Pauly's Guide to Relationship Marketing

 

You have a company that makes and sells cool stuff but you want customers, distribution and scale. Sounds so simple huh?

In an ideal world, you come up with a marketing idea, produce it into an advert, people see it and buy enthusiastically without friction.

So why doesn't that happen?

Well, because most companies make it hard to buy from them!

This Guide to Relationship Marketing was created to help you make it easy for customers to buy from you by teaching a marketing strategy to make your value proposition clear, simple and emotionally connected to their wants and needs!

This guide will help you to understand the customer cycle, articulate your understanding of the problem, apply your solution in a practical way, embrace your competition, learn ways to collect valuable data and apply your new found insights.

Marketing vs Advertising vs PR

Marketing is not to be confused with advertising and PR.

Marketing

The research, conversations and creative story telling behind the advertising. It's where creative directors and ethnographers sit, absorbing the world around them, decoding it and turning it into something digestible and personal.

Advertising

The activity of producing 'ads' for consumption. Whether a TV, radio, billboard, print, viral campaign or just a flyer in the mail, advertising is the work that goes into fabricating and delivering the creative that we consume.

Public Relations (PR)

The creation and maintenance of a positive image when marketing and advertising isn't appropriate. Maybe it's a sensitive moment, a conflict resolution or just a subtle persuasion that is needed. It's where the media, the brand and the public meet.

What's the point?

The term 'marketing' is used colloquially as an umbrella term to achieve change for a brand through effective interpersonal communication and influential messaging.

Companies market to attract customers, keep existing ones, push away the wrong ones and to change gears in a marketplace.

Marketing helps to increase profit and market share, reinforce a brand's strength, decrease decision making time, decrease abandonment, disrupt a marketplace, change a habit or move inventory to make room for new products.

It also has the power to create perceptions of scarcity, value, authority, approval, emotion and fulfillment. Great marketing can inspire intense passion while poor marketing can bring upon the fall of the greatest empires.

So how do you make your marketing do that?

Firstly, you need to remember some fundamentals.

Consumers are people too.

It's a common misconception that consumers are reliable creatures who make rational decisions, know what they want and are excellent decision makers. They're not.

Here's 8 quick fundamentals to set the tone.

1

Fact:

We're all consumers but we're people first. We need things, want things and attach meaning to stuff. We see ads, get emotionally influenced by them and go to great lengths to justify our choices.

2

Fact:

We care less about price than many think and most about emotional value. It's called a Perceived Equal Value Exchange and it's why price is just a state of mind.

3

Fact:

We expect to be interrupted nowadays and we actually seek creative disruption. Ironically, we've also given permission to others and then wished we hadn't.

4

Fact:

Marketing isn't just about statistics and reporting. It's knowing how to read and tell great stories. The same stories your customers are telling their friends about you.

5

Fact:

Your friends and customers don't want you living in their back pocket every minute of the day. There's an art to making people want you (and it's not harassment.)

6

Fact:

People want to be heard and feel visible even if it seems small to you. Taking the time to shut up and genuinely listen without rebuttal can go a long way.

7

Fact:

Consumers aren't all entitled, tight and fickle. Like any relationship, you coach others by your own actions how to perceive and treat you.

8

Fact:

Business is always personal. It's why we tip, why we value loyalty, reward referral, network into the night and get hot under the collar when we feel taken advantage of or ignored.

Understanding consumers

There are five major stages of consumers in your company; it's important to know who they are, how they got there and what they want.

As consumers and the marketplace evolve due to financial, political, social, environmental and technological change, it's expected that motivations, priorities, attitude and emotions toward your brand, industry and product can change.

Understanding and respecting this evolution can help you navigate the maze of maintaining powerful customer relationships and building a brand for adoration.

Suspects

People whom you suspect want your solution but they don't know about you and they might not even know they have a problem!

They are uncommitted, indifferent and perhaps even confused and skeptical. Your marketing is often disruptive and unexpected so expect resistance and being ignored.

Much like the beautiful girl or boy in the bar, it's still all easy come/easy go at this stage. Remember you're interrupting them so you better make it smooth!

Prospects

People whom you want to prospect because they fit your ideal customer profile but they will take some 'selling' to get over the line.

They are listening because you're speaking their language but lack trust. You have their attention but they still want to know more and want some social proof and credibility around you.

After buying a drink for the girl or boy in the bar, there's still a getting-to-know-you period before a date. Job? Check. Shoes? Check. Conversation? Uh-oh.

Customers

People who bought your product/service whether once or numerous times and have thus started a relationship with your company.

They are committed to you whether you like it or not and will start to lean on the relationship for better and worse. It's great that your marketing worked but you need to back up your promises!

Some people love the thrill of the chase but then become fat and complacent when they get into a relationship. This is why people get sad and dejected - what happened to the guy/girl I met?!

Adorers

People you've deepened a relationship with since they became your customer. They want to 'be with you', be your wingman and tell others about you so make it easy for them!

They know you now so you're familiar and safe. They will be patient, trusting and even defensive of you. Your marketing is now not your ads but your actions and reactions.

Those who still make just as much effort as they did in the beginning, still keep fit and keep the fire burning, have long and deeply connected relationships that stand the sands of time.

Defectors

People who have disappeared from your life for reasons within and beyond your control. Whether due to a change in geography, circumstance, requirements or opinion - they have stopped communicating and buying.

You can only try to communicate with them and get them back onside. Your relationship might be impractical or beyond repair but it also might just need some counselling so make communication at this point, intimate.

Sadly, not all relationships work out. Sometimes you can remain friends and other times you need your space. Whatever the reason, don't slam doors closed as you never know how or when it could come back together.

So, what's the problem?

You've come up with your product and/or service for a reason. Something happened that made you think "the world needs me to make this." Now you need to work backwards and spell it out.

The 'genius' behind your product marketing will be the 'you get it' factor that consumers want especially when they can't articulate the problem for themselves.

Here are some questions to help you articulate the problem:

1 - What is the main problem people are having?
2 - How did you recognise the problem?
3 - Why did you think it's a problem?
4 - What are the causes and effects of this problem?

The goals of this exercise:

Create a single statement that describes your understanding of the problem. This isn't your solution yet - it's your understanding of the problem.

Create a workflow diagram pointing out each current step of the process from start to finish. Draw two layers - the customer's perspective and the business perspective. Look for patterns, problems and bottlenecks.

What's the point of this?

A crystal clear statement of the problem and ability to pinpoint the loopholes, inconsistencies, data double ups, information bottlenecks and dead ends.

A complex understanding of the problem demonstrates critical thinking, emotional investment, listening skills and a sense of authority and relatability.

...and what's the solution?

Your solution is going to change things! But before you announce to the world that you're going to upset the apple cart, remember than not everyone likes the sound of that.

'Disruption' may be a fashionable word in the tech startup world but to most consumers, it represents imposed change. It doesn't mean they won't want it, but their initial response may be resistant leading to mistrust and slower adoption.

To change existing habits and infrastructure, your solution needs tell a better story.

Here are some questions to help you articulate your solution:

1 - What is the result people want to have?
2 - What is your proposed solution?
3 - How did you work out this solution?
4 - What are the pros and cons of your solution?

The goals of this exercise:

Create a direct statement that explains what your solution stating the key feature, advantage and benefit. This will help you define your differentiators.

Add to your workflow diagram by overlaying the process with your product in place to demonstrate and understand the improvements. Hint: your new process will want visibly less steps or it will 'look like more work'.

What's the point of this?

A clear and simplfied statement of your solution and commercial ability to apply it to the problem. People want to know more than your opinion; they want to know what, when, why and how you are shipping.

A solution with a simple explanation demonstrates your ability to take a complex concept, process the noise and create a focussed and usable result.

With your shiny new product, it's likely that your company is going to get in the way of others with similar aspirations. But competition is healthy, fun and it fosters innovation.

From GM to Ford and Apple to Microsoft, competition has helped to create powerful brand adorers, so embrace it as a brilliant marketing tactic.

Knowing who is also playing in your domain however is key to creating a competitive advantage. Understanding what your competitor's strengths and weaknesses are isn't only just important in the R&D environment, but is often the turning point in a sales negotiation.

Here are some questions to help you understand the competition:

1 - Who are the main competitors also solving this problem?
2 - How do they solve the problem? How does it differ from you?
3 - What are the strengths and weaknesses of their solution?
4 - How do they market and push their solution?

The goals of this exercise

Create a cheat sheet of your competition so you know what your differentiations are. Look at language, messaging, product, process and communication nuances. Be your consumer and look at both of your companies with objective eyes. What do you see?

Create a product comparison chart so that with quick reference, anyone can have a good understanding of what your differences are. Play to your strengths and be efficient with your weakenesses.

What's the point of this?

Knowing where you sit in the market, who you're up against and what makes you all different will be the key to your competitive advantage.

Just maybe, your product's novel feature or your service is what they've all been waiting for. To think that the click wheel (superior navigation) in a noisy portable music player market would be the detail that would change music consumption.

There are many ways to learn more about your target industry and consumers.

Statistics and metrics are a valuable and power contributor to a smart campaign - they can help you use the right words, choose the right window and in the right manner.

That said, relying solely on data can be misleading and cripple genuine innovation. Use it as intelligence to keep in your back pocket rather than to lead the way with.

Product design, marketing, sales, support and service starts and finishes with relationships. Data will sharpen your tools but relationships give you reason to use them. You'll be amazed what you learn from non-verbal and off-the-cuff chatting.

Some ways to learn more about your target market

Purchase industry data from companies such as IBIS World, Data Monitor and Thomson Reuters. These give you detailed understanding of the market, consumer sentiments, political/economic factors and objective forecasts.

Survey the marketplace and key users. Give an incentive or simply reach out and ask for their time to explain their problems to you. You could do this with an online survey an an email list all the way to to physically meeting up with key figures and taking them to coffee.

Run a real world focus group. Most don't work because people give responses they think you want to hear. The best focus group is to organise a social get together with bullseye customers and lead a casual conversation about their problems and solutions.

Setup a SEM/Display campaign on Google/Facebook for A/B keyword testing to monitor which keyword structures get the most bites. This can be a valuable way to learn what words and phrases trigger a response.

Participate in their communities (and/or create your own). People trust those who are active in their community and contribute to the cause they represent. Being accepted and heard in the community to one day influence is the goal - not to beat down the door on day one and push your wares.

Employ a consultant/advisor. If you need intimate detail, process or relationship key to moving your product forward, find someone who has been there, done it and has the connections. One introduction could be all you need.

Attend trade shows and conferences. A slower method of collecting information, immersing yourself into industry culture will give you great clues about who's who, what's what and why's why. These can be great to make powerful connections to facilitate an advisory role or an introduction.

Be the target market. If you have experienced the pain first hand and designed a solution, you are immediately 'one of us'. Create and lead a movement/community of like minded sufferers for your first customers.

Reading Google, Twitter, Facebook analytics are great ways to monitor what your users do and enjoy. It's worthwhile noting key moments such as a spike in activity (both good and bad). Use this data as a tool to provide numerical context - not the content or the relationship..

Visualisation of data is a great way to understand your marketplace. Whether it's a detailed summary from Wolfram Alpha data or a simple infographic, being able to 'see' your research may help you visualise opportunities.

Once you have collected all this intelligence about your customers, competitors and the marketplace, it's a matter of how well you apply it.

Despite having more data and statistics to poke a stick at, most companies still get this part very very wrong. Follow some simple rules and you can avoid swimming in the customer dead pool.

Suspects

When generating leads and traffic, you are literally interrupting someone in the street whom you believe is having a problem - and then give them a quick pitch even if they're not thinking (or wanting to think) about you.

This is a make or break moment as to whether the conversation continues!

Consult your keyword research, CPC/CPM statistics, source information and industry research to give you an idea where and when potential customers will be wilingly on the prowl.

Lead generation and primary contact isn't for the faint hearted. However with ideas about where and when the fish are biting, you will significantly improve your chances to start some conversations and throw your understanding of the problem out as bait.

Prospects

If they want to know more it's likely because you have resonated your understanding of their problem - now they want to hear your solution.

Use this conversation to identify their key buying signals. There will be the noisy distracting ones, then there will be the emotional one - and that's the trigger.

It will often be a recurring reference such as price, a feature, fear, past experience, convenience, image, learning curve etc. It's not a criticism of your product but rather their emotional barrier from buying.

Fusing your strong knowledge of the processes behind the problem, solution and competition with their emotional connection to the outcome will be the secret sauce to seal the deal.

Remember, even if you don't sell today, keep notes and take all comments and responses as field intelligence. They are still your target market with colleagues, networks and a provider who may one day let them down.

Customers

Customers bring the potential for repeat business, referrals and friendship. However they also command great responsibility, patience and consideration. Interruption marketing now changes to permission marketing.

When a prospect wants to become your customer, stop selling to them and start working with them as a partner. Partners have to trust each other, talk frankly and value their history with each other in order to get things done. You both now have things to gain and things to lose.

Customer marketing is about what you do, how you do it and your reasons behind it. You can't fool them anymore with words and ads.

What you 'do' includes your attitude, punctuality, honesty, proactivity, reliability and dependability; your processes and communication within the business (or lack of) will now become part of your customer marketing whether you like it or not.

You risk being called out as a liar if you say efficiency is your thing meanwhile the phone rings out and you've invoiced them the wrong amount.

Maintaining relationships isn't about sending cheesy birthday cards. It's about the good, bad and the ugly. They are looking for you to be consistent in your messaging, stable in your practices and mindful of their situation. In return, they will reward you with payment, loyalty and referral.

Adorers

When customers fall in love with you, they will be emotionally bonded with you.

They will fervently defend you, forgive you for mistakes that you made, promote your brand and even act as your business development manager.

Even lingering negative attributes vaporise and are replaced with justifications. But this level of emotional connection carries great responsibility.

Adorers put their own name, reputation and image on the line due to their belief in your brand and it's something you cannot take for granted - hell hath no fury like an adorer's scorn.

Marketing to adorers takes on a new weight, technique and responsibility. Unlike customers who want you to provide and serve their needs, adorers want to contribute to the cause.

A tour of your company, a personalised recognition of their contribution, exclusive access to an event or preview or just taking the time out to stop and thank them will keep even the hardest adorer sufficiently in love.

Like your partner in real life, adorers want to feel special, that you're 'the one' and that you'd make time for them despite your busy schedule. It's a pretty small price to pay considering how hard they will fight for you.

Hate prospecting? Build a brand FOR adorers and you won't have to.

Defectors

When customers fall out of sync with you, they will still be emotionally bonded with you but it could require some time, space and effort to restore things.

Due to the past relationship, it's highly probable that they will give you the time of day to talk but they could be carrying some emotional or mental baggage.

Sometimes you can work with these and rebuild; other times it's best to let them go. Then sometimes it's just because life has changed for you both, it's amicable and it was fun while it lasted.

As long as you keep the communication lines open, you can make it easier to rekindle things at a later time, so keep the doors open! Get this right and you'll significantly decrease the number of negative defectors.

Make the effort to regularly reach out to your customers even if it hasn't been smooth sailing. Maybe they've been waiting for your call to talk or want some love and attention.

Remember that well managed defectors can become the greatest adorers of all!

Well it's come to that time to wrap up and review what we have discussed about relationship marketing.

Marketing is easy when you consider that consumers are just people with an opinion and an emotional attachment to an outcome. They want to build a relationship with those who will genuinely listen to and help them.

Take the time to walk through the problem in their shoes, see the world from a competitor's eyes and give priority to building meaningful relationships with them around their emotional outcome rather than just pushing product.

Thank you for reading!

I hope you enjoyed my Guide to Relationship Marketing and it has given you a new perspective around relationship selling strategies.

If you would like more detail on any particular aspect of product and relationship marketing, please email me below!