By Bob Travers, Principal
A few weeks ago, I gave a presentation on how to be a better brand marketer in a very competitive environment to a group that represents small businesses and charitable organizations. In preparing my talk, it didn’t take me long to realize that with the many free applications available online, if you have the discipline and commitment, a small organization with limited resources can easily follow and implement the same steps as a major marketer in branding their organization and strengthening the relationship they have with their customers.
So here are some easy steps to tell your unique story, the essence of branding, as well as improve the delivery or exceed the expectations of your customers. I would add, that whether you are selling a product or service, or a charitable organization, the people you serve are your customers...
First, you need to find out as much relevant information as you can about your customers and your competitors. Go to your competitor’s websites, visit their locations, call for information. Understand their claims, products, services, pricing and promotions. Ask yourself why should they buy from you or work with you? How are you different? What’s your unique selling proposition?
Talk to your customers and get their opinions. Open a Twitter account www.twitter.com, put up a sign with your Twitter address or your organization’s email address and ask your customers to tell you what they think, what they like about you or don’t like, or what you could do better. Try and have an ongoing dialogue with your customers so they know you are trying to serve them better.
Once you have enough email addresses, there are two survey tools - www.surveymonkey.com and www.zoomerang.com - you can access online to periodically gather customer information and improve your product or service. Find out if you are delivering what your customers want, and if you aren’t, take the appropriate actions.
Regarding your Unique Selling Proposition (USP), make sure you can support your it with attributes or features that translate to real benefits for your customers. Determine your promise to your customers, or what you want them to think when they think about you and use that in all your communications to your customers.
If you don’t have a website, you should, and seek every chance to promote it to your customers. If you can’t afford to hire someone to create your own site, go to www.thesitewizard.com and they will show you how to for free. Make sure you go online and look at some of your favorite brand’s websites and see how they do it. Check out www.websitegrader.com to give you advice on a more effective website. And of course, put your website address on every piece of communications to your customers, vendors, friends, etc. They are all your ambassadors.
Write a communications plan for your organization. Determine the market opportunity. What are your goals or your vision? What do you want your organization to be? And also, what’s your mission? These are the steps you are going to take to achieve your vision. Know who your prime prospects are. And put down on paper the strategies – the big picture of how you are going to grow your business and the tactics – and the steps you need to take to achieve your strategies.
There are critical times when you or someone in your organization interacts with a customer. These are your key moments of truth, the times you have the opportunity to improve on the customer relationship. Know when these key moments occur. Make sure everyone in your organization has consistent behavior at these times, whether greeting a customer when your receptionist answers the phone, or when a customer is inquiring or buying what you have to offer. Remember, every time there is a customer interaction, it’s an opportunity to turn it into a business transaction.
And finally, in all your communications with your customers, whether it’s on the phone, through the mail, on your website or in an ad, make sure what you are communicating is accurate, understandable and appealing. And that it differentiates your organization.
