In any kind of business, good relationships are integral to the success of it. Good relationships with customers help to drive the business forward and develop, leading to its success. Furthermore, this is something that money cannot buy. You could always spend a heap of money as investment and try to get there, but the expenses of such a marketing campaign just keep on adding.
There is another way to achieve and maintain good customer relations without having to adhere to the cost of multiple investments, which in the long run not only saves you money but most likely makes you more profit as well.
By building relationships you could create a group of people, who far from understanding the technical aspects of your expertise, but who are genuinely curious and invested in your business and will help build further relationships outside of your circle. This increases your overall reach and value and turns in more profit, more networking and more success.
The keyword is networking
Any person who thinks they do not have a network are wrong. It starts off at the grassroots: your acquaintances, your current or past colleagues, friends, family, people you meet through various social activities you may include in, whether it’s communal or social. All of these can be potential customers and more.
Some say these are ‘contacts’, which is self-explanatory because that is exactly what you do with them: you contact them. Communicate about your business so that they are aware and should they need your services, they would know where to go. Go an extra mile by making yourself memorable to all of these people, not just because of your business but because of your charming personality. That way, you build on personal relationships simultaneously and as such, these contacts are genuinely invested as are you.
By focusing on the bottom of the pyramid, you focus on the foundation of it. That’s the way to go about when building a network of people to connect to. If the foundation is strong enough, it can support the top.
Along with Networking, the other keyword is Communicate
As mentioned above, it’s worth the effort to go the extra mile when building a relationship in the act of networking. People shell out business cards like free candy but the truth of the matter is that it hardly leaves an impression, is excessively done by everyone and has no lasting effects. No one is likely to remember you that way and more often than not, not many people who exchange business cards ever follow up with it. It never hurts to send a message shortly afterwards saying “nice to meet you!”
This is a mistake that a lot of people unfortunately do, and a customer relation does not develop as a result of it. If you fail to make a connection, any kind of connection, whether it’s an email or simply the fact that you have considered them and have included them into your newsletter, then chances are the potential contact you just met will not be part of your network. It’s important to remind them they met you, of what you do and of the connection you have made.
You need to make sure that whenever it is they need your service or product, they will think of you. It’s extremely unlikely you will meet a person at the exact same time that they are in need of your services, so that is another reason maintaining contact is necessary.
Loyalty should be appreciated
You’ll know who the loyal customers are. Not only will they keep coming back to you as well as your business, but they will also be sending you other customers if they are impressed with your services. Sometimes they do this, and you are left in the dark because either they did not mention it to you or the new customer failed to mention it too. But that’s okay. Customers who come repeatedly are where your true profit lies.
Make sure you know who they are by keeping track of your records and going over them; and make sure they are given reasons to keep repeating their presence. It does not hurt to stay in touch, via updates, newsletters, emails and so on. Keep in mind that you should make them feel valuable by keeping in mind the value of their time and attention to your business. These can be small gestures such as a coupon or helpful advice or anything that can be of use to them, depending on the circumstances.
So there you have it. Start from the bottom, and work towards building a network of people from various places who reinforce your business. It’s hard work and requires consistent following up. Do not let a trail become cold, keep it warm by staying in touch and let the people you are networking know that they are valuable to you by doing small things. Once you have a good enough network, it will only grow positively from there, increasing your outreach to other potential contacts. It’s hard work and often includes time and effort that is not in the job description, but it is worthwhile in the end.