Sobel Co. LLC Marketing Blog

As a business owner, becoming involved in charitable activities is one way to strengthen your reputation and build good will with existing and potential customers. You do not need to be the sponsor of the Olympics to gain recognition and exposure. There are many other, far less expensive opportunities where you can have a significant impact in your market, while helping your company gain some publicity. Consider working throughout the year on a campaign for a local charity, perhaps supporting a shelter or a food bank. You may even consider working with Habitat for humanity or another similar program.  Your employees can get in on the act as well, raising morale internally while you are building awareness externally.  I heard someone once say, “It is good to be important, but it is more important to be good.” Try it!

There are many great marketing ideas, some bearing significant price tags, others involving an investment of elbow grease and time, but no matter what, some of the greatest ideas are the most obvious. You want great customers – invite them to meet you. Host an open house for a small gathering of prospective customers to give them the opportunity to become familiar with your company. If you are a retailer, open the store after hours for cocktails and shopping, if you are a manufacturer, invite special guests to tour the plant and see some of the cutting edge things you are doing.  An invitation after hours to hear a good speaker (maybe a well known local author or celebrity) combined with your personal attention to them may help you win and keep new business.

Customer loyalty is like gold. So what are you doing to ensure that your customers and vendors feel great about doing business with you? How do you use marketing processes to strengthen these important relationships?

One way is to host a ‘vendor fair’ at your company, perhaps after hours. Invite customers, prospects, vendors and even some select centers of influence, to give them the opportunity to meet each other.  You would be amazed at the value you can add when you help your colleagues connect with each other.  The old adage, “It isn’t what you know, but who you know, that counts” remains true today. So create a win-win situation for everyone you do business with and help them build their own powerful network of meaningful relationships by facilitating relevant introductions.

When considering new marketing strategies, keep in mind that the most effective way to build loyal customers is to exceed their expectations.  When you really deliver on your promise and you consistently do what’s best for them, regardless of what’s best for your business, your reputation will speak on your behalf far more efficiently than the largest billboard on the busiest highway! To make sure this happens, you need to speak with employees regarding what the clustomers actually anticipate from your company, and then devise a system for going beyond their expectations. Perhaps it is quick response time, an easy process for returning goods or products, or the way you partner with customers to help them be more profitable.  No matter what you decide, you need to design a procedure so that every employee understands how he or she can consistently achieve your standards for excellence!

Over the weekend I went with a friend to the mall to pick up her new glasses. She had paid $262, and was thrilled because her last frames had cost over $500. She was also delighted because of the promise that her glasses would be ready within the hour.

Unfortunately when we went to pick up her glasses, the person at the desk looked at her receipt and said, “I am so sorry. We are having a problem with one of our machines and your glasses will either be ready in five minutes or in 7-10 days.” You could’ve knocked us both over with a feather. My friend, who was leaving town for a vacation in a few days, was too stunned by the bizarre conversation to even reply at first. I asked, “If there is something wrong with one of your machines, can’t you just have her ordered filled at another one of your locations?” (I would thing that is one of the advantages of working with a nationwide chain.)  “Oh she could call another store,” came the quick reply. It never occurred to the salesperson that the broken equipment was THEIR problem, not the customer’s.  The glasses actually were ready in about 20 minutes, but in the meantime a good amount of confusion and ill will developed. They took an excited ‘fan’ and turned her into a disgruntled, never-to-return, customer.  If someone at the store would have taken ownership of the problem, everything could’ve been handled in a much different manner.

As business owners, how do you deflect problems? Do you manage the situation and turn it to your advantage whenever possible?  If she would’ve said, “We are having difficulty fulfilling your order. If we cannot have your glasses ready in the time promised, we will find the same frames at another location and have them shipped here and we will get them to you FedEx within two days. We are terribly sorry for the inconvenience but we fully recognize it is our responsibility to fix this to your satisfaction.” That would have been a powerful message! And, if she was going to wait 20 minutes for the glasses, offering a cup of tea, some water, or anything to make the waiting time seem less obnoxious, would have been brilliant. For the cost of a bottle of water or a tea bag, they would have taken a big step toward creating a loyal customer for life. (One who would tell all her friends as well.)

Marketing is not just about your ads, your signage, or your web site. It is about your approach to your customers. I hope you are able to turn a problem into a new possibility.

One mistake we all make is that we are anxious to get our ideas to the marketplace. As such we often don’t plan carefully enough. It is wise though, before rolling out a new marketing program to run a pilot study to get feedback.  Even on a minimal budget, running a small study to help you decide on the exact messages that will catch customers’ attention and “stick” can actually save you money in the long run. For example, you can randomly divide a pilot group of trusted customers into two camps.  One half reads a description of a new product and the other half reads an alternate description of that same product.  After analyzing their responses to a few questions you can use the data to figure out which description will lead to more business. By asking existing clients for their opinion, you get honest answers, keep the cost of the test study to a minimum, and set the stage for continued brainstorming with a group of your best advocates!

Earlier this week we talked about first impressions for customers who call your company, but how about those who walk into your facility? Whether you have an auto showroom, a physician’s office, a retail store, a warehouse or a manufacturing plant, the customer has some expectations of minimum standards for neatness and attractiveness.  If your lobby is still covered in 1970s “fake” paneling, you might be sending the wrong message. From professional service firms to contractors, how you look says a lot about the quality of your organization - and the value you place on your customers. This is so obvious it is often overlooked - but how you appear is a big part of enhancing your brand. A welcoming lobby, fresh coffee, and a comfortable seating area make the visit pleasant and one that customers will be happy to repeat! By the way, a friendly, professional receptionist is an asset that everyone should appreciate.   

Today’s Wall Street Journal suggests that business owners are rethinking the way they spend money in reaction to the economic downturn, but the trend is likely to last. This is sure to impact marketing budgets as well. as you are searching for inexpenisive ways to increase relationships with your customers, think about this:  Poor first impressions are hard to over come. We all know that, but do you know what your customers’ first impression is of your company? One good marketing tip involves taking a step back to look at all the places that may represent a “first touch” for customers. The initial contact point may be over the phone. For those customers who call in, how welcoming is their telephone experience? Do you have an automated system that might be frustrating to navigate? If you have someone answer your phones, do they do so in a pleasant manner? Does everyone observe telephone etiquette?  These are questions that you should be asking yourself regularly. I know of a business owner who has had friends call his company, asking for directions, just to see how employees deal with telephone calls. Occasionally he has been very disappointed in the lack of courtesy that his staff demonstrates – and he recognizes that he may very well be losing future, or even existing, customers because of rude attitudes. Telephone manners require more than just a pleasant hello. Staff should be trained on how to ‘smile’ over the phone, use their name when greeting callers, reduce on-hold time, and add value to every call. If you are not recognizing the importance of the telephone, just think back to the last time you had a bad experience and how aggravating it was. That is probably not the impression you want customers to have of your company!

I recently read some statistics that stated: “Worldwide, up to two-thirds of all customers leave due to poor customer service. Even more dismal numbers indicate that on average, most U.S. corporations lose half their customers every five years.”

Recognizing the critical importance of customer retention, your marketing should focus not only on making sales to new customers, but also on building loyalty with existing ones.

So – how do you do that? One way is to show your gratitude for their loyalty. Perhaps you provide special discounts, or inform them of upcoming special sales events before it become public knowledge.

Some ideas are simple to implement, such as saying thank you – whether through e-mail, a note, or even a phone call to your “A” list. Adding value also shows your appreciation for their business.

Another consideration is for you to find out what you can do to help make life easier for your customers and improve their experience with you. Perhaps sharing industry information, assisting them by providing information for their customers and vendors, or sharing costs on joint programs, might help you demonstrate your appreciation.

When you think about the effort it takes to attract a new customer, and when you consider the possibility that turn over could be as high as the data indicates, it is a worthwhile investment to spend some time and effort on finding new ways to keep your clients happy!  

When you are trying to increase sales in a cost efficient way, you might consider innovative activities that can take place during off-peak times.  For example, I have a friend who owned a luxury pen store.  She frequently conducted complimentary etiquette classes after store hours, offered wine and cheese over a discussion on the lost art of letter writing, and at Christmas invited children in for cocoa and cookies while having the chance to write letters to Santa. In each of these instances, she attracted an audience to the store when the store had closed and would not otherwise have been generating good will or sales! Local grocery chains leverage the same concept when they hold cooking classes in the evening when there are typically fewer shoppers, attracting customers and developing new relationships. A manufacturer I know often holds classes for vendors and customers after hours, serving pizza and beer and sharing important industry information and new trends. Strong bonds are built in this casual format and business develops as a result. No matter what industry you are in, whether you own retail stores, a manufacturing plant or manage a professional services firm, there are many hands-on, low cost initiatives that you can take offer that will bring people closer to your organization. It is especially cost effective when you conduct classes, hold open houses, share relevant data or offer get networking events for your clients after hours so that you can take advantage of the sunk costs you incur once the business day has ended.