Creating Loyal Customers

A few weeks ago I attended a luncheon put on by the Metroplex Technology Business Council (MTBC) in Dallas where the CTO of Southwest Airlines, Bob Young, was the Keynote speaker. Many people are aware of Southwest’s somewhat radical views of customer service, but I was again struck by how deeply that permeates throughout their entire operation. The companies all consuming motto is this (taken directly from their website): “We like to think of ourselves as a Customer Service company that happens to fly airplanes”.

How do they actually do this on a practical level?

Here are a few of the points Mr. Young mentioned:

• They hire people based on their personality more than experience – a job can be taught, but a personality can’t
• They listen to what customers are saying about them and their competition and they act on it.
• Travelers hate the baggage fees on the other airlines so; they are the only ones that don’t charge.
• Complaints continue to mount about the extra charges for snacks, drinks, pillows, etc. and, they don’t charge for theirs.
• Customers are concerned about the environment so, they have looked to various types of technologies as well as zeroing in on calculations of thrust to weight ratios, etc. to lessen their carbon footprint.
• Southwest has also created technology that allows most everything to be done on your Smartphone. One day you will be able to just walk through the airport doors and have your confirmation, boarding passes, etc. come straight to your phone.

But, here is the biggest challenge in the midst of running a business – they take the time to CARE about their customers beyond the travel experience.

For example: There is the story of one passenger that had a note on her boarding information for the flight staff that she was on her way to having a heart transplant so, they would be aware if any medical needs arose. When she arrived at the gate the Southwest employee that scanned her boarding pass and saw this just looked up at her and told her that everything would be alright. This meant so much to that passenger and it took perhaps a minute for that employee to say. A Southwest employee on the other end of her flight that saw the note took the time to call the hospital later to find out how she was doing and ended up being connected to that passenger’s family in the waiting room.

Granted, this took more time on the employee’s part, but what is that going to mean for their business?

• Do you think that entire family will choose Southwest Airlines the next time they fly?
• Do you think that passenger’s family and friends are going to tell a lot of people that story?
• Do you think that story is going to get people to choose Southwest Airlines over their competition?

It took some valuable time away from that employee’s “regular” job, but the result is possibly hundreds of loyal future customers that will choose Southwest over their competition every time it is possible.

What would change in your company if you made customer service the main product or service and what you sell as second?

Further Reading:

Southwest Airlines Customer Service Commitment
http://www.southwest.com/about_swa/customer_service_commitment/csc.pdf

How Southwest Airlines Became a Model for Customer Loyalty
http://www.tmcnet.com/channels/customer-support-software/articles/87080-how-southwestairlines-became-model-customer-loyalty.htm

Lessons in Loyalty: How Southwest Airlines Does It – An Insider’s Point of View
http://www.tmcnet.com/channels/customer-support-software/articles/87080-how-southwestairlines-became-model-customer-loyalty.htm

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Developing Successful Marketing and PR campaigns

The Marketing Think Tank call hosted by BrightBlue Marketing and Big Noise Communications was facilitated this month by Andrea Lamarsaude of BrightBlue and focused on the topic of: Developing Successful Marketing and PR campaigns when resources and budget are limited.

The following are the points we discussed:

1. Examples of good marketing/PR tools that would fit this cost savings criteria:

-Social media and email. Email is especially good because of all the available analytics. Social media is improving in the ability to monitor your success there as well. Social media is a big arsenal to have in your pocket for free or low cost marketing/PR tools. It has become a “go to” for marketing, but the excitement is wearing off and people are trying to figure out how to harness the power it has. Check around to see what works best for your target market. Be sure to spend a couple extra hours each day to mine for opportunities within your local newspaper or online articles to stay on top of all the options available for social media.

-PR is never as simple as people think it is. If you end up coming out of the gate with a bad approach with a member of the press they will black list you quickly. You want to be sure you have good information that the media wants or needs. PR is something you can figure out on your own but you have to take the time to do the research.


2. Ways to develop a successful PR campaign with limited resources and budget:

-Create a library of messaging with compelling and coordinated content to use in all your social media outlets tweaking it to fit each channel.

-Partner with others to sell for you to their networks with a referral payout plan and also share the cost of joint campaigns with viable partners.

-Make each dollar count by establishing goals for each dollar spent on a campaign before you commence.

-Make sure that you understand that even when working with a PR company that you will still have to be involved in the planning and execution of any campaign – not just handing the money over for a PR company to do it all.

3. Specific social media tools that play a more effective role when money and resources are limited:

-Which tool that will work the best for you depends a lot on your market, target audience and goals.

-Blogging is a great way to get out there as a thought leader in your field because you can become known as an expert and you will be able to get clients engaged in a conversation with you. You must have good content for blogging to work. If you don’t feel like you can write compelling content, then you can have someone that is a better writer interview you and put it in your words into a more compelling blog.

-A Facebook fan page is a form of social media that can also be used effectively; however, it should not be more important than your website. Your Facebook page should point to your website as well as add another format to reach your customers.

-Realtor created a Twitter page of one of her house addresses as the Twitter name and gaining followers to market that home for sale. What about a Realtor or service type business to use Facebook? A realtor created 3001 things to do in Austin. They can list things to do in the area where they have a house for sale. You can also make a page or events of top 10 most unique homes for sale in town; you can create an event and take a group around to see those unique homes.


4. Examples of how email marketing is a strong tool to use when resources and budget are limited:

-Successful email marketing comes from analyzing the results and following up with those that clicked through. Focus the links in your email on specific pages on your site so you know specifically what that person was looking for when they clicked through. With specified click through information, an email is a great telemarketing tool to get more specified information before ever calling on the client.

-Create a contest for your contacts to get their contacts involved by giving a prize for the most clicks from their contact list, etc. This makes it fun for your contacts and also brings you new contacts that are already interested in what you do.

5. Marketing effectively at a trade show or event with a limited budget:

-First and foremost, make sure that you choose the right tradeshow/event for your marketing goals.

-Partnering with other companies that compliment what you do or sell. Get creative with sponsors who will donate their services to help your booth be more attractive (catering, booth graphics, etc.). Find a partner company where you can both send contacts and leads to and from each other.

-You can piggy back onto other events by inviting your clients to an event that has already been planned by others or attend an event without purchasing a booth with some sort of gimmick that gets you noticed, just be sure to adhere to the guidelines of each tradeshow.

-Do something unusual at your booth that is a little out of your comfort zone but gets positive attention. Make it fun because people buy from people they like.

-Be likeable.

-Don’t spend all your time trying to get new customers and forget about taking care of your current customers. It is easiest to sell to those that are already your customer!

6. How to set expectations for a client: Should you have lower expectations of ROI with a reduced budget?

-A reduced budget many times just means a slower build and not necessarily a lower ROI - just maybe a slower build of ROI.

-Using people that are willing to help for a lower cost; such as employees that are not necessarily professional marketing/pr people, can work, but this will slow the ROI slightly.

Suggested further reading:

1. Use Marketing to Stay Strong in a Weak Economy
By Tami Hernandez - Entrepreneur.com:
http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-114375-m-6-sc-41-use_marketing_to_stay_strong_in_a_weak_economy-i

2. Ask Emma from MyEmma.com - 5 ways email marketing can help you save money:
http://myemma.com/ask-emma/5-tips-for-using-email-marketing-in-a-down-economy/

3. Twitterpated by Joey McGirrhttp: www.joeymcgirr.com/2010/11/twitterpated/

4. Establishing an effective marketing budget when resources are tight - Michael Littman - SVP - CMO Doe-Anderson:
http://michaellittman.wordpress.com/2010/04/01/putting-luster-on-a-small-marketing-budget/

5. What is Automated Marketing? - Brint Driggs/Brint Driggs and Associates - BrightBlue Marketing guest blogger: http://brightbluemarketingblog.blogspot.com/2011/01/what-is-automated-marketing.html

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www.brightbluemarketing.com

www.vmobrightblue.com

Connect with us!

http://twitter.com/#!/brightbluemktg
http://www.facebook.com/#!/brightbluemarketing

Is your Marketing Approach like a Leaf Rake or a Leaf Blower?

This blog is brought to you by a partner of BrightBlue Marketing, J.R. Atkins. J.R. is an Author, Speaker and Consultant in the areas of Social Media, Mobile Apps and Sales & Marketing. Learn more about JR and his company at: www.SomethingDifferentCompanies.com.


Marketing to prospective clients has changed greatly with the proliferation of online tools such as websites, email and most recently, social media. Prospects can turn to so many sources for information about you, your company, and your products or services. A recent day of yard work prompted me to explain the shift in marketing to a colleague as being “more like using a leaf blower then a rake.”

The Leaf Rake Approach

Prior to the proliferation of on-line tools, I collected contact information from prospects such as their name, address, phone number and fax number and stored them on 3x5 cards. In the early 90’s I started using ACT, a contact management system or CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system, to keep up with prospect information and to schedule phone calls, meetings, and direct mail campaigns. Armed with this information, I could mail, call, and fax prospects about my products and services. This shows the emphasis on collecting contact information, much like raking leaves into a pile.


The Leaf Blower Approach

Today, I take a different approach that is more like a leaf blower. As I meet prospective clients, I connect with them on-line via email and or social media. I have shifted from collecting and hoarding data, to giving and sharing data. In other words I blow information into the wind and wait for those who are interested to reach out to me.

Social Media is a great tool for “Leaf Blower” marketing. Once a connection is made via LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, a blog or YouTube, the prospect get’s to choose if they would like to follow you and if so, they can choose their preferred method of communication. Some prospects will discard the information you share, others will collect it and save it for the future, and some will find if valuable and share it with others, while some will act on it by reaching our my email, social media or phone. The main idea is that the prospects who are interested in you and the content you publish will “follow you” and when they are ready to buy, they will reach out to you.

Yet, there is a key point with this approach. It requires the marketer to publish content that is interesting, valuable and giving in nature. This kind of content will be shared with others and your message will take on the viral affect where it gets passed around to others very rapidly.

When using the “leaf blower” methodology, your goal is to draw prospects to you by “blowing out the information” and letting those that are interested come to you.


You probably need both

To be effective in my yard work, I need both a leaf rake and leaf blower to get the job done. In business, we need both approaches to market effectively. We should use the leaf blower approach to share good content through a website, email newsletter, LinkedIn, Facebook Fan Page, Twitter, a Blog and a YouTube Channel. Then, we can identify those prospects that have an interest in our content and target them with direct mail, email blast and direct selling content and methods.

By using both approaches we can continue to grow our business while allowing the prospect to connect with us in the way that works best for them. My hope for you is that you “rake in the money while blowing away the competition.”

ROI - How do you achieve it?

The following blog is brought to you by BrightBlue Marketing team member: Candace Lopez Miller

What is the Return on Investment (ROI)? You should be asking this question if you are not!

Read on for ROI critical factors to keep in mind with your marketing efforts…

Obviously, the bigger the budget you have for “implementing” your marketing strategy, the quicker the speed of arrival at your set goals. In addition to budget, there are a few critical factors that will affect your ROI and speed of achieving your ROI.

Achieving ROI Critical Factors:

1. Appropriate Resources:


• People resources with proven expertise in their specific job role


• Budget – Large budget vs. bootstrapping/home grown –the larger the budget, the faster you will achieve your ROI
  
  
2. Value proposition – Unique and compelling


3. Your pricing level –


• Must be perceived as an ROI by your customers and potential customers. Be sure to always remember that all of your customers are looking at your pricing with THEIR ROI in mind.


• The target market and your pricing must be aligned so it’s reasonably affordable to the target market


4. Execution capabilities –


• Sales – Capable of appropriate follow up and reasonable closing ratio;


• Budget – Available funds to implement marketing activities such as buying lists, printing costs, sponsorships, compensate staff, etc. ;


• Operational Processes – Legal contracts and/or terms of agreement have been developed, delivery systems built to efficiently process new clients, ability to smoothly deploy solutions and measure results (ROI).

Setting Your Expectations:
Your proposed plan of attack should involve a set of proven techniques integrated with new and creative ideas for going after new or existing markets. It is imperative to be innovative and out-of-the-box so as to stand out from your competitors. With innovation based on proven techniques, you can be confident in obtaining positive results.

BrightBlue Marketing can help you realize your desired ROI and beyond, but we also realize that success will require a clear road map, realistic expectations and goal appropriate resources.

-Candace Lopez Miller

Got a marketing pain? Your remedy can be found in the 4 P’s of Marketing.

This blog is brought to you by BrightBlue Marketing team member:

Andrea Lamarsaude.

Got a headache? Aspirin or Tylenol should wipe it out. Tummy ache? You can’t go wrong with Pepto Bismol. But what about your marketing pains? Does strategizing for your social media campaigns have your head in a spin? Are your eyes crossing as you contemplate budget vs. your creative wish list for your next direct mail outreach?

Unfortunately there is no magic pill that will make these marketing aches melt away.

The best thing to remember when contemplating your marketing woes is not to get overwhelmed. Creating and executing a treatment plan (aka marketing plan) can seem daunting but to be successful in your business it's absolutely necessary that you do! Without your own personal marketing prescription it’s going to be hard to know which road will lead you to marketing recovery.

Laura Lake, an independent marketing consultant, social media marketing strategist and blogger at About.com recommends focusing on just 4 tactics for marketing success:

1. Establish a memorable and unmistakable brand identity: The secret to business success is determined by your ability to powerfully communicate your business with laser precision and your ability to deliver a clearly defined and consistent experience. 
In a nutshell... it's called branding, and, when done right, it ensures a thriving business with all the customers and profits you need. The secret is to establish a powerful brand identity that sings distinction. And establish that identity before you launch any marketing activities.

2. Create a deep connection with your core target audience - your potential raving fans! Who wants and needs what you have to offer? The only wrong answer is "everyone." 
In marketing, you get a lot more "bang for your buck" if you focus your spending on a well-defined group of people that you enjoy working with. The better you define this group, the more effective your marketing can be.

3. Design compelling offerings that pull customers in like a magnet. 80% of all purchase decisions are based on emotion. It's your job as a marketer to know how your customers want to feel and to get them to visualize how your services can meet their needs. People want to know, "What's in it for me?" Tap into the emotion and create offerings that touch your customers.

4. Craft A Personal, Workable Marketing Plan - Marketing is everything you do to make your product or service more visible, more desirable and more profitable. Your marketing plan will clearly define the big picture and provide focus and direction based on the 4 'P's of Marketing - product, price, place/distribution and promotion. 
Since 90% of small business owners do not have a plan, you'll have a leg up on your competition by crafting your personal, workable marketing plan to ensure that you reach your business goals.

Do you have a big marketing pain? 
One that makes you cringe and gives you fever? Have we got a contest for you! BrightBlue invites you to post a summary of your marketing migraine as a comment to this blog.

The person with the best answer gets a choice of a year’s supply of Band-Aids or a month’s free access to our Virtual Marketing Outreach Program (www.vmobrightblue.com).

We can take away your pain...

-Andrea Lamarsaude

Snail Mail - love it or hate it???

What does "snail mail" mean to you?

We are doing an informal survey asking you one question:

Snail Mail - do you love it or hate it?

We would also love to hear why.

Tell us your best Love/Hate story!

10 Online Strategies for your next product launch

A great article we reposted on our blog that preaches exactly what we preach...

Beverly Cornell is the marketing and social media director at Mango Languages, a provider of self-study language learning products that teach actual conversation skills and culture, now available in 28 different languages. Learn more at mangolanguages.com.

Long gone are the days when announcing a new product was simply a matter of putting together a news release, sending it off over the wire and counting on major news outlets to spread the word. Today, because consumers are able to get information from a variety of sources and platforms, a successful product launch requires an integrated approach; one that includes traditional, social and online marketing tools. Here’s a look at how to focus these approaches into one concerted effort around a product launch.
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1. Traditional Methods

Even though new media seems to get all the glory, traditional television, print or radio media outreach remains an effective way to expose a never-before-seen product to the masses. Be sure to clearly spell out the elements of your product that make it newsworthy. How is it different from your existing products? How is it different from other similar products? What benefits does it provide to the consumer? You can also go a step further and subscribe to Help a Reporter Out, ProfNet and NewsBasis. These are great resources for connecting with journalists who are looking for experts and story ideas.

Don’t discount other proven methods like advertising, trade shows, speaking opportunities, promotional events and direct mail. Ignoring them can lead to wasted opportunities. If you invest the time to truly understand the demographics and behaviors of the people you’re hoping to reach, you’ll know if these traditional methods are worth your time and investment.
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2. Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Before you begin your online efforts to market your new product, you must have a “home base,” which ideally is a search-friendly website or blog. When launching a product, to aid both potential customers and contribute to optimized search engine performance, consider creating a product-specific landing page that features photos, descriptions and/or video. Make sure this page is appropriately coded for search, complete with keyword-rich copy, title tags, header text, a unique URL and meta information that succinctly describes your new product. Make sure this page is visible and easily accessible from your home page, at least for its initial release.

To build your online content library, consider enhancing your traditional media outreach efforts and social media news presence by distributing your product press release using paid services with both text-only and multimedia options, such as PR Newswire, PRWeb and PitchEngine. If you’re looking for a less expensive route, Free Press Release and PR Log allow you to share news for free.
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3. E-mail Marketing

E-mail marketing is a fantastic way to provide specialized content to people with whom you’ve already built relationships. Consider offering a pre-order for your new product, exclusive only to e-mail recipients. Or, offer a sneak peek at the new product before it’s released to the public. This will help to nurture and reward your existing relationships and continue building on the trust you’ve already earned.

Additionally, you may set up an e-mail drip campaign that sends messages on a regular schedule at timed intervals to keep your product or service top-of-mind with your customers, and also to keep the sales funnel flowing.
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4. Online Advertising

Tools such as Google AdWords (and other pay-per-click services) can boost awareness and funnel parties directly to your product. Online advertising allows you to get in front of a specific audience but with wide reach.

Another option is to do some research to determine the most widely read blogs and sites in your industry and also those frequented by people in your target markets. Advertising is often the main revenue generator on these sites and blogs, so it’s a great way to begin building relationships with the editors and site operators for a chance to get in front of the people who are most inclined to care about your product.

Don’t overlook opportunities to advertise on social networks. Some have predicted that $4 billion will be spent on Facebook advertising alone in 2011. Marketers are already realizing the benefit of getting in front of this giant’s more than 500 million users.
If you choose to pursue any of these options, make sure the ads are clickable and direct all referrals to a targeted landing page on your company’s website. This page should have content specific to the new product, along with information on how and where to purchase it.
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5. Social Networks

When your product is ready to go, inform your current customers and brand enthusiasts by updating your existing social networks. Whether you have a presence on one of the well-known platforms and/or another niche social network, craft catered messages for each. But, don’t just post to any of these social networks and walk away. There are many tools available to help you manage multiple social network profiles, keep the information up-to-date and continue to communicate with your connections, while providing the social proof needed for people to buy.

Naturally, these networks are filled with potential for people to share your information. For this reason, make sure you provide valuable content. Try different mediums for discussing your new product, such as videos, podcasts, photos and/or live chats. Many people are now getting their news, or topics of interest, from social networks and e-mail sharing, so this is a perfect place to get your product information in front of an audience that has already been “sold” on your business.
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6. Geolocation

If you have a physical location your customers frequent, utilize geolocation tools like Foursquare or Gowalla to further your marketing gusto. By closing the gap between online marketing platforms and a physical store, you are encouraging sales through different channels and fully connecting the buying experience. Offer special deals for your business’ mayors, and promotions for your best customers; this kind of strategy goes a long way in creating a lot of buzz for your new product.
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7. Group Buying Sites

Groupon, Living Social, Deal On, My Daily Thread and other collective buying sites continue to grow in popularity and offer the opportunity to introduce and incentivize the purchase of your product to an opt-in audience. These sites give you the ability to customize your product offer by market and expand the product’s reach beyond those who are already familiar with your company.
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8. Blogger Outreach

Blogging has grown tremendously in the past five years. Even though Technorati’s State of the Blogosphere 2010 report found that 65% of blogger survey respondents are hobbyists, it’s likely you’ll find several bloggers in your industry who have very active communities and traffic/subscriber numbers that blow traditional media websites out of the water.

Blogger outreach goes hand-in-hand with traditional media outreach when it comes to generating interest for a new product, and the approach and methods used are much the same. Understand the blog, its audience and its content before sharing information about your product. If it makes sense, offer your product for the blogger to review.

When working with bloggers, remember this golden rule: Treat them with the same respect as you would traditional journalists.
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9. Social Media Influencers

Using a strategy similar to traditional media outreach, take the time to research, locate and understand the most active social media users in your target markets. These people are at a unique advantage, having earned a large and tuned-in set of viewers, listeners and followers. While the payoff might not be immediate, creating relationships with these highly influential people can lead to valuable long-term opportunities.

While there is no universally accepted way to define and measure influence, using tools like Twitter Grader andKlout will give a good indication of the major players in the social space and in your specific industry or market. You can also take it one step further and narrow your search by category. Tools like Twello allow you to search a directory filtered by self-identified expertise, interests and professions. This can be especially helpful for identifying Twitter users in a subfield that directly relates to your new product.
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10. Online Retail Sites

Invest in partnership opportunities with well-respected online retail sites to improve the availability and credibility of your business and product. Advertising on sites such as Amazon, eBay and Google Product Search will place your product in an environment searched by people that have already identified themselves as inclined to buy.

Amazon, specifically, offers a program called Amazon Advantage that allows sellers to delegate order fulfillment and shipping to Amazon. In addition, these products are eligible for “Free Super Saver Shipping” and are labeled as “shipped and sold by Amazon.com.” This provides buyers with the peace of mind they might not have when buying from an unknown vendor or site.
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Get Customer Feedback

After your product has launched and your marketing and public relations strategies are underway, use a program like Radian6, Awareness, Netvibes, HootSuite, etc. to monitor your customers’ responses to your new product. This is a prime opportunity to open up the lines of communication with your customers and to show you care about and will listen to their feedback to improve future products.

To include your customers in your company’s product development and initiatives, consider tools such asUserVoice or GetSatisfaction to get an idea of what the people would like to see in the future.
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Conclusion

With all of the social media tools available today, companies are truly missing out if they don’t evaluate the opportunities to execute a social/online strategy that complements their traditional marketing and PR programs for a product launch.

While it’s not commonplace for all of these tactics to be used, they should serve as a launching pad for your company to be creative and to choose the best strategy for you.

What experiences do you have with integrating traditional and online methods to make a product launch successful? What opportunities would you add?