| One of the cardinal rules of small business is that | | | | audiologist, the relationship can start with downloading |
| people want to do business with people who they | | | | or ordering a free report. The next step might be to |
| know, like, and trust. That desire holds the key to | | | | send the potential patient a letter or brochure giving |
| both delight your customers and boost your cash | | | | more information about the practice. The goal of this |
| flow by developing and consistently implementing | | | | piece would be to make the patient feel more at |
| relationship marketing. Your customers get what they | | | | home in your office. It can include pictures of front |
| want (a solution to their problem) and you get what | | | | desk staff looking welcoming, pictures of the |
| you want (smoother cash flow). | | | | audiologist doing a hearing exam on a child, and |
| Relationship marketing is all about letting your | | | | directions and parking information. |
| customers or potential customers get to know you. | | | | Once the patient books an appointment, the next |
| It's not about trying to make a sale. The goal with | | | | piece in the relationship building toolbox could be a |
| relationship marketing is to communicate to your | | | | newsletter full of helpful tips about caring for your |
| customer or potential customer that you have a | | | | hearing aid and what the staff has been up to. (It |
| solution to his or her very particular and special | | | | should not be one of those stark, bland, dry |
| problem. People want to feel as though you really | | | | newsletters that no one reads--bring a sense of |
| understand what they are going through and you | | | | family or fun into it so it actually gets read!) The |
| have just the right solution to help them solve that | | | | newsletter becomes your regular communication |
| problem. | | | | piece and serves to make your customer feel like |
| Here's an example of how it's done. Let's say you're | | | | they're a part of your practice. |
| an audiologist. Your patients all have a similar | | | | These are techniques that work for any type of |
| problem--some sort of difficulty with their ears. But | | | | business or organization, whether for profit or not for |
| when you dig down into their problems you find that | | | | profit. Each marketing piece is designed for the |
| the broad category of ear-related problems can | | | | specific target market and the specific problem you |
| actually be broken down into a variety of more | | | | are solving. A child psychologist can address problems |
| specific problems. Your potential patients may be | | | | like bed wetting, a company producing yachts can |
| dealing with age-related hearing loss, hearing loss in | | | | talk about what to think about before buying a |
| children, swimmer's ear, or tinnitus (ringing of the | | | | yacht. If you're talking to day traders, you would |
| ears). Each subset of specific problems has very | | | | speak the language they speak. If you're marketing |
| particular needs--a child with hearing loss has a | | | | to quilters you would address their specific needs. |
| different set of problems than a person with | | | | The cost of the marketing materials and |
| age-related hearing loss. If you develop marketing | | | | implementation of the program would be different |
| materials that speak to very specific problems, you're | | | | depending on the problem being solved and the |
| able to catch the attention of people with that | | | | target market. Marketing to someone looking to buy |
| problem. | | | | a yacht would most likely be more expensive than |
| Those marketing materials become the bait that | | | | marketing to parents of children with hearing loss. |
| attracts the fish you want to catch directly to the | | | | Make the budget match the message and the |
| hook on the end of your line. For example, if you | | | | market. |
| offered a special report on your website or through | | | | As you implement your relationship marketing plan, |
| your yellow pages advertisement entitled "Helping | | | | your potential customers get to know you. The fear |
| Your Child Cope with Hearing Loss", you'll attract | | | | factor is removed and they become more likely to |
| parents of young patients dealing with hearing loss. A | | | | start doing business with you. Once they buy, you |
| report of this nature speaks so specifically about a | | | | can continue to build that relationship by sending |
| problem your potential patients might be dealing with | | | | them special offers, expanding services or products, |
| that it establishes you as an expert and even more | | | | catalogs, etc. If they had a good experience the first |
| importantly as "the" expert. It isn't that no one else | | | | time they bought from you, they're more likely to |
| has the expertise, it's that you identified the problem, | | | | respond to future offers. |
| provided guidance, and suggested that you're | | | | It's critical to take good care of the relationships you |
| available to help with the problem. You're no longer a | | | | develop with your customers. Businesses are built |
| stranger, you're someone who understands what | | | | one happy customer at a time. Those relationships |
| they're going through. | | | | also become a source of more predictable cash flow. |
| As with any good marketing plan, building a strong | | | | With a list of happy customers in hand, you can |
| relationship with your customers or potential | | | | create an offer to generate more sales. Those sales |
| customers takes consistent effort. You don't | | | | become cash flow AND further cement your |
| establish a life long relationship based on one hand | | | | relationship. If your focus is always on solving a |
| shake at a networking event. Relationship marketing | | | | problem for your customer, your marketing efforts |
| involves multiple contacts. Those contacts can be any | | | | will bear fruit and your reward will be a healthy |
| imaginable marketing effort as long as it's something | | | | business and smoother cash flow. |
| your target market responds to. In the case of our | | | | |