Does the idea of marketing your business drum up images of a creepy guy with a trench coat full of watches or the words “BUY BUY BUY” flashing across your computer screen on some banner ad that pops across an article you are trying to read?
The thing I hear most from business owners when we first start talking about creating a marketing strategy is how much they hate the idea of pushing themselves on people. They think of marketing as advertising their business in some obnoxious flashy or sneaky way. Good marketing is not meant to annoy or trick people into buying something they don’t want. It’s meant to help people decide if your services are the best fit to fulfill a need they already have and to remind them that you’re there when they need you.
Creating a Connection Cultivation Strategy
- Who is your service going to help?
- When are they thinking about needing this help or are open to learning more about their options for solving their problem?
- How are you going to let them know you exist in that moment?
Real World Example:
I bought a house 17 years ago and my real estate agent still sends me a birthday card every year, invitations to family events, a local sports schedule magnet with her info attached, and now and then a message on Facebook to see how the family is doing. She is continuing to cultivate a connection with me. Even though I worked with her so long ago, I know exactly how to contact her to refer a friend or when it’s time for us to sell. It’s not flashy or obnoxious, it’s a unique-to-her-personality-and-business marketing strategy that is working even though she isn’t getting a new client or deal every time. She is letting me know that she’s there when I need her.
Look at your customers’ lifestyle, needs, and wants and decide what would be helpful to them in their journey as a client or potential client. Where can you cultivate more connection in your overall strategy to foster meaningful interactions between them and your business?
Starting Your Strategy Off Right!
All good strategies start with a deep understanding of your customers. That is why it is so important to create a map of how your customers go from learning about who you are to raving about how great you are after they use your service. I am offering a new 90-minute Customer Journey Mapping strategy consultation that can guide you through the processes of creating your own unique Customer Journey Map that will inform how you can relate to your customers, where your conversation cultivation efforts may be lacking, and how you can add guideposts along the journey to help your ideal customers find you.