Let’s be honest: when you think about how you market to your customers, engagement sounds A LOT like retention. Don’t you engage customers so to retain them? Or vice versa? Learn the difference once & for all.

Both do share this in common: building & nurturing relationships with customers. Because as great as it is to get new ones in the door, that becomes a never-ending cycle if you can’t keep them in.

Engagement marketing has the mission to create meaningful relationships in real time.

Whether that’s through showcasing user generated content (ex. Establishing official Facebook groups, holding a Google Hangout) or engaging across marketing channels (ex. Email, in app, and offline), engagement involves the seemingly simple but challenging intention of building trust and emotional connection with customers.

Retention marketing in a similar vein, are tools, features, and tactics to retain customers so they hopefully never stop using your product (i.e. reducing “churn” of customers).

Traditionally, this involves things like push notifications as friendly reminders or updates on new features, always having new & interesting content that they can use to further deepen the solution your product delivers, or shout out’s to customers.

In short, the mission between the 2 is the same, but their “state of mind” is different. Engagement is present focused while retention is future.

On a scale of 1 to 5, how “healthy” is your engagement and retention marketing? Share below.

~JK