Susan Frederick, Manging Director

MarketTrain

Making it standard practice among all employees (so who in your organization doesn’t touch a customer or potential customer?) and institutionalizing it as a regular procedure is a key to business success. Create a list of questions that can be asked during customer interactions. Here’s a few to get you started:

How are we doing?
Is there a product or service you’d like us to be offering?
What have we done recently that would encourage you to recommend us?
Have we done anything that would prevent you from recommending us?

Most importantly keep the questions fresh, honest and mean them.  If I hear from one more sales drone, “Did you find everything you need?” I am likely to yell ARGHHHHH! We all know that when you say “no I didn’t” the likely response is “Oh, I’m sorry.”  Well sorry doesn’t save me a trip to another store.  (No wonder online purchasing continues to grow). That response should begin a documented conversation.  If I saw the salesperson reach for a handy form and begin taking notes I might feel the store cared about my wants and needs. Unlike my local grocery chain that has sacrificed stock consistency and satisfying customer desires for the cost efficiency of central warehouse purchasing and distribution. You know the game.  The store stocks a particular item that you begin to purchase on a regular basis and then all of a sudden it disappears from the shelf for a number of weeks.  No the product is still available just not at this particular location.  That’s another of my ARGHHHHH moments.

Want to grow your business faster in 2010? Then put service back in customer service by asking for an opinion.  But please be prepared to engage your customers in an honest dialogue and you’ll end up giving the customer some satisfaction and your business the best market research possible.

Susan Frederick

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An economic downturn like the one we’re in forces all businesses to review their go-to-market strategies. Everyone is looking for better ways to sell and service customers because firms can easily increase profitability by increasing customer retention by as little as 5%. The longer you can retain a client, the more profit you generate from increased purchases, referrals and the reduced costs associated with long-term relationships.

If you’re a business selling to other businesses the first question you have to ask yourself is, “Do you really know your customers?”  If you’re like most firms that may not be as easy to answer as a simple yes.  Customers are viewed differently by various parts of your organization leading to a multi-dimensional view. Is the customer classified as a person (decision-maker) or the business entity?  Are there mutiple parts of that entity from parent to subsidiary?

Without a compreshensive client profile drawn from all parts of your organization you could end up with a narrow strategic perspective – a myopia that affects potential future business. If your customers have multiple touch points within your firm (sales, marketing, customer service, product management) be sure you have a central client data repository everyone feeds,  reads and uses. Otherwise you could be missing cross-selling opportunities and opening a backdoor for the competition.

If you’re looking for a strategic business growth solution then look at whether your firm is product/service or client/relationship oriented.  Active relationship management shifts the focus from a single slice of the client pie to viewing it as a whole so you can see the entire customer relationship picture. Increase your success in 2010 by reviewing and improving your client information management environment.

Susan Frederick

http://twitter.com/sueafrederick

The 9 Immutable Laws of Social Media Marketing
Posted on December 11, 2009 by Jim Gilbert

“What can I expect from social media?”
“What kind of return on investment will I get?”
“I tried social media and got no customers!”
These are the kinds of questions and responses I hear daily in my conversations with clients both present and potential about social media. Often I tell folks to set and manage expectations correctly and that social media marketing is not a play if you are looking for immediate gratification.  I also tell state that social media is one of the tools in your marketing kit and it should fit strategically into your overall marketing plan.
From these conversations I’ve come up with a set of nine laws of social media to provide all marketers with proper expectations.
1. Brand + time = revenue. The more time consumers spend with your brand and products, the more likely they are to buy. Engaging customers or prospects in social media channels increases brand/time.
2. Brand + channels = revenue. The more channels in which consumers interact with your brand, the more likely they’ll buy. Offering multiple engagement channels allows for consumer self-selection of preferred channels. Being in the right social media channels based on your market increases channel interaction.
3. Brand + time + channels = advocates. Consumers spending time in multiple channels breeds customers more likely to become brand advocates and influencers. This is the new multichannel marketing model for the 21st century. Social media creates brand advocates and turns peers into your best salespeople.
4. Exponential search factor. Social media increases your search engine rankings and, when combined with your website, drives additional traffic via organic search.
5. The newfangled customer service factor. Consumers choose their contact preferences. Brands that don’t have multiple channels for customer service risk losing customers. Consumers expect instant gratification, and social media delivers.
6. Behind-the-scenes factor. People don’t buy from brands; they buy from people. Social media puts a human face on the faceless corporate entity. Social media’s biggest opportunity is to allow people to connect with your employees as peers.
7. Trust is the new black. If done correctly, the aforementioned laws allow consumers to build or rebuild trust. Social media harkens back to the days of the corner store where consumers and brands had a cordial relationship. Social media builds relationships over time.
8. The reputation factor. Whether you like it or not, consumers are talking about your brand. Social media is the great neutralizer. It allows you to seek out negatives and turn them into positives via reputation management and communications.
9. The time spent factor. Customers aren’t always ready to buy. Social media prepares customers with all of the above over time.

About Jim Gilbert

Jim Gilbert is president of Gilbert Direct Marketing Inc., a full-service catalog, direct marketing and social media agency.  You’ll find Jim’s blog at http://gilbertdirectmarketing.wordpress.com/ and the original article at emarketingandcommerce.com.

Jim’s email is jimdirect@aol.com

Susan Frederick

http://twitter.com/sueafrederick

I live in NJ and we have diners on almost every corner which makes it a very competitive landscape. I was delighted to see they had a robust web site which had a gallery of restaurants photos and menus along with providing   web visitors an opportunity to sign up for coupons, special offers, events and more. 

I also saw they were supporting a local charity.  A nice way to build even better relationships with their customers and distinguish themselves from their competitors.  Afterall if the local diner restaurants are similar might I not want to patronize the one with a heart?

Then to my delight I discovered their YouTube video showing a facility tour including their kitchen. Since many diners wonder under what conditions their food is being  prepared the messages in the video were very clear:

• we take food preparation very seriously
• we have high cleanliness standards
• we know cleanliness is important to our customers

This local business in a highly competitive market has suceeded in deftly using one of the many social media tools to distinguish themselves and build customer trust.  Kudos for a job well done.

Susan Frederick

http://twitter.com/sueafrederick

I did manage to get out that perhaps the reason the web site wasn’t driving prospects was because it desperately needed an overhaul. ( See my last post).  I’m finding that many entrepreneurs without marekting experience or professional advice make the mistake of not making the connection between the importance of good  marketing and sales development.

Let’s just look at how web sites have transformed the restaurant industry.  At one time I would find restaurant reviews in print or take recommendations from family and friends.  Today, I visit the restaurant web site expecting to see photos of the restaurant (is it the right ambiance I’m seeking)and menus (is it the kind of food I like).  Then I’ll surf for diner reviews to see what others who have eaten there are saying. Or I’ll use a an aggregation web site like Open Table or Zagats to find the right eatery.

Web sites and social media platforms ares how most of us learn about products and services today.  To ignore the importance of them is to risk the loss of business. A web site that doesn’t have a clear message, isn’t easy to navigate and doesn’t help me learn more about why I should buy gets less than 10 seconds of my time. 

In today’s globally tech savvy world you can’t afford to think that an online presence isn’t important or doesn’t affect your brand.  First impressions count make yours the best it can be.

Susan Frederick

Twitter.com/sueafrederick

1. What is it?
2. How does it work?
3. What will it do for me?
4. Can you prove it?
5. Who else says so?

When you are reviewing your web site, how many of these questions are answered on your homepage?  With just a few seconds to capture interest  it is obvious how important it becomes to have the responses to these questions front and center of your web site.

Clearly labeled tabs and links can support your efforts and keep your homepage from being too cluttered.  Product demos, customer testimonials and case studies are a few examples that answer questions 4 and 5 that should be prominent both as a navigation  tab and as home page content. Short scrolling testimonials with links to case studies or to longer versions of the testimonial create enough interest to keep your prospect on your web site.  Keep video demos short.  Better to have multiple demos then one very long one. Give enough information to help qualify the prospect while enticing them to want and see more.

That of course leads to another step in the audit process. Are you making it easy for web visitors to get more information, contact you or request a sales call?  While capturing lead information is important if you make the request form too onerous your prospect is either going to give you misinformation or quickly opt out of the web site.  During your web audit be sure to review your forms (make sure you have them) and review how well they have been working.

If you’re using social media be sure those links are on your homepage so prospects can continue to learn more about you, connect with you and build a relationship.  Also, make sure your blog is easy to find and can be followed via an RSS feed so interested prospects can easily get your updates.

Lastly, during the audit process don’t forget to check out your competitors to see how they are refreshing their site.  You don’t have to re-invent the wheel, you just have to make it better.

Susan Frederick

twitter.com/sueafrederick

1. Be transparent to win customers
2. Be a listener, not a policeman

The first and the most important to me is a reminder that you don’t want your brand known as disingenuous. Remember people buy from companies they know and trust. Today’s savvy social media users have been know to ferret out companies that are being dishonest in their communications.  The white paper gives the classic example of Wal-Mart making the mistake of hiring bloggers to travel around the country visiting with Wal-Mart customers and employees and blogging about their experience.  When it came to light the bloggers were working with Wal-Mart’s PR agency the campaign was quickly dubbed a “flog” (fake blog).

Another  example of this  is Mazda’s blogging misstep when they tried to develop a blogging persona (think Betty Crocker) as reported by David Kirpatrick and Daniel Roth in a January 10, 2005 Fortune article, “Why There’s No Escaping the Blog.”.    They got caught when they tried to pass off professionally in-studio developed videos as ones taken off public access TV by a friend of their blogger. After several days of blog bashing they deactivated the blog. These examples show how important honesty and transparency in this new media world have become.

The second best practice is smart advice on how to handle the inevitable discussion that may not  align with your brand messages or your marketing goals.  How you handle negative feedback and comments is as important as the messages you are delivering. Think of it as an opportunity to turn a negative into a positive and to re-educate the public on your brand messages.

By proactively monitoring and listening to how customers and prospects converse on social media sites and taking part in those conversations you become a brand advocate ensuring you are delivering valuable content and insights.

If you’d like a copy of the complete white paper her’s the link:

5 social media marketing best practices

Susan Frederick

twitter.com/sueafrederick

SCORE is helping build America’s economic future one small business at a time.  It is evident how important that service is today when job creation is a priority for our nation. Today, SCORE has 12,400 volunteers in 364 chapters around the United States.

If you’re a small business owner who’s looking for business advice or you’re ready to do your own thing and don’t know how to get started I encourage you to take a look at SCORE.  Start with the national web site www.score.org it’s packed with information, training videos, online counseling support and success stories.  You can also find your local chapter if you want face-to-face counseling or to attend local training seminars.

For 45 years, SCORE volunteers have been helping small businesses start-up, grow and succeed.  But it’s also an opportunity to applaud the entrepreneurial spirit that helps drive our economy.  Can you hear me clapping for you?

Susan Frederick

Twitter.com/sueafrederick

Fellow marketers in my network share links to free ebooks, white papers,blogs, events etc, they have reviewed and know I will also like.  In the same manner they are quick to discuss and share their opinion about what they consider of no value.

Best advice if you’re not sure your free offer has perceived value is to beta test it with a few trusted customers.  One of the marketing gurus I follow recently sent me an email just for that purpose.  Not only was I flattered to be a tire kicker (great relationship building initiative) but she unveils her offer with more confidence that she won’t be doing future mea culpas. It takes a lot to build your brand why risk denting it with the wrong “free” offer?

Susan Frederick

twitter.com/sueafrederick