The brands that win the hearts, minds and wallets of their customers don’t do it with traditional marketing messages that make people think only about the brand. Instead, the brands that win make customers think about themselves.
This powerful concept comes from Brent Adamson, vice president and “chief storyteller” at Gartner. Adamson was the opening keynote speaker at the recent Gartner Marketing Symposium in San Diego. His point is that if you want to build a relationship with your customers, one that goes beyond just simple one-at-a-time transactions, your marketing messages need to target the customer instead of the brand. How do you do that?
First, let me share an example that is the opposite of this. It’s simple – just send an email that says something like this: We’re having a sale. Here’s a 25% off coupon.
This direct approach may work for some customers, but it’s focused on one thing only – getting the customer in the door to take advantage of savings.
Consider a marketing message that’s focused on the customer. We’re going to assume the recipient comes from your existing customer list and that you know a little bit about them. It goes something like this:
“Hello (NAME – yes, the customer’s actual name!), In the past year, you’ve bought three pairs of shoes. Yes, we keep good records. We also noticed you bought these shoes on sale, which means you saved $78 each time you came in. We wanted to let you know we’re having a similar sale if you want to take advantage of it. Your favorite salesperson, Bob, is here to help you when you come in. We appreciate your past business and look forward to serving you in the future. Thank you!”
Notice this message is personalized. It mentions past purchases and even how much money the customer saved. It proves this retailer knows the customer and cares enough to send the right message. But, there may be an even better way to promote to the customer.
The sales part of the message doesn’t need to be so obvious. It can be secondary to a message that is truly customer-focused. It shouldn’t be a sales pitch to the customer, but a helpful message to the customer. Adding personalization makes it even better.
Let me give you another example. About 10 years ago, I bought a car from a great salesperson. The after-experience included a series of quarterly emails, which I received for years. Once we got past the initial “thank you for your business” email, the messages hardly ever had a sales pitch. They were all short emails with suggestions and ideas to make my life better. The tips weren’t only about cars; there was advice on how to keep a pipe from freezing in the winter, how to keep a computer clear of viruses, and how to prevent credit card fraud. The emails were always interesting, informative and helpful. I looked forward to receiving them. What was the effort worth? Well, I’m just one customer, but I bought three cars from him.
Adamson pointed out that just knowing a customer isn’t good enough. A personalized email that says, “Happy Birthday” and then offers a birthday discount isn’t enough. How does the company know it’s your birthday? More than likely, you’ve filled out an online registration at some point and the company’s computer system is sending an automated birthday greeting and discount. And customers know that. Contrast that with the personalized, helpful message that validates the customer’s choice to do business with a company – because the company cares.
How much is that “care” worth? Care makes customers feel as if they have a connection with the company. People like doing business with a company that cares about them. It even makes them willing to spend more. According to Gartner, 64% of customers will spend more versus only 14% if there is a low brand connection. It pays to be helpful. It pays to care.
When your message is more about the customer than the company, especially if the message is helpful, the company still gets recognized, and that can lead to sales. It’s better to give than to receive, and it’s better to help than to blatantly pitch. In the end, helpful wins!
