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Not only marketing but also a major part of global business running with the importance of relationship. Relationship can do much more in business as we are doing in life with miracle achievements. Herein, in relationship marketing mainly includes building brand awareness and positioning your brand as your customers best option. The most important part of relationship marketing is facilitating two-way conversations with your customers.
The major importance are as follows:
Relationship Marketing Helps You Retain Long-Term Customers.
Relationship Marketing Increases the Likelihood of Referrals.
Relationship Marketing Makes Price Changes Easier.
Relationship Marketing Creates an Excellent Opportunity for Feedback.
Relationship Marketing Will Give You a Competitive Advantage.
Simple example could be provided that , last year “CARS EXHIBITION IB DUBAI” which was very friendly and detailed explanation of each brands, a detailed program for brand awareness and positioning which I was noticed carefully during my visit on this exhibition.
Relationship marketing is about forming long-term relationships with customers. Rather than trying to encourage a one-time sale, relationship marketing tries to foster customer loyalty by providing exemplary products and services. This is different than most normal advertising practices that focus on a single transaction; watch ad A and buy product B. Relationship marketing, by contrast, is usually not linked to a single product or offer. It involves a company refining the way they do business in order to maximize the value of that relationship for the customer. (See B2P Marketing)
· Conduct regular polls and surveys to solicit feedback from customers.
· Respect that feedback and incorporate it into the company's business practices.
· Use any and all social media outlets to connect with customers.
· Have effective customer monitoring technologies in place.
· Use clear policies to dictate how all company employees should interact with customers in both positive and negative situations.
· Leverage the value of warm leads – customers who have already expressed an interest in the company.
· Have a comprehensive customer relationship management strategy.
· Conduct regular training sessions for all members of staff.
· Stay on the cutting edge of product offerings.
· Do not sacrifice quality for innovativeness.
· Maintain a high customer satisfaction rate in all areas of the company.
· Make an effort to inform customers how much they are appreciated.
Relationship marketing mainly involves the improvement of internal operations. Many customers leave a company not because they didn't like the product, but because they were frustrated with the customer service. If a business streamlines its internal operations to satisfy all service needs of their customers, customers will be happier even in the face of product problems.
Technology also plays an important role in relationship marketing. The Internet has made it easier for companies to track, store, analyze and then utilize vast amounts of information about customers. Customers are offered personalized ads, special deals, and expedited service as a token of appreciation for their loyalty.
Social media sites allow business to engage their customers in an informal and ongoing way. In the past, it would have been impossible to keep useful records about every single client, but technology makes it easy for companies to automate their marketing efforts. (See Analytical Marketing)
Branding is the final component of relationship marketing. A company can form a long-term relationship with a client if that client feels like the brand they purchase reflects who they are or who they want to be. Customers are less inclined to switch to a different brand if they think that switch makes a statement about their identity.
Importance of relationship marketing for companies
Many types of companies have something to gain from developing long-term relationships with their customers. Smaller businesses often serve a steady stream of regulars, and make little effort to draw in new customers. Imagine a small restaurant that sees a steady stream of business from the morning commute. Their daily presence is a large part of the business that restaurant does every day. Larger companies typically invest the most in carrying out sophisticated relationship marketing campaigns. In some major companies, relationship marketing is a strategy that affects every department with a client facing purpose (sales, customer service, shipping etc). Industry leaders constantly face competition from new companies who claim to provide similar goods with a higher-quality level of service. Holding onto their existing customers is the only way they can maintain their position at the top of their industry. This is true for businesses in all industries, from cell phones to baby food. (See Marketing Mobile Phones)
· Ikea – The Swedish furniture maker has a worldwide base of intensely loyal customers. When the company changed the font in their ubiquitous catalog, Ikea lovers took to the Internet to air their complaints. Rather than alienate their customers for a trivial reason, Ikea changed the font back in the next catalog.
· Direct Recruitment – The direct mail marketing firm sends out handwritten birthday cards to clients and associates every year. This simple, personal touch helps clients feel like Direct Recruitment cares about them as people rather than simply consumers.
· American Airlines – The airline maintains a comprehensive frequent flyer program that rewards customer loyalty with the promise of free flights, upgrades, and discounts.
· Dell – Dell computers created a special online store for high volume corporate customers. By tailoring the ordering process to the specific customer's needs, Dell was able to expedite many of the hassles corporate technology buyers face. Providing a higher level of service leads to increased loyalty.
Below are the importance of relationship marketing in a company:
1. Build the Know, Like and Trust Factor
It’s a phrase you’ve heard countless times, but are you living it? [Tweet “”To know and to not yet do it, is to not yet know.” -Stephen R. Covey “]
To consider the importance of follow through with your know, like and trust factor, start by thinking about your own shopping habits, as a consumer. These days, online, will you buy from a complete stranger? Will you purchase something from a random website you’ve landed on? Will you hire a consultant, coach or assistant that you’ve never heard of, worked with or seen?
Chances are the answer is a big NO.
In today’s age of technology, we have the luxury of getting to know and deciding to trust the person or company behind each purchase.
However, as business owners, this means that we MUST go that extra mile to consistently create our know, like and trust factor.
To do this, it is important that we are consistently active on our social media platforms, website, and offline networking. For example, in social media, you want to welcome new followers, reply to comments using the commenter’s name, and create relevant content that is both educational and entertaining.
Moreover, test yourself! Ask a fellow entrepreneur to look at your social media postings and rate them for content, connection and consistency. The feedback can help you take your Know Like Trust Factor to a whole new level!
2. Word of Mouth Referrals
When it comes to owning your own business, word of mouth referrals are gold. And, when you focus on building your business’s people-to-people connection, you create that “WOW” factor that gets your customer’s talking.
Customers want to feel special and important, because they don’t often get to feel that way in other areas of the life. This is key to remember because customers rarely purchase products or services solely based on the products intended result. Deep down, they are also asking themselves, “What will this do for me, or provide for me?”
The answer isn’t just the product results. The answer includes all of the feelings and desires that come with that product and the results.
By building your relationship marketing skills, you fulfill those additional needs. You provide more than just a product or service, you provide an experience.
To create an experience, highlight your customer’s successes, answer questions promptly (whether through social media, email or phone), and respond to concerns instead of reacting to them. To respond to a concern means that you find a way answer the question that empowers your company AND the person making the concern.
3. Create Business Opportunities
When you build your relationship marketing skills, you also open the door to more business opportunities because a personal connection experience leaves a a long-lasting impression.
That fond memory which you created with your customer will cause you to come to their mind more quickly and frequently. Thus, when a friend of your customer asks for a business venture referral, your name will be on the tip of your customer’s tongue.
For example, Mari Smith’s early success in 2007 started because she was referred to test a new Facebook app. Because Mari had built a person-to-person connection, she was referred and her business took off.
4. Stay On Top Of Your Audience’s Needs
Following a relationship marketing model can be the difference between being a long-term success and a no-hit wonder!
With a person-to-person relationship marketing model you can learn first hand, and at no cost to you, what your audience MOST desires.
For example, free Wi-Fi in Starbucks was a suggestion from patrons. Today, because Starbucks listened, its shops are always packed with customers who know they can conduct business AND get great coffee.
On the other hand, Borders did not listen to its customers. The company did not make the necessary changes, improvements and additions to keep people coming back, and as a result, the company has now forever disappeared.
Active listening and listening between the lines are two amazing benefits of person-to-person relationship marketing that can easily get lost in the sea of business if you’re not paying attention.
5. Add Your Own Flare
In our new economy where JOB’s are unreliable, more and more people are going into business for themselves. In order to compete in this new booming, small business market, you have to STAND OUT. You need to have your own flare. Be unique.
By instating relationship marketing, you can quickly and easily develop your unique style. It gives you the space to learn about your audience’s needs, and develop trust with your own techniques. You don’t have to fit yourself to someone else’s business model. You simply have to be yourself and respond confidently to your customers.
Agree with Loraine Domingo PRO cum Administrative Assistant
Relationship marketing stands in contrast to the more traditional transactional marketing approach, which focuses on increasing the number of individual sales. In the transactional model, the return on customer acquisition cost may be insufficient. A customer may be convinced to select that brand one time, but without a strong relationship marketing strategy, the customer may not come back to that brand in the future. While organizations combine elements of both relationship and transactional marketing, customer relationship marketing is starting to play a more important role for many companies.
Relationship marketing is based on the tenets of customer experience management (CEM), which focuses on improving customer interactions to foster better brand loyalty. While these interactions can still occur in person or over the phone, much of relationship marketing and CEM has taken to the Web.
With the abundance of information on the Web and flourishing use of social media, most consumers expect to have easy, tailored access to details about a brand and even expect the opportunity to influence products and services via social media posts and online reviews. Today, relationship marketing involves creating easy two-way communication between customers and the business, tracking customer activities and providing tailored information to customers based on those activities.
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I agree with Ms. Loriane's answer and have voted for her.
