Article Presented by:
Judy Murdoch
Trust and marketing are not exactly two words that go together.
When you think about marketing (or it's siblings, advertising and sales) what comes to mind? "Respectful?" "Sincere?" "Trustworthy?" When someone approaches you with the intention, hidden or not, to do business, how do you feel? Do you feel understood? Do you feel like they "get" what your business is about and that they have the sincere desire to help you succeed? It's pretty rare.
I don't think the majority of business people wake up in the morning and say to themselves, "I can't wait to rip some people off!" But I do notice that when someone wants to do business with me, it seems like it's more about them and their success. My satisfaction with their product or service seems incidental.
It isn't for lack of intention. Most business people I talk to have the intention of providing excellent service. They want to do a good job for their customers. They are entirely sincere in this. But somewhere along the way there's a breakdown between intention and reality. Where the breakdown occurs is not so much at the business to customer stage. It's at the intention to activity stage. You see, if you're serious about fulfilling customer expectations; about having what Ken Blanchard refers to as "raving fans" you need to take positive, concrete steps that are meaningful to your customers.
It can be as simple as following up with customers to find out how they think the job went. Or a more formal survey. Or you call customers just to talk about things are going with no intention to sell them anything. A lot of business owners don't trust that the time and energy they put into these activities will pay off.
You can't just say you have your customer's best interest in mind. You have to demonstrate it. What are you doing, today, to develop trust? In your own business and with your customers? If you're having trouble figuring out where the payback is, remember this: 80% of your business comes from existing customers.
Some simple things you can do today to cultivate trust:
1. Call one or two customers and if they have a few minutes, ask them how the product or service they buy from you is working out for them.
2. Take your best customer out for lunch and tell them how much you appreciate their business.
3. If you say you're going to call someone. Call them.
4. If someone calls with a question, call him or her and answer the question or refer them to someone who can.
5. Send a handwritten thank-you note.
Do these suggestions seem trite? Then let me ask you something. When is the last time you received a handwritten thank-you note? How did you feel? Or the last time someone called you and sincerely asked how things were going?
All things being equal, the person who sends the thank-you note or returns my phone in a timely manner gets my business. Remember I said all things being equal. But there are times when I will pay a little more or wait a little longer simply because of the rapport I have with the person with whom I'm doing business. These folks are also on my short-list when it comes to giving referrals. After all, I don't want to stake my reputation on someone upon whom I can't depend.
About the Author:
Judy Murdoch helps small business owners create low-cost, effective marketing campaigns using word-of-mouth referrals, guerrilla marketing activities, and selected strategic alliances. To download a free copy of the workbook, "Where Does it Hurt? Marketing Solutions to the problems that Drive Your Customers Crazy!" go to http://www.judymurdoch.com/workbook.htm
You can contact Judy at 303-475-2015 or judy@judymurdoch.com
