Relationship Marketing:
What It Is And
How To Make It
Work For You
by Tom Egelhoff
If you've read anything about marketing at all you
know that relationship marketing is nothing new. But in recent years
it has become more and more important to small town business owners.
Let me use my current hometown of Bozeman, Montana as an example.
Bozeman is a small town. About 25,000 people depending on whether or
not you count the students at Montana State University. When I moved
to Bozeman about 7 years ago the only name brand store that was here
was K-Mart®.
Since that time, in fact in just the past three
years, we've received a Wal-Mart®, Target®, Old Navy®, Gap®,
Victoria's Secret®, Eddie Bauer® and Costco®. As time passes I'm
sure we'll be the proud home of many more and it will be time for my
wife and I to move to another small town that doesn't have these
retail behemoths.
Don't get me wrong. It's not that I'm against mass
merchants or don't appreciate a wide selection of merchandise. But the
whole purpose of this web site is to support the local business owner.
What good is it to work hard and support your community only to have
that money end up in New York or Japan or who know's where?
Even in small towns the competition of small
business can be fierce. In small towns there is a smaller customer
base and retaining these people is truly the life blood of any
company. Every customer you lose to a Gap® or Wal-Mart® is a
customer that's very hard to earn back. And, as I'm sure you have all
heard before, it takes as least six times the cost to get a new
customer as it does to retain an old one.
What does the customer really want?
You might want to shout out SERVICE here. In my
opinion you'd be wrong. No one I know of goes to Wal-Mart® or K-Mart®
expecting to find exceptional service. That's not a slam of those
businesses. That's just not their purpose. They run mean and lean with
part time employees and strict cookie cutter procedures.
But something they do have is consistent service
and that's one of the most important aspects of a successful business.
The best example I can think of in this case is McDonalds®. Can you
tell me the very best McDonalds you ever visited? The Big Macs were
like New York steaks and the drinks tasted like fine wine. Most people
feel if you've seen one you've seen em all. We go to McDonalds®
pretty much knowing what to expect. There's a good chance that a Big
Mac in Rhode Island is very much the same in Oregon.
Now, having said that let me add one more wrinkle
to the mix. Price and convenience will overcome a fair amount of bad
service and rude clerks or salespeople. We as customers will put up
with a lot not to have to drive extra miles or pay more for the same
product. For more on this see: Understanding
Why Customers Buy. also see
How To
Advertise Against The Big Guys And Win.
How do you retain customers and keep
them coming back
The answer to this question is know your customers
better than the competition and fill the needs they have. If you can't
do this then you are going to lose them to some other company. It's
that simple. Let's look at some ways to keep them coming back to your
place of business.
Many of you may remember the old TV sitcom
"Cheers". It was set in a neighborhood bar in Boston. At the
start of the show each week was the theme song. Which in part said,
"You wanna go where everybody knows your name." In short
what made this particular bar popular was that there was comfort
there. You were known, welcome and appreciated for who you are. No one
took into account the price of the drinks or the location. It was the
friendly feeling of the bar.
Now I know what you're saying. Hey, that's just a
TV show. The real world is different. Every small town has a bar like
Cheers. And every small town has a merchant that has built his
business by making the extra effort to get to know and make friends
with each and every customer. Not just appreciate their business but
truly make them a friend of the business. This doesn't mean that you
invite each one to your home to take them fishing every weekend but in
a business sense they are known and appreciated by you for their
business.
-
Find ways to thank your
customers consistently for their business.
Every time I take my car into a local repair shop a thank you card
shows up in the mail a few days later. The cost is extremely low
but the result is that I appreciate that I'm appreciated by this
business.
-
Know what customers buy and
keep in touch with them about what interests them. When
I was a boy growing up in a small Illinois town. We had a
neighborhood grocery store. The owner would often phone my mother
to let her know that some high quality pork chops had arrived and
"could he" put some aside for her? I know what you're
going to say. I have way too many customers to keep up with that.
No problem. Your competitors will be happy to take care of that
task for you and put you out of business. You can know your
customers with computers and databases. Learn what they are and
how to use them. Let people know about products or services that
interest them.
-
Let them know about other
changes in your business. Ever try a
new food and find you love it? Well, your customers want to know
about new products and services you offer too. Let them know if
you have an companion item they might be interested in. If you
have a lawn mowing business why not let customers know that you
now trim hedges too?
The last word in relationship
marketing
As we move into the 21st century it is tougher than
ever for small businesses and startup businesses to survive. Not only
is there local competition but there are catalogs, online shopping,
mass merchants and direct mail to name just a few.
If your local market has the potential numbers to
support your business then there is no reason not to make it in most
small towns. The key in this article is building and maintaining
relationships. One businessman here in town has a very simple
philosophy. "Make a promise, keep a promise." All that means
is do what you tell the customer you're going to do and DO IT!!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Used With Permission
©2000 Eagle Marketing PO Box 271 Bozeman, MT 59771-0271
http://www.smalltownmarketing.com - (406) 585-0219
email: tommail@smalltownmarketing.com
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