No matter what your sales and marketing strategy looks like, there is never a good time to overlook the power of “word of mouth” marketing.
With this, you don’t have to lift a finger.
Your happy customers do all the hard work for you.
They spread the word about your company, product, or service. All you do is sit back and wait for the new business to roll in. Simple, right?
To take full advantage of this strategy, you have to be proactive in turning happy customers into your best salespeople. Here is what you can do:
Related Article: How to Turn an Ordinary Client into Your Biggest Fan
1. Create a Video
If you are selling in a business-to-business environment, why not create a video to showcase your customer in action? You can show what they do and how they use your product or service.
The end result is a video that you and your customer can share on a corporate blog, social media, and through video services, such as YouTube. This approach allows you to expand your reach beyond your audience.
Example: VerticalResponse touched on the benefits of email marketing, detailing how, Bay Area artisanal spice and BBQ sauce crafters S&S Brand, used this strategy to organically grow their list from “zero to hundreds of subscribers.”
What does this have to do with creating a video? Well, the email marketing company didn’t just tell its audience how S&S Brand benefited from its services. It created a detailed “customer spotlight” video that was shared on its own website, on the S&S Brand website, YouTube, and a number of other online properties.
2. Create a Case Study
This is similar to video in many ways, but doesn’t require nearly as much time or resources. A case study is an in-depth look at how a customer is using your product or service to its advantage.
Getting started is as simple as asking your customer to answer a few basic questions about your product. From there, the answers can be formed into a case study and shared with the world.
Tip: encourage your customer to share the case study with their readers.
Example: when it comes to email marketing services, Emma knows a thing or two. The company has used many strategies to boost customers and revenue, including case studies.
Earlier this year, the company created a case study entitled “How university marketers can score a 60 percent open rate.” The study examined how the Texas Christian University Assistant Director of Student Activities uses Dasheroo for tracking KPIs as well as Emma for email marketing to his advantage.
This customer is sure to share his experience, as well as the case study, with other university marketers, thus giving both companies a strong push via word of mouth marketing. Imagine getting all this for creating a simple case study.
3. Show Them That You Care
You don’t want to ask, ask, ask. At some point, you need to give back to the customers who have helped boost your business. You can do this in many ways. For example, it only costs a few dollars to buy and mail a thank you card. Add a personal message thanking your customer for everything they have done.
If you don’t mind spending a few dollars to say thanks, send your primary contact a gift. There are many ideas, ranging from inexpensive to expensive, to consider.
Tip: depending on your industry, sales approach, and resources, you may want to setup an affiliate program. This gives customers even more incentive to push your product, as they receive a percentage of each sale they are responsible for. Here is an excellent guide on how to setup your own affiliate marketing program.
Example: there is an affiliate program out there for every small business. Your job is to choose the one that is best for you and your customers. GetApp tracks the top small business affiliate marketing software, making it simple for business owners to implement the right solution.
When you show customers that you care, such as by paying a fee for each referral, you can guarantee they will work behind the scenes for you.
Related Article: Customer Delight: The New Standard in Customer Service
4. Don’t be Shy
In addition to the above, this is definitely worth mentioning: don’t be shy when asking your customers for assistance. This doesn’t mean you should be overbearing. This doesn’t mean you should expect your customers to work for free.
Here is what it means: it is likely that your best customers are more than willing to help you out. All you have to do is explain what you need, and of course, make the process as simple as possible. When you turn this into a mutually beneficial endeavor and follow-up with a thank you, everybody will be happy in the end.
What do you think about this strategy? Are you ready to turn your happiest customers into a killer sales team?
Spreading Cheer: How to Turn Happy Customers Into Your New Killer Sales Team
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