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Secrets of solving the customer’s problem

August 28, 2014 by Rosemary

The plumber told me I needed a drywall guy.

Then the drywall guy said he couldn’t remove the garage ceiling without the HVAC guy moving the ductwork.

HVAC guy noticed that the rat had chewed through some electrical wiring. Time to call the electrician.

Pest control guy came in and killed the rat.

You know who my hero is in this story?

Yes.

Pest control guy.

As a business owner, I work extremely hard to read between the lines when I’m talking to a new customer (or a potential customer). I want to be the rat-killer hero.

variety of contractor action figures

Listen First

“To a guy with a hammer, everything looks like a nail.” Mark Twain

It’s tempting to fall back to your favorite solution every time a new customer approaches. However, if you want to be successful in the long term, you have to hear what the customer is telling you.

In my example above (true story), I wasn’t telling any of those contractors that I needed new drywall, revamped HVAC system, or rerouted electrical wiring. Yet that’s what was recommended to me in each case. I looked exactly like a nail.

An entrepreneur with staying power will be comfortable referring business to others, coming up with a tailored plan of action, or simply refusing business if the customer isn’t a good fit.

Make Sure You Have Many Perspectives

Nurture diversity of thought on your team. Assemble colleagues who will bring different experiences to the team, so that when a new customer comes in the door, you can offer a well-seasoned approach.

Solving the customer’s problem often requires putting yourself in his/her shoes. It’s much easier to do that if you have surrounded yourself with creative thinkers, and people from different backgrounds.

Help Them Even if You Can’t Help Them

Occasionally, a potential customer will require services you simply don’t offer. Rather than trying to “sell” them, offer to help them find a partner that will be a good fit. You will earn trust and gratitude, and build the foundation of a great business reputation.

Offer to help, even when there’s no obvious benefit on your part. That’s how you build “whuffie,” as described in Tara Hunt’s book, The Whuffie Factor. She says, “Individuals understand how to build Whuffie because every relationship is important to them – especially when they are starting out..”

In your next conversation with a customer or potential customer, stop selling drywall and start looking for the rat.

Author’s Bio: Rosemary O’Neill is an insightful spirit who works for social strata — a top ten company to work for on the Internet . Check out the Social Strata blog. You can find Rosemary on Google+ and on Twitter as @rhogroupee

Photo Credit: JD Hancock via Compfight cc

Filed Under: Marketing, Successful Blog Tagged With: bc, customer-service, marketing, sales

How To Over-Deliver by Setting Expectations

August 14, 2014 by Rosemary

When I was about 13, my family went on a camping trip. Canoeing, roasting marshmallows, and hiking were on the agenda.

Allegany State Park

“Hiking” as a concept is not generally something a teenager will be keen on.

In my case, I was definitely more of a “find a shady tree to read under” type of teenager.

The rest of the family wanted to do this hike, so they told me it was “just a short walk, no big deal.”

By mile 5, I was aware I had been bamboozled. (Turns out it’s about a 6 mile hike.)

You really don’t want to hike several miles with an irate teenager. I proceeded to make the rest of the day miserable for everyone, because my expectations had been thwarted.

Whenever you’re dealing with your customers, vendors, business partners, and employees, it’s all about setting expectations up front.

  • Is your service going to lift my revenue by 10% in one year?
  • Is the meeting going to last 15 minutes?
  • Are you going to send me 2 customers a month in referrals?

Whatever stake you put in the ground at the outset is going to determine whether the other party feels the relationship was successful.

The people who bungle this rule the most are sales people.

“No, termites aren’t a problem around here.”
“Sure, the software has that feature!”
“My workshop will change your life.”

Over-promising and under-delivering are a two-headed monster.

So how does a successful entrepreneur stop himself/herself from getting carried away?

  • Be specific in your claims
  • Back it up with real customer stories
  • Have a documented process
  • Connect the sales team with the development and customer service teams
  • If you’re talking with a prospect, paint a realistic picture of how your relationship will work
  • When you’re talking numbers, be aggressive but not dishonest. Don’t promise that you’ll get them the top slot on Page 1 of Google search results.
  • Ask your customer what their expectations are, right at the outset.

And don’t ever take your teenagers camping.

Author’s Bio: Rosemary O’Neill is an insightful spirit who works for social strata — a top ten company to work for on the Internet . Check out the Social Strata blog. You can find Rosemary on Google+ and on Twitter as @rhogroupee

Filed Under: Marketing, SOB Business, Successful Blog Tagged With: bc, customer-service, marketing, sales

What is Your Customer Buying?

August 12, 2014 by Rosemary

By Lisa D. Jenkins

Every brand or business is selling something.

When we create social media profiles, curate content and provide customer service, we do it hoping current and prospective customers will buy from us or tell their friends about us.

What are you selling?

Answering is marginally (but not entirely) easier for those of us who sell concrete products. At the most basic level, Nordstrom sells things to wear. Whole Foods sells things to eat. FAO Schwarz sells things to play with.

For those of us who sell intangibles, it’s harder to define because what we sell is less about the product or service and more about the experience.

The question then becomes not “What are you selling?” but “What is your customer buying?” Once you understand things from your customer’s side of the table, it’s easier to market to them.

What might that look like?

The local mechanic sells oil changes. The customer isn’t buying an oil change, they’re buying the peace of mind that comes with knowing their transportation will continue to get them where they need to be. Market the peace of mind.

Consultants sell their reputation. The customer isn’t buying reputation, they’re buying knowledge they don’t possess so they can be more successful. Market the knowledge.

Banks and credit unions sell mobile check deposit. The customer isn’t buying mobile check deposit, they’re buying the time they would’ve spent waiting in line and using it for business meetings or kindergarten graduations. Market the time.

Visitor bureaus sell destinations. The customer isn’t buying a destination, they’re buying memories that will bind them to others for the rest of their lives. Market the memories.

What you’re selling isn’t necessarily what your customer is buying, but the two aren’t and shouldn’t be mutually exclusive.

It’s time to sit on the other side of the table. Consider things from your customer’s perspective.

What is your customer really buying?

Author’s Bio: Lisa D. Jenkins is a Public Relations professional specializing in Social and Digital Communications for businesses. She has over a decade of experience and work most often with destination organizations or businesses in the travel and tourism industry in the Pacific Northwest. Connect with her on Google+

Filed Under: Marketing, Successful Blog Tagged With: bc, marketing strategy, Selling

The Hotel, the Airline, and the Restaurant are all Publishers. Are You?

March 20, 2014 by Rosemary

At SOBCon Portland last year, I had the honor of interviewing Chris Erickson from the Heathman Hotel for one of our sessions. His hotel was in the news at the time because it had been used as the setting for the Fifty Shades of Grey books.

Rosemary ONeill Chris Erickson interview SOBCon Portland

However, as we all discovered, the hotel already had a well-deserved reputation for being forward-thinking long before E.L. James decided to give them a different type of fame.

One thing Chris said during our interview was, “I consider myself a publisher.”

There was definitely a moment of silence in the room as we all took that in. Imagining how far content marketing, social media, and digital outreach have come. A hotelier says he’s a publisher.

Chris explained that he considers it part of his job to produce content (in many different forms) that will support the Heathman’s reputation and business strategy.

But doesn’t it all go back a lot farther? The airlines have had in-flight magazines for quite a while now.

Chipotle is spending millions on well-executed mini-movies to sell carnitas burritos.

Is it time for every business owner and entrepreneur to think of themselves as a publisher? And how does this mindset shift your process, your work product?

According to Google, a publisher is “a person or company that prepares and issues books, journals, music, or other works for sale.”

Characteristics of Being a Publisher

  • By definition, a publisher is not an amateur. He/she is presenting items for sale, not as a hobby.
  • A publisher both “prepares” and “issues” the materials offered. He/she takes care that the items are error-free and ready to be issued to the world. By issuing, the publisher stands behind what he/she has prepared.
  • Publishers take a risk when they present materials for sale. They invest in the content, not knowing for certain what the reward will be.
  • Publishers must know their market. Is there room for this work? Is it the right time? Is this work creative and different enough to inspire others?
  • A publisher makes hard decisions.

Do you consider yourself a publisher? Why or why not?

Don’t miss out on SOBCon Leverage 2014 yet? You’ll definitely want to be in the room.

Author’s Bio: Rosemary O’Neill is an insightful spirit who works for social strata — a top ten company to work for on the Internet . Check out the Social Strata blog. You can find Rosemary on Google+ and on Twitter as @rhogroupee

Filed Under: Content, Marketing Tagged With: bc, content marketing, publishing, Writing

Untangling Marketing Goals, Strategies, and Tactics

February 27, 2014 by Rosemary

Today, I have a confession.

I’m a serial hobbyist poser.

I have whole closets full of squash rackets, glue guns, guitar music, and other must-have items that I bought before figuring out what I really wanted to spend time doing. I’d see a Martha Stewart article about paper quilling and run out immediately to buy specialized tools.

Do you find yourself with all of the “trappings” of marketing, but no results to show for it? I’m talking about that time you signed up for a Google Analytics account and then never looked at any of the data. Or that time you started a monthly email newsletter and it only went out for three months.

Without a clear marketing plan, you will run from idea to idea, or tool to tool, with no roadmap. Even if you have success, you won’t know how it happened, or be able to repeat it in the future.

Your marketing plan must dovetail with your overall mission as a business. Untangling those priorities and putting them in the correct order is crucial to your business success.

untangled marketing

Start with the Mission, Work your Way Down

So what comes first? It’s your Mission. Why does your business exist? Not a prefab paragraph you concocted, but why you get up in the morning and go to work.

Once you know your Mission, you can use that to come up with some marketing goals. Once you have marketing goals, you can determine your marketing strategy and tactics. Somewhere within your arsenal of marketing tactics, you can include some social media tactics.

See how that worked? We zoomed in several levels before we got to anything like “make a Facebook page” or “create a Vine video.”

Sorting out Goals, Strategies, & Tactics – An Example

Let’s use a concrete example that will help clarify. I like to use the American Red Cross, because hey, they help people!

Their stated Mission is “The American Red Cross prevents and alleviates human suffering in the face of emergencies by mobilizing the power of volunteers and the generosity of donors.”

Here’s my sample made-up marketing goal for the American Red Cross:
“Promote 100 blood drives in the State of South Carolina in Q1 of 2014.”

How can we achieve that goal? We need a strategy (or a few strategies).

For example:
Strategy 1: Increase sharing mechanisms for current donors.
Strategy 2: Create content that demonstrates the value of blood drives.
Strategy 3: Build up number of donors who subscribe to text reminders.

You could use all sorts of tactics to support these strategies. They might run the gamut from buying billboard space next to a donation center, to collecting Twitter handles during the donor registration process. They can be traditional tactics, or they can involve social media.

Let’s break out some potential tactics for Strategy 1, to illustrate:

Tactic 1: Collect Twitter handles during the donor registration process.
Tactic 2: Invite current donors to participate in phone banks to encourage new donors.
Tactic 3: Set up a video sharing station at blood centers to facilitate Vines, Instagrams after donation.
Tactic 4: Offer an “I donated” button for social profiles.
Tactic 5: Give out Red Cross t-shirts or other branded materials to donors.

The final step is to analyze the possible tactics according to your own criteria for success. What resources would be required? How much time would it take? What is the cost? Does it fit in with the rest of our marketing program?

Once you’ve decided which tactics suit your situation, create a calendar and plot out the marketing program. Be sure to build in periodic reviews, so that you can adjust as necessary.

Going through a process like this will result in a marketing strategy and business plan that make sense for your business. It will prevent shiny object syndrome. And it will leverage your marketing investment in a dramatic way.

Author’s Bio: Rosemary O’Neill is an insightful spirit who works for social strata — a top ten company to work for on the Internet . Check out the Social Strata blog. You can find Rosemary on Google+ and on Twitter as @rhogroupee

Filed Under: Marketing, Successful Blog Tagged With: bc, marketing plans

Beware the Social Media Cockroaches

February 20, 2014 by Rosemary

He came to the house every month on Wednesday. Armed with powerful chemicals, he made sure that no “Palmetto bugs” found their way inside. While he made the house safe for scaredy cats like me, we would banter about business.

social media cockroaches

His long-term plan was to go out on his own, and once he found out what I did for a living, he had a million questions.

“I already bought a ready-made website from XYZ hosting company, and I have business cards. How can I use Facebook to get more customers?” (Because when I use the word Internet in any conversation with a civilian, they immediately envision me as a Facebook expert.)

I struggled with my answer, mostly because you can’t answer that question in the 10 minute space of time it takes for pest control to occur in a two story home, but also because there is no easy answer.

Anyone who says, “just go get a Facebook page” is being short-sighted. And anyone who prescribes any “social media” solution without doing a lot of listening first is selling snake oil.

My take was that pest control is a highly referral-based business, and he needed to ensure that a) his customers have an easy way to spread the word to their friends, and b) he shows up when people who live in my local area search online for “pest control.”

Ultimately, my advice was to ignore social media until he defined who his target market was, where they lived, and how they shopped for pest control.

Could he use social media to help his business? Absolutely.

He could start regularly blogging to create a content resource that might move him up in the Google search results. He could make a series of funny Vine videos. He could use Twitter advanced search to find local people Tweeting about bug problems. There are hundreds of avenues he could take. Sure, he could even start a Facebook page.

But good marketing advice isn’t like a “hot stock tip” you overhear in the elevator. There’s no one-size-fits-all.

And if you’re working with someone who offers to “set up a Facebook page” as a first step, before learning your business, don’t walk away. Run.

Author’s Bio: Rosemary O’Neill is an insightful spirit who works for social strata — a top ten company to work for on the Internet . Check out the Social Strata blog. You can find Rosemary on Google+ and on Twitter as @rhogroupee

Photo Credit: James Niland via Compfight cc

Filed Under: Marketing, Marketing /Sales / Social Media Tagged With: bc, marketing, social-media

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