Businesses in all industries today face mounting supply chain obstacles. Tariffs, geopolitical tension, extreme weather and more all threaten companies with delays and disruptions, and the consequences extend to your customers.
At this point, you’ve likely heard the recommended long-term steps to address supply chain volatility ad nauseam — diversify your suppliers, increase visibility and keep safety stocks of high-demand items. However, these changes take time. How do you keep your customers loyal in the meantime?
The task falls to digital marketers. Here are five steps you can follow to drive loyalty in your marketing despite supply chain disruptions.
Be Transparent and Communicative
The most crucial step is to be upfront and honest with your customers. A 2022 study found that 91% of American consumers don’t mind a long wait for a shipment if the brand offers a good customer experience. What constitutes such an experience? Proactive communication.
According to the same survey, 79% of shoppers say they want more attention during a disruption. Similarly, 60% expect companies to reach out to them personally within two days if their order will be late.
As a marketer, you can apply this by letting customers know about incoming supply chain issues as soon as the business believes they’re likely. Being the first to reach out and being honest about the reason behind delays will establish trust and promote transparency.
Keep Customers Updated About Bigger Fixes
Similarly, you should keep consumers in the loop about larger supply chain optimizations. Communication about short-term problems and their impact is essential, but your clients are likely also curious about what you’re doing to prevent similar situations in the future. Consequently, promoting your broader logistics optimizations can be a helpful marketing tool.
For example, many companies implement various strategies in response to supply chain issues such as shifting to a more geographically diverse sourcing strategy for enhanced resilience to disruption, implementing real-time inventory tracking for intuitive product reordering or implementing electronic data interchange for reduced errors and greater supply chain visibility. These strategies may seem small or unimportant for consumers on the surface, but in reality, consumers want physical proof and assurance that brands are taking their issues seriously. Highlight these efforts in your marketing materials to demonstrate your commitment to improving efficiency and reliability. These fixes are a big distinguishing factor today, so use them to your advantage.
Reframe Your Value Statement
Supply chain disruptions are also a good time to rethink your brand identity. Fast shipping and low prices may be harder to promote as the core of your business model, given uncertainty in these areas. However, price volatility and lengthy lead times may seem less impactful when you have a unique selling point to compensate for them.
More than two-thirds of consumers today say they’ll pay more to keep buying from brands they trust. What generates that trust? High-quality products, good customer service and longevity are some of the most commonly cited drivers of loyalty.
Research your target market to learn what factors matter most to them and reframe your value around how you can meet those needs. In some niches, a responsibly made product may justify higher prices. In others, being healthier than the competition may be the most important thing. The key factors vary, so survey your customers to learn where your real value lies.
Offer Flexibility and Promotions
Remember that your customers feel just as much uncertainty and fear over supply chain volatility as you do. While marketers may be unable to eliminate the larger factors driving these worries, they can assuage their impact through purchase flexibility and special promotions.
Consumer confidence in the economy fell to a 13-year low in April 2025. Amid such widespread fears over financial conditions, sales and other promotional efforts can go a long way. Consider offering bundles of frequently purchased items, discounting less-affected products to offset higher costs elsewhere or offering longer-term payment plans to keep things affordable.
Build Long-Term Relationships
Digital marketers focus on the long term. Immediate steps to prevent customer churn, like proactive communication and limited-time promotions, are crucial, but they’re only part of the solution.
Supply disruptions may happen again in the future, even if the business adapts. When they do, you have a much better chance of maintaining loyalty if you’ve already established a reputation for trustworthiness and great customer service. Consequently, you should leverage communications with clients today to build long-term relationships for tomorrow.
Keep reaching out to shoppers, remembering to personalize communications and deals to show how you’ve adapted to their specific needs. The average user is active on 6.7 different platforms, so reach out across all of them. Use client data to learn of shifting trends and adapt to them to keep your customer service efforts relevant over time.
Supply Chain Volatility Shouldn’t Hinder Customer Experiences
Delays, rising costs and other disruptions can be intimidating for both companies and their target markets. However, you can use them as a chance to double down on your customer service. These five steps will help you build and retain a loyal client base despite widespread uncertainty.
