To respond or not respond?

In a social media world it seems more important than ever that we consider how and when to respond.  Today I watched the news coverage as the President revealed his birth certificate after two years of choosing to not respond to what seemed a trivial distraction.  But that distraction continued to fester and eventually warranted a press conference.  A press conference, really? 

At the same time last night I was pondering with my husband how to respond to a derogatory posting on a social media site.  Does it warrant a public response?  In the past a quick call, conversation, or email would have handled the question, cleared up any issue and built a relationship with the customer.   But the communication channel has changed and become more public.  Social media is there to build a connection and listen, which to me also means you should respond to your customers.  This then escalates the question of when and how to respond.   I don’t believe there is a standard approach on how to respond.  Therefore I guess we’ll be left to continue to ponder this question with each new posting or public commentary . . .

small businesses are the heart of the community

I spent the last week traveling in Iowa.  What I realized as I drove through the towns that were so vibrant when I was a kid, was that those that continued to thrive were the communities where they still had a strong mix of small businesses.  The mix of small businesses offering full-service offerings within the community is critical.  This reminds me that competition is good.  Variety is important.  People need to have complete services.  Complementary businesses should be encouraged to help your own business grow.  So as a small business, helping your fellow small businesses grow can help you also gain momentum within your own market.

Listening by creating an environment where your customers can talk

6 lessons I learned from my mother running a small business on Main Street USA that have spanned the test of time.

I’ve spent 20 years in direct marketing but as I think about how marketing has changed in today’s highly competitive, overly fragmented environment, many of the core strategies remain the same. I grew up working in my family’s hardware store. My mom, who ran the store, was an extraordinary marketer (though she didn’t know it). Here’s some of what I learned from Main Street Iowa that is still relevant today.

Lesson # 6 – always listen to your customers.  Create an environment where you engage them to talk

Some would say my mom liked to talk.  She loved the social aspect of owning a small business.  She always looked for opportunities to make her customers feel comfortable to hang out and talk.  Coffee should have been part of the marketing budget as it was key to the strategy.  While the customers were talking, mom was always listening.  Then the next time she saw them, she’d engage with a bit of personal conversation that let them know she listened and she cared. 

So while the channels may have changed and listening can be done in many different ways, the value of listening has not diminished.  Watch how your view of the business changes when you feel like they have listened to your needs and engaged with you.  Social is more about listening than it is about talking!

Branding is about top of mind awareness for a small business

6 lessons I learned from my mother running a small business on Main Street USA that have spanned the test of time. 

Lesson #5 – Whether large or small Brand matters

 Branding for a small business is more about top of mind awareness than just brand recognition.  When your customers need something, you want them to think of you.  My mom took every opportunity to do something little that made a big impact on the brand for her store.   For every bridal shower held in town, whether my mom knew the person or not, she would give a gift from her store.  This small investment went a long way toward building brand awareness and subsequently loyalty for her store.  As a small business, look for ways where you can create recognition, awareness and a positive statement to your customers and prospects. 

Be there for your customers to build trust

6 lessons I learned from my mother running a small business on Main Street USA that have spanned the test of time. 

Lesson #4 – Build trust – so they come to rely on you.

Building a relationship with your customers means building trust.  Trust must be earned – through the service you provide.  Your customers need to know they know they can turn to you when they most need service.  Running a small hardware store in the Midwest in winter required advanced planning.  My mom used to watch the weather forecast and if needed, stay overnight in the store the night before a big storm to ensure she would be there to open the doors the next morning when she was sure to sell all of the shovels she had on hand.  (Though adding a line of sleeping bags to the merchandise might have also been a good idea!) The underlying message to her customers was – you can rely on me to be here when you need.   Understanding the needs of the customers and planning ahead to ensure you have the services, when and where they need them, builds a strong relationship that will pay back over the customer lifetime. 

Homemade caramel rolls and coffee can be the basis for a social marketing strategy.

6 lessons I learned from my mother running a small business on Main Street USA that have spanned the test of time. 

I’ve spent 20 years in direct marketing but as I think about how marketing has changed in today’s highly competitive, overly fragmented environment, many of the core strategies remain the same.  I grew up working in my family’s hardware store.  My mom, who ran the store, was an extraordinary marketer (though she didn’t know it).  Here’s some of what I learned from Main Street Iowa that is still relevant today. 

Lesson #1 – Homemade caramel rolls and coffee can be the basis for a social marketing strategy.  Or more accurately stated today, social marketing is not about the channel or online application.  It is not just about having a Facebook page or a Twitter account.  Social marketing is about making a connection with your customers.  My mom always baked fresh caramel rolls and coffee for all the customers when a big sale was starting.  She promoted the free rolls and coffee.  She recognized that the local farmers would stop by the store for coffee and pick up a few things while they were there.  During that time, she had the opportunity to socialize with them.  They hung out with the other shoppers and built a strong sense of local community.  Social media is today’s caramel rolls and coffee.

Social marketing and community are all about relating to your customers, building a relationship, having a conversation.  Focus needs to be on the content and relationship and less on the channel. 

Twitter is like snack food for the brain

For a small business where time is a valuable commodity, there often isn’t time to keep in touch with industry trends, competitive insights, customer feedback and market shifts.  It is like those days when you want to have lunch but end up snacking throughout the day.  Twitter offers you a way to quickly get a preview of what is going on in your market and industry without the commitment of time and resources to do market research.  Twitter is like snack food for your brain.  You get small, quickly digestible bites of market intelligence.  With my ongoing TweetDeck  feed, I can quickly scan 140 characters to get the headlines throughout the day.  I then invest my time in further researching only those things that I find interesting.   To get started, identify a  few key people and terms that you can start following.  You’ll get ongoing, quick insights, trends and themes to help you run your business.   As you find out what is most interesting, you can adjust the terms and people you follow and get the most valuable quick bites of information.