Losing customers- an easy 4 step guide

Very recently my wife, Sid, ordered three pairs of shorts from a large retail company. Two pairs were delivered and one was back ordered for mid-June so she wrote to them and asked where the other pair of shorts were and got no reply. Ten days later she  received a letter via snail mail AKA- US Postal Service saying that her shorts we're canceled and her credit card had expired.  She tried to reorder them  but they were sold out. What I don't understand is why they wouldn't email her to update information and not to mention it wasn't a credit card but a debit card that had enough money in it to buy many pairs of shorts. Ok so they don't want confidential information going around in an email. How about  a -Dear Sidney could you call or contact us to update your information or log into our secure site and provide the needed info or....?

Oh and she's been a customer for 20 years so she sent them another email suggesting that as a valid customer for so long she deserved much more than being ignored. She gets an email daily from them but they can't respond.

So I understand there may be a few things that are in need of repair here but here's the steps to take in order to get customers to go away, even long term customers. Actually works for any customer that's the joy of this plan.

1. Take their order and don't fulfill it totally. Make sure you get their money!

2. When you can't or won't fulfill said order, come up with a lame excuse. There are so many I won't even try to start one.

3. This is key- Don't respond to emails or if you do, pretend you didn't get the whole message and ask them to re write it. Makes it seem like you care but the average person won't do it. They're already mad with you and this should clinch it. You're almost there and this could be the end but in case they do write another follow up letter, go through to step 4.

4. This one is guaranteed to work and I've never seen it fail. I'm so confident I'm willing to wager you a hefty sum of money if this doesn't get the desired result, which of course is losing customers, that was the goal right?


And here it is-- Ignore them!


So in this day and age of email, secure websites, instant communication, social media and more is there any excuse for this to happen. Not really, to my way of thinking, so it must be they are trying to get rid of those pesky customers. In this case, I think they were successful!

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Social media Marketing- video

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The future of social

What's the future of social media and business? It's not the same as social media for just general use or staying in touch with family and friends afar. Social media for business is going to happen on a large scale of that I'm sure. What leaves me at time unsure is the when and here's why.

For so long now marketing and advertising has been a consistent game. There are certain rules and methods that are used, proven and accepted. There are large scale firms that are looked at for what and how they do their marketing and the results they achieve. These are the big players. The old rule makers of the game and they have done well for themselves and their clients. They don't like change as it may not give them the results that they have known to happen in the past. More than likely they are older in age and entrenched in traditions gone by. They will fight tooth and claw to keep everything as it was in their heyday of success and monetary gains even if that is no longer the case. It will come back, we just have to keep doing it like before. They don't see the change and don't want to see a change. They might have forgotten what marketing is really:

Marketing is "the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large."^[1]

For business to consumer marketing it is "the process by which companies create value for customers and build strong customer relationships, in order to capture value from customers in return". For business to business marketing it is creating value, solutions, and relationships either short term or long term with a company or brand. It generates the strategy that underlies sales techniques, business communication, and business developments.^[2] It is an integrated process through which companies build strong customer relationships and create value for their customers and for themselves. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marketing

I find the last sentence to be very telling - "building relationships, creating value..... " Isn't that a key component of what social media is capable of doing?
This is why social media will be an accepted and embraced part of every marketing plan- it does this extremely well.
Remember the dinosaurs? Me neither but I've seen pictures and know what happened to them.

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A kid could do this

I know that I've touched on this before but it has been told to me again and so I just need to put it back out their for businesses to see again. I've heard that social media can be done by a teenager or kid so why would anyone want to pay to have it done.  I would totally agree if this statement had any validity but how many teenagers do you know that have any/very much business sense. 

Do they understand the goals that a business, your business, is trying to accomplish?

What have they done as in the area of marketing? Taken a high school course or even a college one? That would be sufficient for you? I doubt it.

Have they the actual minds that are developed enough to carry out the complex thinking that social media requires for extended periods of time? Seems to me that I read that the human brain isn't even fully developed until somewhere into your 20's.

Now what about the amount of multitasking that social media takes to stay focused and the long hours that are needed to reach your goals, and they understand your goals right?

Social media for your business has in no way shape or form anything to do with teenagers and if you think so you're totally missing what it can do for your business.

Sid, my wife, isn't as involved in social media as I am but recently she follows a restaurant on Facebook and they post some great photos of meals that they serve. The thing is they never tell you what the ingredients are or very much about the dish. So she writes them and suggests that they include a bit more in their photos. Then guess what? They write back in a short period of time and thank her for her suggestion and will be doing that in the future.

Not really sure that would have been the same if some teenager was in charge of your social media program. 

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Bridging the virtual and real world

So many have an issue with social media because they look at it as disconnected from the real world. That couldn't be farther from the truth if it's done correctly and honestly. I know this for a fact from trips that I've made. Friends that I have had relationships with through social media and then had the opportunity to meet in real life (IRL) were just as expected. Now the reason is because for myself and these people, we act and are the same in the virtual world as in the real one. The conversations and relationships forged are real.
Now one of things that I would like to work on more in the coming year is showing this to others value. A person that has done a wonderful job of this is a friend both virtual and real world- Veronika Miller of Modenus and she's done a great job with the use of her worldwide Blogtours.

For this summer @AndieDay  and I are working on hosting a Tweetup (  A group of friends on Twitter (social network) that are planning to meet up. A request by a user to meet with friends via Twitter.") in Boston this July 15. Here's the post I recently did promoting that #bostonfeelthelovetweetup( Twitter hashtag) 


http://www.thebuildingblox.com/2012/06/boston-feel-love-summer-tweetup.html and there's plenty of time and room for more of you to join in. Or if you know someone in the Boston, New England area or someone that may be around during that time, we'd love to connect.  Just shoot us a note!





I believe that for many reasons it's important to bridge the worlds of virtual social media with real world meetings and experiences in order to show others the value that is created in developing a far reaching and real network of friends and business associates. So in this coming year I will be working on ways to do just that- bridge and show the virtual and real worlds and the value that is provided to so many on so many levels.

I have some ideas I'm working on so stay tuned!

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Maximize social media- video

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Stop advertising if you are busy.

Does that make sense to you? If you are thinking that "I'm super busy and why should I be spending money on advertising now?" then you probably have the same thinking that goes with using social media.
Advertising and marketing isn't something that you do only when you don't have work or customers, it's an ongoing effort. Most people seem to get that when it comes to conventional advertising but that's because you make up your ad or campaign and have it posted. After that you can still go on with work, jobs or product development.
Social media isn't like that. If you are using social media in the hope of gaining work prospects, selling a product or service and that starts to lead to additional income- ie you are too busy to participate, then you may end up with a problem. I've seen many people that are users of social media, they use all the platforms and when they get busy the whole thing comes to an abrupt halt. Now if or when that slows down or ceases, they return. This isn't a good approach.

Would you have stopped your ad campaign just because you had a few things lined up? I doubt it. So don't drop your social media efforts like a hot potato either. Make the effort to keep in touch with everyone. People will understand if you're busy and have only time to Tweet and post here and there but it's important to stay in touch. Remember- social media is about being social and that's hard to do if you're not there. You may also find that things have changed when you decide to return. People have feelings.

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Customer service, reviews and Amazon

I have had many dealings with Amazon.com and it's a wonderful business from my standpoint. Now what makes it great are many things that relate to social media.

Let's look at their customer service.
I've had problems with orders, everyone does at some point but how those problems are dealt with is the key. Now when I go to their customer service and ask to be called right then, the phone on my end rings. How's that for service? If I have a product and I wish to return it for some reason- it's not an issue and is taken care of quickly.

Now their reviews:
I never buy a product anymore without reading the reviews and not just the good ones. I want to see what others have to say about the product, how it functioned and their experience. The only reason that don't look at the reviews is if I've already had the product and I'm just getting another one.

So how do these things relate to social media?
They are providing a service that freely gives the information of other users on the product and on their site. Sure you get the Company statement but if that doesn't jive with the user experience....?
Amazon isn't afraid to let the viewpoint and statement of others interfere with the sale. They are welcoming it, asking for it and not controlling it as so many businesses still try to do. Isn't that part of social media?

They are dealing with customer service, issues, complaints and everything that relates to their business in a real time effective manner and that gets rewards.

True story of mine:
My wife's birthday was recent so I ordered her a new Ipod Nano but when I sent in the shipping address I used our old address (by mistake) from the home we had sold in the fall and when I saw it had been delivered, I called them. It had been delivered indeed and it was my fault not theirs and I told them that. They said they would refund the order and hopefully get it back but that it wasn't my problem. I said that once I had the address of the condo we were renting I would order a new one.
Then we got a call from a former neighbor. She had seen the truck deliver something and had gone over. Sure enough a package was on the back step and she knew we weren't there any more. She took the package and called us and we got it shortly after.
Now I could have just kept it and no one would have been the wiser but I respect Amazon and their business, called them and told the story and asked that I be charged for the order since I did in fact receive it.
They have always been honest and provided a great service for me, by the same token they deserve my support and honesty. Had their customer service and business policies been different or maybe my experience hadn't always been pleasant- maybe I wouldn't have been so quick to make that call.

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15 blogging ideas for small businesses

Recently I have heard that small business owners think it would be hard to keep up their blogs because they don't have enough to write about. To this I totally disagree.
To many small business owners, they look at what they do as everyday. They have procedures and methods and they have done them for so long they don't even think about it. They just automatically do them.
So my advice is to step back and look at your business and every aspect of what you do for blogging topics. Be the outsider looking in and I think you'll see plenty.

Here's some things you might see:

1. How do you handle your customer requests?

2. Who is responsible for doing the work that your company does? Who are they and how long have they been with you? Names and a biography- humanize your business.

3. What are your companies policies?

4. Where does the bulk of your work come from? Referrals? Advertising? Social media?

5. What service or product do you offer and why?

6. How did you start your business? Was it from yourself, taken over from a family member, bought...?

7. How does the process work from receiving an inquiry to actually completing the service or providing the product?

8. Where are you located and why are you there? What makes your area great?

9. What about a customer interview?

10. What are your future plans?

11. What would your customers like to see you offer in the future?

12. What about you? Who are you? Do you have a family?

13. What makes your business stand above the rest?

14. How about some posts that are informative concerning other products/services that are within your field? Show your knowledge and authority.

15. What about offering a contest?

These are just some of the many things that you could choice to write about but it should get you off to a great start. Have some more ideas and you'd like to share them for others? Just leave a comment and your suggestions or what has worked for you.

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Bye, Bye Klout

In the past month I have been debating the merits of Klout and have decided that Klout needs to go. It's a game that can be played and this game has very little to do with actual reality. It also has very little value at providing useful information as to how influential you are. Here was part of my test- If I Tweeted, posted on Goggle + and Facebook at an almost alarming rate- my score went up. If I slowed that down- my score dropped. If I speed up again- the score rose. Are you seeing a pattern? Not quality but quantity. I was actually going to try a test for a week where I posted something on an insane 1 per minute posting schedule. It would have to have been scheduled but I decided that would have proven my point but driven everyone else nuts so I didn't.

Now during all of that test my real interactions with people hadn't changed at all. I still answer and try to help people with whatever questions they send me. I still interact with people about their business and personal lives. I still try to share other people's posts and provide information so, to me, Klout is all about numbers not actual influence.

Now I should mention that I noticed this awhile ago and you may ask why I hadn't called it quits earlier. The reason is that before I wondered if others took this Klout score with any seriousness? Was it something that businesses and people would go to and say oh- Todd Vendituoli has a Klout score of----- and then move forward with a proposal or such? But now my thinking has changed. I do that after looking over things and it's part of always reviewing everything.

My thinking now is that if a person or business is only interested in what I have to offer based on an irrelevant score without doing further due diligence, then maybe it's not a good mix for me. If they are truly interested, they will do some research on their own, contact me personally, watch what I do
(observing things that happen on social media channels is easy) and even ask around.
Another note about social media and numbers is that as I observed with Klout, numbers come from algorithms and these don't always tell the true story. A person's influence or value to others is much deeper than that.

So with that I say good bye to Klout. Now if they can somehow show that their numbers reflect an actual influence and relevance- I'll be back because then it will be worth something.

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Social media ROI- Socialnomics

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What is Branding and why you should

Branding is an idea that isn't really new but is very important today. Maybe even more so than it has been in the past as competition for almost everything has increased.  Have a quick look at this video and ask yourself if you are "branded" which doesn't mean the same as for cattle and can be applied to businesses as well as individuals. 

Is this something that you are working on? Have you considered it before or have you already done it?

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It's another avenue

Social media is another avenue to be used in conjunction with your existing marketing. It doesn't mean that you should give up what you have been doing in your other marketing programs. Social media is another way to enhance that. It's a way to add more value to it and grow it in a different direction. So how about I just throw out a few words for you to think about in terms of using social media as another avenue.

Authority
Relationships
Customer service
Product development
Product promotions
Product awareness
Informative
Personal
Social interaction
Branding
Value
Perception
Feedback
Humanizing
 and more.

So as you went through the list did you find any that may be useful for your business? Do you see any that you really could do without?

It's another avenue that helps bring you even closer to your customers and in different ways than conventional marketing. It's not a stand alone component but one that needs to be incorporated into your existing program. Every part that you add helps and social media is definitely one aspect that you should be using.

Here's a great short video:

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Keeping up is work

Trying to use all of your social media channels can be hard. Using all your social media platforms to their best use can be exhausting. There are so many things that need to be looked at on a daily basis such as:

Coming up with new ideas for your blog
Writing your blog posts and publishing/promoting them.
Maintaining a presence on Twitter, not just auto posting but actually participating and being social with others.
Posting and maintaining your Facebook account which is a bit different than Twitter.
Remembering people that you communicate with and their lives, jobs and situations.
Checking your analytic numbers to see how you are doing.
Responding to comments promptly on your blog.
Responding promptly to comments on all your social media channels.
Updating and posting on Pinterest, if you do that.
Checking other websites for content that is relevant to your friends and followers and then sharing it.
Sharing your friends blogs and content that they have posted.
Helping those that ask for your help in a real and personal way.
Trying to come up with new ideas to expand your social media profile and benefit your business- money has to be made - right?
Then there's always the other marketing you do and running your business- that make money thing again.
And lest we forget- actually doing something other than work and sleeping too.

Social media channels- some

I won't even tell you the amount of time that I spend using social media but it's quite a bit.

Using social media to it's best advantage is work, make no bones about it. It's not child's play and it takes dedication to keep it up. It doesn't happen overnight and it surely won't if you approach it haphazardly.
So here's my advice if you find my list too daunting- hire someone that has done it and knows what needs to be done, how things can be approached and what has to happen to make it a success for your business. Maybe you'll hire them to train a staff member so they can take it over when they are more confident. But the worst thing you can do is just say the heck with it, this is way too hard and too much work. That in my view would be a large error in judgement.

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Thinking's great but doing is better

So you are thinking about getting your company on board using social media. Maybe you are trying to come up with a good Twitter name or a Facebook page. You've been thinking about how to respond to people and who's responsibility that will be so that everything is consistent. You may even have been thinking about what you will write about on your new blog and what you think your reader's will appreciate learning more about. I'm sure you have also been thinking about how to analyze the data that you will be getting to better understand how effective your program is doing as well as where you should focus more or... less. Could it be that you are still trying to understand how to best use and respond on your social media platforms- errors here could be costly.

Then of course you could be thinking- should I do this, is it worth it, what will it bring my business, how much time and money will it cost, or numerous other things and with that let's say that

Thinking's great

But there comes a time where doing it is far better. You've looked at everything and now you are just procrastinating. You aren't going to know every answer but you'll learn as you go. You'll try this and then adjust that. It's a work in progress. So if you've done your due diligence it's time to 

Just do it! 

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Social media 2012

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Consistent, consistent, consistent

I've always build and bought homes over the years and the key has always been Location, location, location. A home built or bought in a good location has value and will retain that value.

Now when it comes to social media the saying should be Consistent, consistent, consistent and with good reason. Every aspect of your social media presence needs to be consistent. The picture that you use  should be consistent along every platform you use ie the same one. Why have different ones? Are you trying to confuse people?
Is your content consistent or do you write about various random things as your dog, then a design project, why you like a certain park...? If your blog is about design then, sure, you can throw in some personal posts but isn't the reason that you started blogging to showcase design? So why confuse your readers with an assortment of topics that they may not really be interested in. They started to read because of your design voice so that should be your focus. How long would you read any magazine if one week it was filled with kitty pictures, the next week it had all world news article and the following week it was about oil exploration. Probably not long is my guess.

When you write for your blog, do you write on a consistent manner or is it here and there as the spirit moves you? The frequency of you posts does indeed matter http://www.socialmedia4builders.com/2012/05/whats-frequency.html but if you aren't being consistent, you won't get noticed and you'll start to wonder why you started blogging to begin with.

Are you using your social media platforms in a consistent manner? Everyone needs to figure out what platform(s) work for them and their audience but once you've done that you need to keep it up. If your audience is on Facebook and then you move to Twitter and abandon your Facebook audience, what do you think the end result will be? Probably not good.

Now what about posting times for your content? Do you consistently post your content when your readers are around? Have to learned when they are around is the first question and if you have are you posting at times that are convenient for them?

So in every aspect of your social media program be consistent, consistent, consistent. Oh and without out saying you need to be persistent!

  

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Reputations are real

Building a reputation takes time and effort. You may be a great person and have a great product to offer but if no one knows of you it means nothing. On the other hand, branding a reputation that is built on false ideas or concepts that you believe others want to hear is easy. All you need to do is figure out what your potential customers wants or wants to hear. You then craft everything that you post to every outlet as a mirror of that thinking. This is what they want right?

Reputation of a social entity (a person, a group of people, an organization) is an opinion about that entity, typically a result of social evaluation on a set of criteria. It is important in education,business, and online communities. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reputation 

Nothing could be further from the truth. People now want the real honest to goodness you. They want to be assured that the person or company that they are dealing with is the real thing. The "performance" days are done and was part of a past era in marketing.
Building a following is based on that solid honest relationship value that takes time. Trust doesn't happen overnight. It is something that is earned over time and by actions and interactions with others. You may have everything lined up and planned but if it it isn't the real you, it will sooner or later fall like a house of cards. People are wiser and more savvy than they used to be and don't take things on face value just because you, the business, say so. Actually it's more likely they are more skeptical than they used to be.

Skeptical is definitely the right word. They have seen the ads, the brochures and the party line about your greatness and have also heard about your faults. The world has grown much smaller because of the internet and social media. The good and the bad or out there for all to see and that's why it's more important than ever to monitor what is out there. Take time and see what people are saying, what is it that they want or expect and honestly ask if it's something you can help with? Now don't try to sell them but offer advice and your expertise. Show them that you know what you are talking about. Help them solve problems they are having and offer any assistance you can. You will be honestly building a reputation and that will last. That will also lead to them telling others and the sales will follow from all types of places.

Your solid reputation and knowledge will outlast any crafted program in the long run.

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Never be content

If you are using or thinking of using social media- Never be content.
Simple enough statement right?
Never be content that:

....You have great friends and followers and they will stay with you no matter what you do or don't do.

....You're producing great content so you don't have to pay attention to other details.

....You know your numbers are good, you get a lot of comments on your blog posts and many readers so you really don't need to be wasting time using things like Google Anylytics or such.

....Posting your content is all you need to do. Interacting on so many social media platforms takes so much time and effort. Think- Social media without the social- it's just media.

.....Looking at new possibilities takes too much time and effort. I'm going great guns now.

....You know every aspect of how things work for the best results. It's a constant learning process no matter how long you've been at it.

....You are using your social media platforms to their fullest. There's nothing more I could even think about trying.



....In any way you are done.

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I'm not a kid

I always love this one- "Social media is for kids" Well you know what, I'm not a kid. I'm 53 years old and I see the value. I also see that many "kids" are using it and those "kids" are consumers. That's right, they purchase products and as "we" get older they become the next buying group that will insist on change. They are not going to just take your word on face value because "the company" says so or that it's a great product. Those days are quickly fading to the past and I don't care that you don't like it or don't understand it or don't want to play this game. Great and we'll also assume you don't care about staying in business too. Now I'm sure you'll eck along for some time using the same old techniques that you've always used but eventually, even you, will have to see reality for what it is. The sad thing is that after you've been in a slow agonize downward business spiral  and having tried everything you could think of to perk your business back up, it will probably hit you. We should try social media but by then you'll be grasping for air and frantic for a hint of your old former success. You'll look to social media as your potential savior but in reality the time and effort that you will put in may not be quick enough. It will be too late. You resisted and fought it right up to the end and had you used that same determination to advance your social media program earlier, you may have grown, prospered and avoided the next step.

However when you get to the point of the tightening funnel, you probably won't be able to get back out.

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Social = Engagement

 Sometimes as I look around I see things that I don't quite understand. One of these things is from people that claim to be heavily into social media but I rarely ever see them engage in any conversations with anyone. They post their messages or such and once in a while something from someone else but that's about it.

It seems that they are missing something. How are you connecting with others when you never engage them in a conversation? How can you have social interaction but yet hardly udder a word that isn't just your own message? If you were talking to this person in real life person,face to face, is this how the friendship would go. They sit there, you tell them things and then you walk away? Seriously, how long do you think this would last?

Social media has also been recognized for the way in which it has changed how public relations professionals conduct their jobs. It has provided an open arena where people are free to exchange ideas on companies, brands and products. As stated by Doc Searls and David Wagner, two authorities on the effects of Internet on marketing, advertising, and PR, "the best of the people in PR are not PR Types at all. They understand that there aren't censors, they're the company's best conversationalists."^[6] Social media provides an environment where users and PR professionals can engage in conversation, where PR professionals can promote their brand and improve their company's image, be listening and responding to what the public is saying about their product. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_media

The highlighted section seems to indicate that there is a conversation going on or needing to go on. Conversations to my best knowledge involve more than one person just talking. It's about engaging with your friends, followers and everyone that is interested. They had hoped for more than you are offering which is no engagement just a stream of you and whatever message your trying to get out. "Trying" being the word to focus on as it won't work for long.

The reason they originally connected with you is that they probably thought you had something interesting to offer. 

So do you have anything to offer before they move on or ignore you?

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