Social teams run by digital natives. 4/ They focused on community, not transactions. ↳ Stores designed as cultural hangout spaces. ↳ Regular creator meetups and fan events. ↳ Built genuine connections through shared interests. 5/ They embraced digital-first everything. ↳ Over 60% of sales are online. ↳ Early adoption of delivery partnerships. ↳ Aligned their strategy with Gen Z habits. 6/ They turned wings into a cultural symbol. ↳ Exclusive "Flavor Cards" for cultural tastemakers. ↳ Collaborated with KSI, Chunkz, Aitch, Lady Leeshurr. ↳ Made their food part of youth lifestyle. 7/ They balanced aspirational and accessible. ↳ Premium LED screens and sound systems. ↳ Affordable prices maintain accessibility. ↳ Created exclusivity through experience, not cost. In 2025, your brand needs cultural currency. You can't fake that.  You have to earn it. The best marketing doesn't feel like marketing at all. It feels like culture. Agree? 🤔 ♻️ Repost if you enjoyed this breakdown. _ 👋 I’m Jolyon Varley, co-founder of OK COOL, strategic and creative partners to the hottest brands on the planet. I drop insights on culture and entrepreneurship every day at 8:30am EST 🔔

A client came to us frustrated. They had thousands of website visitors per day, yet their sales were flat. No matter how much they spent on ads or SEO, the revenue just wasn’t growing. The problem? Traffic isn’t the goal - conversions are. After diving into their analytics, we found several hidden conversion killers: A complicated checkout process – Too many steps and unnecessary fields were causing visitors to abandon their carts. Lack of trust signals – Customer reviews missing on cart page, unclear shipping and return policies, and missing security badges made potential buyers hesitate. Slow site speeds – A few-second delay was enough to make mobile users bounce before even seeing a product page. Weak calls to action – Generic "Buy Now" buttons weren’t compelling enough to drive action. Instead of just driving more traffic, we optimized their Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) strategy: ✔ Simplified the checkout process - fewer clicks, faster transactions. ✔ Improved customer testimonials and trust badges for credibility. ✔ Improved page load speeds, cutting bounce rates by 30%. ✔ Revamped CTAs with urgency and clear value propositions. The result? A 28% increase in sales - without spending a dollar more on traffic. More visitors don’t mean more revenue. Better user experience and conversion-focused strategies do. Does your ecommerce site have a traffic problem - or a conversion problem? #EcommerceGrowth #CRO #DigitalMarketing #ConversionOptimization #WebsiteOptimization #AbsoluteWeb

Missing buying signals is costing you revenue. Every day, buyers send signals they’re ready—or getting ready—to make a purchase. If you don’t know how to recognize or act on these, you’re losing deals to competitors who do. Understanding buying signals helps you engage buyers at the right time, with the right message, so you can close more deals. 👉 Understanding the 3 levels of #BuyingSignals: - Level 1: Future Need - At this level, the buyer has a problem but isn’t aware of it yet. These signals show that the buyer may need your solution in the future, even if they’re not ready right now. 📣 The buyer is facing challenges, asking questions, or raising concerns, but they’re not searching for solutions yet. How to Use It: Educate the buyer. Share insights that bring their problem into focus. Let them know their issue could worsen or better options exist but don’t push for an immediate sale. When to Act: Build a relationship and position yourself as a trusted resource. Stay top of mind for when they’re ready. - Level 2: Problem Acknowledgment -   Here, the buyer knows they have a problem but isn’t sure how serious it is or if it’s worth solving. They may also be unsure of the best solution. 📣The buyer is asking more detailed questions, engaging with content, or showing some interest, but they’re not ready to commit. How to Use It: Help them understand the significance of the problem. Share case studies and expert advice to show the impact of solving it. When to Act: Engage thoughtfully. Dig deeper into their pain points and show them the value of addressing the issue soon. - Level 3: Active Exploration - Now, the buyer is researching solutions and comparing options. They’re showing clear interest and could be ready to make a decision. 📣 The buyer is downloading multiple pieces of content, repeatedly visiting key product pages, or directly asking for demos or pricing info. How to Use It: Act now! Be responsive, personalize your approach, and provide details to guide them toward choosing your solution. When to Act: Immediately. Buyers at this stage are ready to make a decision, and you need to be proactive. 👉 Recognizing these three levels of buying signals allows you to adjust your approach to where the buyer is in their journey. This ensures you’re not pushing too hard too soon—or missing the chance to close a deal when they’re ready. Knowing how and when to engage is the key to earning their business. P.S. Who am I SASSING in this pic?!! Drop your best guess in the comments. -- Enjoyed this post? Click here to follow me on LinkedIn 👉lnkd.in/emVkCrf3 to hit follow & ring my 🔔 to stay updated about my best content! #SignalBasedSelling #IntentData #SalesTriggers #ValueBasedSegmentation

What you should care about when it comes to social engagement in 2026: (and yes, I spent this Sunday reading Buffer's State of Social Media Engagement in 2026 and distilled it all down for you 😇) 1. Reply to your comments. Seriously. This is the highest-leverage move most people are sleeping on (still, for some reason!). The report shares that posts where creators/brands reply to comments see +30% more engagement on LinkedIn and up to +42% on other platforms. This is the most consistent signal across every platform studied. 2. Your engagement rate benchmark is probably wrong (gasp!) "Good" engagement is platform-specific. ▶️ LinkedIn avg ~6.2% ▶️Instagram ~5.5% ▶️X ~2.5% (or lower, close to 0 for non-premium accounts) A 4% post can be a win or a miss depending on where you're posting. If you're not benchmarking by platform, your reporting is probably off. 3. Carousels run LinkedIn. Carousels have an average engagement rate ~21.7% (I've seen them as high as 75%!). ▶️Video: ~7.3% ▶️Images: ~6.5% An average carousel outperforms a good video. So, if engagement is the goal, this is the format you should choose. 4. Stop obsessing over timing. The data is clear: posting beats not posting, every time. Sure, timing might give you a small lift but content quality is the biggest lever. If you're spending more energy on "what time should I post?" vs what you're posting (and the value you're bringing to your audience) then that's the miss. 5. Consistency over intensity. There's a real penalty for going quiet. Accounts that don't post for a week underperform their own baseline. Even 1–2 posts per week beats silence. You don't need more content. You need consistent content worth engaging with. Bonus number 6. Your format strategy doesn't travel (sorry! and this is why social teams work so. hard.) What works on one platform will not cleanly translate to another. IG Reels = more reach. IG carousels = more engagement. But watch out, because that carousel won't even work on Facebook. The takeaway: Social in 2026 isn't about hacking an algorithm. It's about behaving like a human and being authentic. Reply. Post consistently. Pick formats intentionally. Benchmark correctly. Happy posting! Buffer's full report: https://lnkd.in/gjqp4QXJ 🦓

In retail, many chase the next big thing—a new style, a new way to reach consumers—triggering a frantic race to adopt. But most trends fade as fast as they appear. The real game-changers are curated habits that prove they can stand the test of time. I’ve championed social commerce as the future of retail for over a decade. In hindsight, that barely scratches the surface. It’s now a deeply ingrained consumer behavior. The imperative isn’t just to adopt it, but to evolve with it—constantly and intentionally. At HSN, social commerce was core to our strategy. We pioneered the blend of shopping and entertainment. That’s the essence: finding the sweet spot where entertainment, connection, and commerce converge. Soon after, platforms like Twitch began enabling users to both game and shop in real time, blending entertainment with commerce. Fanatics has successfully leaned into this model as well, immersing fans in live experiences while showcasing gear in action, often worn by their favorite athletes and community, turning fandom into a powerful trust signal. More recently, TikTok Shop collapsed the purchase funnel into a single scroll. It's no longer discover, then buy. Now, it’s see it, want it, buy it—seamlessly, in-platform. So, as we look ahead, how do I see this "social commerce habit" evolving? Here's what I expect: 🔹 Creator Integration is Non-Negotiable. For Gen Z, in particular, TikTok Shop has become a primary discovery engine. They trust their favorite creators to genuinely try products and offer honest feedback. The more brands lean into authentic partnerships with creators, the more trust they build in this integrated shopping experience. It’s about relationship-driven commerce. 🔹 Embrace a Zero-Click World. Speed and simplicity are paramount. Consumers need to be able to see, buy, and receive as fast as humanly possible. This means minimal clicks, minimal friction, and no moments for reconsideration. It's about instant gratification and removing all barriers between desire and ownership. 🔹 Elevate Live Shopping. This is a powerful return to the personal connection and real-time interaction that defined the best of traditional retail. Shoppable videos and live sessions transform social media into a personalized shopping aisle. Imagine experts demonstrating products, showing how they fit or can be styled, all in real-time, tailored to your interests. It brings humanity back to digital retail. 🔹 Unlock the Power of Virtual Try-Ons. A longstanding hurdle in e-commerce is "try before you buy." AI-enabled virtual try-on features solves that, making online shopping more immersive and convenient. This translates directly into higher conversion rates, deeper engagement, and customers spending more valuable time interacting with your brand digitally. It’s time to stop treating social commerce like a trend. This is commerce, full stop. It’s a fundamental consumer behavior that belongs at the center of every modern retail strategy.