A New Generation Marketer

Engage. Converse. Sell! These are three terms that a marketer and salesperson alike know all too well. However, they are easier said than done. Yes, you can develop great website content and blogs, but are you managing public relations? You can develop a great product, but are you promoting it in the appropriate communities?

There are many sales, marketing and PR activities that must be done to ensure you engage, converse, and sell correctly in order to be a successful company, but your business truly needs the full set of communication tools in order to be effective.

There are eight (you may add more) conversation tools I find very important for almost any business to employ today:

1. Product Development: The product communicates what the brand stands for and what kind of value the company will provide to its customers. This is a non-verbal aspect of a business that cannot be understated. Ensure that your mission translates into the finished product so consumers see a mirror image of the stated mission layed out in the final product. Developing the right product at the right time for the right price is critical to any business’ success, and it communicates a lot about a company’s business model and potential for success.

2. Developer Relations: Good relationships with those in your supply chain is also crucial for implementing a successful brand. If the developer and you are aligned with both mission and layout of the actual product, there is a much higher chance of success. Also, the more reputable you are with companies in the supply chain, the higher chance you will have of being a respected member of the business community.

3. Ambassador: Be a true ambassador of your product. If you cannot 110% back up your product claim and speak fluently and expertly on all of its benefits and customer values, then you are not a true brand ambassador. Potential clients and customers can see if you do not fully understand or believe in the product, so ensure that you are marketing the right product and can back it up, be enthusiastic about it, and transfer that enthusiasm to your prospects and leads!

4. Marketing: Marketing conveys the brand image and values to the public. This is the main communication tool on a mass level that will let everyone and anyone know what you stand for. Ensure that you tailor the perfect message to fit the product image, reach the appropriate target market, and convince them that your product is THE one for them.

5. Public Relations: With the emergence of social media, the lines between PR and marketing have been blurred, but the pure essence of PR cannot be forgotten. Interact with the media, talk to other businesses, deal with any issues professionally and appropriately, respond to negative feedback in a timely manner, and always keep in mind that the customer is right and the reason that the company is in business is for the customer, so keep them happy and solve their problems.

6. Customer Service: Social media can be used as a form of customer service, but ensure that you are still employing the general principles of customer service. Always try to calm them down if upset, apologize, try your best to fix their problem, emphasize the business’ 100% care for customer satisfaction, and do what you can to keep them a loyal customer. Remember, even if they had a bad experience with your product or service, you can still turn it around by giving INCREDIBLE customer service that will make them talk about your great response.

7. Community Relations: Developing a community around your product and nurturing it is critical today for enabling engagement and brand loyalty. If you can develop a ning community or place on your website or social media site where people feel like a valued member, you will dramatically increase loyalty and retention rates. Employ a community manager to execute these exact tasks by reaching out to the right people, giving them a space to talk to your company, and respond to them as a valued customer.

8. Blogger Relations: If you are in the Internet or technology industry, this is a MUST. If your customers share information a lot and there are many bloggers covering different industry topics, you must be watching those blogs and developing a positive rapport with them. This means commenting on their site, reaching out to them via social media to develop relationships, and even asking to guest blog, and vice versa. This will increase your chances of having them speak well about you on their blog or to their blog’s readers.

This list may be daunting to a small start-up or a company with limited PR, sales or marketing capabilities, but implementing them on a small scale may only take a few hours maximum a day and will be more than worth it. Making your customers feel valued and confident that their voice is heard will go miles to driving positive business and customer relations.

Please add a ninth, tenth, or even eleventh element of communication that businesses should employ if you have found one to be very effective for you.