Ah, the turkey.
Every Thanksgiving we look forward to sitting down at the table with friends and family and digging into that delicious, succulent bird. It’s the main course, the centerpiece to the Thanksgiving meal, and any good host knows that preparing it is no small feat. It takes time, effort, and preparation before the turkey can be presented.
As a business, your product is the turkey.
For the most part, products don’t sell themselves. This is why marketing is, and always has been, such a crucial component to running a business. But understanding the need for a marketing strategy is the easy part. The difficulty comes in knowing how to market.
Once upon a time, there was a level of detachment between the business and the customer, but today it’s a different story. The digital age has us all connected and has leveled the playing field when it comes to presenting your product. We have access to more information now than at any point in human history. Because of this, the focus is shifting away from the traditional, quick pitch methods, such as commercials, billboards, and printed ads, and setting its sights on the long game. These days, it’s all about establishing a relationship and building a sense of community with your clients.
From Customers to Community
With relationship marketing, the sales transaction comes second to customer retention and satisfaction. One of the biggest risks with traditional marketing is an insufficient return on the money spent to engage the customer. At the same time, what customers were acquired might only shop with a business once.
Relationship marketing seeks to provide a more productive use of a company’s money by investing in a connection rather than a sales pitch. Moreover, it gives value to the consumer, which in turn builds a strong sense of brand loyalty and trust, resulting in long term engagement and repeat customers. The “pitch” comes after a relationship has already been established, and when it does, it’s presented in a way that is personal, native, and non-aggressive. One by one, each of those relationships starts to form a community of dedicated, trustworthy clients.
This is a necessarily different approach thanks to the near total integration of the Internet into our daily lives. Consumers today have an advantage over businesses that they didn’t always have in the past. Not only does the web give them more options than before, it gives them a platform to voice an opinion to an audience of millions. Between social media and the various open forums, customer reviews tend to spread like wildfire, making word-of-mouth a powerful force in the market. If you build a community of devoted clients, they will spread the word about your business, and they will do it happily (and for free).
Showing Your Gratitude
A truly successful relationship marketing strategy hinges on one thing: a giving heart. Adding value to your customers requires your willingness to give, give, and give some more. And not a promo item out of a swag bag. Give them something malleable, something they can take, use, and benefit from, something that has real value. But here’s the catch: in order to be effective, you have to give selflessly and without the sales pitch. Give them something whole, not a trial run, or a sample, because you’re not giving to make the sale. You’re giving to establish the relationship.
So what exactly should you give? Knowledge. A solution to a problem. Special access. Teach your audience something. Share with them one of your “tricks of the trade.”
If you’re a bank, write a blog on boosting your credit score before refinancing a home. If you’re a home improvement store, make a short video on using chalkboard paint, and post it to your home page. If you own a restaurant, send out a promo code to every customer that gives you a review on social media. If you’re a grocery store, offer recipes that match the running specials in your store.
Every business has something to give. Think about what your customers want, and offer it to them. The more you give, the more value you add. The more value you add, the more loyalty and trust you build. And the more loyalty and trust you build, the more willing your customers are to give back.
Thanksgiving is right around the corner. Do you know how you’re going to present your turkey? Get into the holiday spirit, ditch the sales pitch, and start investing in quality connections.
