Do you want to attract new customers while creating greater loyalty from your current customers? Include your customers in your marketing and promotions. By creating greater awareness of your customers (and their businesses), you can help build your businesses and increase demand for your products and services. Whether using customers in your marketing makes them buy more from you, your willingness to show them will make them feel more attached to you and encourage them to remain customers for a long time. Here are some ways that you can make this work for you.
Ask your customers to share their success stories and get their permission to use them. How have they benefited from their association with you? Get them to share your stories in audio or video or in print and use them in your marketing. In its ads, Sterling Bank in Houston has its small business clients tell how they grew their businesses with the help of their Sterling bankers. Send a great message about the bank and increase awareness of featured companies.
Tell your customer stories in your newsletter. If you publish a print or online newsletter, include profiles of your customers and tell how you worked with them to help them be successful. However, use the stories in your print ads. A photo of a happy customer accompanied by the story of what you did for him is very persuasive.
Audio and video recordings of customer stories can be incorporated into your television and radio advertising. Listening to customers in their own words is a powerful way to communicate the benefits of doing business with you, and your customers will appreciate the visibility they get when they appear in your ads. You can also use streaming audio and video files on your website.
Include links to your clients’ websites from yours. It costs nothing to add a few links, and customers will appreciate the added visibility. It can also help improve search engine rankings, not just for your clients’ websites, but yours as well.
Establish connections between clients. Do you have clients that could benefit from meeting other clients? Perhaps you could make referrals to bring them together. However, organize a networking event where you can get to know each other.
Include clients in your advertising. The media likes to have multiple sources for stories, perhaps to back up what you are saying or to provide another point of view. In one case, I was able to include a client in a story and she also had one of her clients participate in the story. Not only will your customers appreciate that you’ve gotten them publicity, they’ll also be impressed by your media “pull.”
Promoting yourself and your clients is a great asset to your business. Look for opportunities to create a greater bond between you and your customers by including them in your marketing and promotions.
