This is how you grow your marketing base – it’s your gold – you gain preference when you create awareness of your business, your services, and you. 

 

You are not thought of. You are not missed. You are forgotten.

When I was looking for apartments in NYC a few months ago, I ran across a guy online that took the time to really explain things to me. I was in the beginning stages of looking and just fact finding at the time. We had a great conversation and he quickly followed up by sending me information to aid me in my search. He told me when the best time to get “serious” about looking would be, and offered other suggestions and helpful advice. I really thought I had found the right person to work with. After our conversation, I tucked his information away and went about my business, honestly intending to reach back out to him at the appropriate time. What happens next is a typical example of what usually occurs in the sales process: the “bad” prospect (and sometimes even client!) forgets you and the busy business man/woman doesn’t follow through. Sound familiar?  Well, that’s exactly what happened, I totally forgot about this person.

You guys know me, I write content about, provide marketing tips, teach at seminars, and do one-on-one coaching on using blogging, emails and social media as a means to stay in front of your business prospects. I learn from interacting with you, my clients, friends, and associates how challenging it can be to keep up with your marketing base.

So keeping all that in mind, let’s get back to my online guy – let’s call him “Bob, the agent from New York”. I never heard back from him. I wonder if he had placed my name into his database, or friended me on Facebook, sent me a follow-up text or email, if I would have remembered him? If he had stayed in touch with me, I would have reached back out to him when I started seriously looking for apartments in NYC. Instead, what happened is we both forgot about each other and I found someone else in my online search. This is so typical and SOOOO easy to do. But typical or not, it is costing us all business. If you do not stay in front of your customer, they will forget you – they will not wonder about you or think of you occasionally, they will FORGET you.

So, did Bob just not know to do this? Did he not have time, or need another customer? I bet the main reason is that he just didn’t do it, it fell through the cracks.

As a marketing professional, I am always looking forward to what is next and to what is important in our marketing. I must ask a lot of questions. Is a drip campaign really necessary? Is all this marketing worth the effort? Is social media just noise? Does it annoy people? What do we say? How do we make it real? Does it work?

I ask these questions, because I want to make sure that the services I offer to my clients are tried and true and that I can back them up with real results (and I can, by the way).

Let this be a reminder to all of us that whatever you are doing in your marketing, you need to make sure you are touching the people that you meet. Whether it’s a telephone conversation, email inquiry, a meeting at a networking function, lunch or coffee meeting – whatever, be consistent in adding the people you meet to your database. This is key. This is how you grow your marketing base, it’s your gold! You gain preference when you create awareness of your business, your services, and you.

After you read this today, don’t hesitate. Jot down a couple of questions you might have and a number of action items you know you need to take, and call me. Let’s talk about how I can help you in creating a powerful awareness of your business by staying in touch with your list through various marketing initiatives. Don’t delay, that person you talked to this week could be making a decision to buy soon. Will you be in their minds?

Cheers!