Relationship Marketing

by Shawn Miller Website Designer

Relationship Marketing. If you are in a Network Marketing Business, then you have probably heard this term. What does it mean? I'll quote Relationship Marketing expert Bob Burg as stating that the definition is: "Cultivating mutually beneficial, give and take, win / win relationships" Now, Bob has used this definition when talking about networking in general, but I think it applies here as well. You see, relationship marketing is building relationships, not selling. When you place an ad, you are selling, but when you place a call and ask about someone's family that is using relationship marketing. See the difference? By building and nurturing these relationships you are becoming someone the other person really knows , versus knows about. All things being equal, people will do business and refer people to people whom they know, like and trust." Remember the quote, and live it. Don't just do something because it will work. Do it because it's the right thing to do. It will give you long term success.

Now we can get on with the list! I believe that relationship marketing is truly the best plan of marketing, and if done correctly, will allow virtually unlimited success.

Here's Why Relationship Marketing Is Best:

Relationship Marketing = Eliminating Customer Objections - Think of one of your good friends for a moment. If they sell you a product or service that is necessary, would you do business with them, or with someone you didn't know? What if the person that you didn't know offered you the product or service for a slightly lower price? If you're like most people, you value the relationship more than the few dollars difference in price. This is also true for other objections as well. Build a solid relationship, and you will get more business and more referrals from that person.
Relationship Marketing = Customer Retention - According to many surveys, the acquisition of a new customer costs 5-7 times more than keeping an existing one. Many of you have heard this before, but how many actually pay attention? Think about your current marketing efforts. Are you spending your time and money to keep your current customers happy, or trying to get new ones? If you spend more of your time making existing customers feel valued and important you will get more referrals from them. Your marketing budget would be reduced, and your income would rise. Is there any reason you can think of for not doing that?

Relationship Marketing = Customer Perception, a valuable resource - People who know you well will often say what they think, especially if they are asked, which you should do. How can you improve on what it is that you are doing unless you get feedback? The best people to get this information from are those with whom you have a well established relationship. They know you and can be honest. The feedback you receive will not always what you want to hear, but as a business owner, it is what you need to hear. Customer surveys are a great way to get this information. Pay attention to what your customers are saying and listen to their suggestions. Chances are, if they feel a certain way, so do others.
Relationship Marketing is cheaper than most other marketing activities - How much does having a conversation cost? Nothing. That's the cost of relationship marketing. Note that I'm talking about customer acquisition, but perhaps more importantly, building relationships with your referral sources. The same principles apply to both. While developing an excellent relationship with your customers is vital, doing it with other business owners and potential referral sources can really build your income.
Relationship Marketing will multiply your network exponentially - The average person has about 250 people in their personal and business network. As a business owner, you may have even more. The point here is that for every person you meet and establish a quality relationship with, you have the ability now to reach their individual network of 250 people. If you have 250 people in your network, and they have 250 of theirs, that is 62,500 potential clients and referral sources. Spending your time in building and establishing relationships with as many of these people as possible is literally all you ever have to do to be as successful as you want to be. I'm not saying that you will convert all 62,500 to become customers, but let's say it was 1000. If 1000 people were to become customers or referral sources, wouldn't that make a small difference in your monthly income? Oh yes, and if you made your goal 1000, I hope it was not lost on you that the network you are working from now is 250,000 (1000 x 250 people in their personal network).

Social networking sites take this principle to a whole other level. I know someone, who knows someone, in turn, they know other people. For example, at present, my personal network on Facebook is about 1100 people. If you add up the people who are connected to them, and those they are connected to my network is over 10 million people. The key is to develop relationships with the 1100, and then eventually, you begin to know their people as well. There is a right way to do it and a wrong way, so have regard to the principles of relationship marketing. Work on building relationships. Do not just try to get into their network.

Now you have 5 reasons why relationship marketing is the key to unlimited success. Like all things that work, it is not just as easy as running and trying to meet a lot of people and turn them into clients or referral sources. There really is not a right way and a wrong way to becoming successful with these principles. I have dedicated myself to helping others succeed and have spent much time creating resources for others to use in their efforts. The key point to remember is, do things for the correct reasons, and usually, the correct results will occur.

Good luck, and I wish you many successes in YOUR Relationship Marketing efforts!

To see more posts like this please visit my site at www.shawngmiller.com