Level 5: Self-Regulated Interest

You have reached the second and final section in the ‘Engage’ phase. How did we get here? Need a quick refresher? Take a quick look back at Level 1, Level 2, Level 3, and finally Level 4. 

You have worked hard to identify and attract your customer and have started engaging them in short but meaningful interactions. It’s time to sweeten the deal in Level 5: Self-Regulated Interest.

Your customer is looking at your requests and calls to action and thinks, “Why do I want to do this? How do I benefit from it?” Once you reach Level 5, your customer is interested in engaging with you, but you need to consider- it's going to be for their own benefit. They're not necessarily inherently selfish. You’ve piqued their interest, but they may still be hesitant. The curiosity around your product or offering can work to benefit your business. But you’re going to have to take the next step. 

You need to embrace incentives.

When we talk about enticing incentives, your business should be considering items like discount codes, referrals or sweepstakes. It's a common misconception that once you offer a discount, you'll forever be in the ‘discount cycle’ begging your customer to purchase your products cheaply.

But you need to step outside the box before you offer any incentive and think clearly, with a long-term strategy, about gaining and maintaining your customers' attention with these types of offers. Is this discount code really going to do it? Remember, Levels 1-4 helped you perfect your audience and messaging- so lean in to that knowledge and remember how you got here! When you do, you're going to arrive with an offer at the perfect intersection of your customers needs and wants.

The key to arriving at Level 5 is that you have laid a great foundation for your business to get to this point. You can’t just ‘skip to the offer’ and wonder what may go wrong. As we talked about in Level 4, the customer has already been interacting meaningfully with your brand. You know that connection has led them towards a progression with your brand and it’s time to make them an offer. However, you can't just stop with the incentive, and you don't want to distract your customer with gimmicks. You need to think through the incentive completely so you can retain your customer for the next offer, six months down the road. The whole point of ‘Self-Regulated Interest’ reflects that your customer willingly continues connecting with your brand.

Level 5 often includes partnerships and promotions with someone like an ‘Influencer’. Developing a business partnership with a potential social media Influencer can dramatically increase your brand’s outreach. CatalystU covers in-depth how to make Influencer Partnerships successfully work for your brand and Customer Journey in our Premier course. It’s important to view your Catalyst Statement when selecting someone to be the face of your brand. Does this person share your core values and mission? Will they represent your values successfully? An influencer partnership is a two-way street and you need to strongly consider your Catalyst Statement before developing your potential outreach plan.

One key to remember is that this is the final phase in the ‘Engage’ section of the Seven Levels. Your business needs to understand that these offers and incentives are all part of the customer journey. The foundation of this journey was successfully created and your meaningful calls to action have led to these incentives that your customer just cannot ignore. It worked. They’ve become a customer and are now officially a part of your team. You’re in… but your work is far from done.

While ‘what's in it for them’ might be happening right now, you're about to take a turn towards a real partnership in Levels 6 and 7. It’s time to move to the final phase and ‘Delight’ your customer.