4 ways to gain the confidence of nutritional supplement customers
Recent surveys report that nearly half of American adults regularly use dietary supplements to support or improve their health or to maximize their athletic performances. Supplements can be made from plants, algae, seafood, yeasts, fungus, and many other food substances or extracts, which may explain why consumers rarely know exactly what they are getting.
According to Science-Based Medicine: (http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/whats-in-your-supplement/), there are good reasons for consumers to be skeptical about what a label says a supplement contains. Since FDA (Food and Drug Administration) does not monitor the manufacturing, distributing, and marketing of supplements the same way that it does for vitamins or pharmaceutical drugs, nutritional supplements often meet lower safety and efficacy standards. This makes it difficult if not impossible for consumers to identify which health nutrition supplements are safe. Poorly manufactured supplements can range from ineffective to deadly, so trusting a health nutrition brand is increasingly important to those who swear by supplements.
As a health nutrition supplement brand, it’s extremely important to build trust with your customer base. I believe that educating them about your product is the best way. Here are 4 tips for doing that online:
Blog about it
An educational blog about the safety of supplements can build trust with consumers in several ways. Potential customers looking for valuable information will return again and again seeking answers to their questions. Each time they do, they will be reminded that your brand is a leader in supplement safety. You can also disperse your blog posts throughout your social media platforms to keep customers and potential customers coming back to read more. They are likely to share that information with their social circle, which in turn helps build a following around your brand.
Email Blasts/Enewsletters
If you don’t already have one, now is the time to buy a targeted email list that identifies potential customers of your health nutrition supplement. Once you have a list, you can send out bi-monthly email blasts or enewsletters highlighting a blog post or educating customers about your sourcing, ingredients, new formulations and more. Sharing this information on a regular basis will communicate thought leadership and build trust.
Videos
I often suggest creating videos to post on YouTube or other social media platforms. That’s because people respond to information that is easy to digest. Think about creating videos in which you give a tour of your facility and walk customers through your manufacturing process. Being an “open book” will help make customers more comfortable with your company and its safety standards. Then, when potential customers have a choice between your supplement brand and another they know nothing about, they are sure to trust yours and remain loyal to your entire product line because you have made the buying decision easy.
Social Media
In a report from eMarketer, 77% of buyers said they are more likely to buy from a company if the CEO uses social media, and 82% trust the company more. Social Media is clearly how consumers want to engage with brands. When your customers know they can reach out to your company via social media, they feel more like a part of your brand. This is a fantastic opportunity to provide great service in front of a large audience. Be sure to share content that adds value in a fun and creative way by utilizing apps, videos, contests, sweepstakes, and infographics. The opportunities are endless.
Follow Jessica on Twitter @JessClay to discover new marketing tactics that can energize your health or nutrition brand.
photo credit: <a href=”http://www.flickr.com/photos/powerbooktrance/466709245/”>TerryJohnston</a> via <a href=”http://photopin.com”>photopin</a> <a href=”http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/”>cc</a>
Jessica is a competitive athlete and the President of Energize HNM, a health and nutrition marketing agency. Jessica is committed to supporting health brands of every size by helping them define their missions and connect with their customers on a deeper, more meaningful level.