In a piece for entrepreneur magazine, writer Mark Flaharty defines a new approach to marketing for business owners and marketers. He says the secret is in “mastering 21st-century dating relationships.”
The idea is to move through stages of talking and getting to know one another. His underlying theme is that “you need to do more these days than send a dozen red roses.”
It sounds easy enough and really does mirror the way modern romantic relationships are built. There’s the talking stage, hanging out, and so on, but the idea is to show more caring and authenticity on a personal level.
The article explains that in order to have long-term relationships with your customers and establish a lasting brand, you must clearly identify your core customer and completely understand their profile.
At the end of the day, the foundation of our economy rests on satisfying your customer. It can be as much a feeling of having a burden lifted as it is the products themselves.
A customer has a keen sense of when you truly understand their needs and on an intuitive level begins to bond with your brand. They don’t want to keep searching, or settle for convenience over true love. They want to trust and take pride in the relationship.
When you clearly understand who your target customer is you can see what their needs are, greatly enhancing the chances of developing a trusting relationship. The benefits of repeat customers and referrals are night and day to the bottom line.
For example, let’s say you are in a birthday party business, and your customer profile is a very busy parent who is under stress with little time to sweat details. It would serve you well then, to offer services that are all inclusive and hassle free.
An effective offering would be to do all the work and let them relax because you understand they are looking to outsource tasks they wish they could do themselves, but can’t. The reality of their lives doesn’t permit the time to sit down, plan a birthday party for their 6-year-old and handle all of the logistics.
You can position your brand to be trustworthy and indispensable to the delicate task of helping them provide a unique experience for their child.
Like in dating, Mr. Flaharty highlights the importance of making a great first impression. If you handle that well, the chances of a second date are much better.
All in all, a sure way for a customer to fall in love with your brand is by having a clear picture (avatar) of them, empathizing with their need, making an effort to know them personally, and delivering on your promise.
You probably wouldn’t marry someone you didn’t first get to know. So what could be wrong with using a business strategy of satisfying customers by genuinely getting to know them better?
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