Even if you’re a small, one-person business, you have a brand. You stand for something. Good service, stinky service, a great product, a fabulous ambience, or whatever.
As a real-world example, I recently engaged the services of a fellow who cleans mini-blinds. He did exactly what he said he would. He showed up on time and later returned my blinds, clean and when promised. He was also pleasant in a real way. Reliability, good service, and a good attitude are a powerful brand promise. As a result of my experience with this guy, I am now an advocate. (Just Google up Bay Area Blind Cleaners in Menlo Park, and you’ll find him.)
My colleague Steven Donaldson has addressed brand advocacy in his blog, citing Apple as the “consummate loyalist brand.” In a recent post, he made note of a few smart practices that anyone can put in place, whether technology giant, retailer, or mom ‘n pop business.
Creating brand loyalists is not magic. It requires that you “find, build and cultivate those who love your company or products, and who have the ability to share the value of your brand.” Your goal, says Steve, is to cultivate customers rather than sales. (As we all know, you can bump up sales with a special promotion and yet not keep the customer in the long run.)
These days, you’ve got a powerful ally in the social media. You can use Twitter, your blog, or your Facebook page to meet customers where they are. Treat them right, make them feel special, and you give them the incentive to evangelize the heck out of you. Identify customers who are super well connected and develop relationships. Don’t neglect those who are already friends.
On a smaller scale, we can all do this. The social media have a tremendous democratizing power. I can stay in as good contact with my clients as Cisco can, and like Cisco, I can continue to make friends for my business. You can, too.
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