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 Marketing: The Personal Touch - Winter 1993 PROBLEM: As we enter the new year, it's a particularly good time to ask yourself how you can generate more clients/customers and revenue for your business. Perhaps you're bored doing the same old thing with your current products or services and you want to try something new. Or you may just want to reach out to a whole new client base for the new year. How can you find out what new needs your current customers might have? And how can you discover the most appropriate new market(s) for your business expansion? SOLUTION: The answer is simple: talk to your current client base and the people in your potential markets and ask what you need to know. I would strongly suggest that you conduct this kind of survey over the phone rather than through the mail. Asking people directly provides the personal touch that will make your marketing efforts stand out. Plan to talk to 10-20 people. Fewer won't give you a representative sample. If you want to talk to your current customers about new products or services, call them and say that you would like to have just a few minutes of their time for your customer service survey. You might offer them a small gift or a discount on future work in exchange for their valuable time. Ask them the following kinds of questions:
If you have any new ideas for products or services, you can ask them if they would personally find them useful. Don't sell them; just ask for their honest opinions. If you're going to be approaching prospects in a new market, it's best to write them a brief letter before calling them. Let them know who you are and what your survey is about. Tell them you would be glad to pay them for ten minutes of their professional time if they'd be willing to talk to you. The money you spend will potentially save you thousands of dollars by helping you zero in on your market. Let them know you'll be calling to schedule a brief phone appointment. In both cases, write down all their responses clearly and systematically. Ask your interviewees if they'd like to receive a summary of the results of your survey. Sending them a follow-up summary allows you to share your positive results and announce your new products/services as a timely response to their stated needs. EXAMPLE: The vice-president of a major university was concerned about a serious drop in enrollment. He retained my services to discover what the problem was and help resolve it. I designed a series of surveys which asked the current student populations what was working and what was not. I also surveyed some potential students to find out what their needs were. RESULTS: The university used the survey results to restructure their current programs and enrollment rose 5% the following year. SUMMARY: Good marketing can't be done in a void. By talking with your current or potential customers, you'll be letting them know you care about their needs. Doing this kind of homework should give you the kind of information you need to make this a prosperous and successful year. |
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