If you want to build a successful business, you need to focus on building relationships with three key audiences: your customers, influencers and your competitors. Here’s why building relationships with these audiences will benefit your business. Out of all your relationships, your relationship with your customers may be the most important -- and the most difficult. They want to build a long-lasting relationship with a brand. I’ve connected through email and Slack and built relationships with these people. Today, I’m friends with the influencers in my industry, and we’re constantly chatting via a Slack group, sharing content and information. Influencers already have a respected reputation in the industry, so your customers trust their opinion. If influencers are out there recommending your brand, you can bet your customers are going to listen to them. And, when they trust you more, you’ll be able to build the relationships that matter most. What are some ways building relationships has benefitted your business?
Customers, influencers and competitors should all be part of your network. You read that right: even competitors.
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I love technology. I mean, in today’s world, who doesn’t? It makes our jobs easier, it connects us to more people than ever before and it continues to make new things possible.
But there’s also a big downside to technology: It’s impersonal. Sure, we can send mass messages to thousands of contacts at once, but is that what people really want?
On her website, professional speaker Patricia Fripp says, “Technology does not run an enterprise. Relationships do.” And I agree.
If you want to build a successful business, you need to focus on building relationships with three key audiences: your customers, influencers and your competitors. Here’s why building relationships with these audiences will benefit your business.
Your customers will love you.
You may be saying to yourself, “That’s obvious. Of course I build relationships with my customers.” But it’s easier said than done. Out of all your relationships, your relationship with your customers may be the most important — and the most difficult.
That’s because customers know when you’re being inauthentic. They’ve been hounded for years by brands looking for a quick sale. But customers want more than just a one-time purchase. They want to build a long-lasting relationship with a brand.
So, how do you do it? Your strategy should be two-prong: Listen to and understand your customers, and then give them what they want.
Before I begin any marketing program or campaign — or something as simple as an article like this one — I research my audience. Whom am I marketing to? What do those people want? Asking these simple questions allows me to better understand my customers and their needs, and how my business can…
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