What’s the Most Important?
I tend to over-exaggerate a little bit, especially when I write for the Affinity Media Partners blog. But it doesn’t make the things I say any less true. For example, I have previously said that customer satisfaction is everything. I’ve also said that public image is everything and that word of mouth is everything. And while these are all true, they can’t all be everything. So, which is truly the most important?Let’s discuss.
Customer satisfaction is crucial because without it, you have no business. Plus, then there will be many negative feelings out there for other possible customers to see as well, leading to potentially more unsatisfied customers.
Public image is very important and sort of ties into customer satisfaction. If people have a not-so-great perception of your business, that’s less business you’re going to get. There are a million other companies that do what you do, that offer what you offer and who claim to be as good as you claim to be. They will not hesitate to use someone else if they have even the slightest questionable feelings toward your company.
Finally, I’ve said that word of mouth is everything. And it is pretty important. Word of mouth, again, goes back to your public image which goes back to customer satisfaction. It seems as though all of those are really, just one thing broken down into more simpler pieces. That basic thing is how well you do what you say you do. If you’re good, then your customers will be satisfied. If your customers are satisfied, you will have a good public image and a good public image will promote positive word of mouth. And so, we’ve narrowed it down to being the best in the business. Which is probably what you were striving for anyway.
Why Psychology Plays an Important Part
I minored in psychology in college and people often ask how or why I got into marketing. And I tell them that it actually helps on an almost daily basis. You have to realize that marketing and advertising is completely objective and that people are funny sometimes. You can never guarantee something where people are involved.
But at least knowing that there will be those little things you can’t change, should make the task of target segmenting easier. Getting into people’s heads is key to developing a strategy – all the while remembering you won’t get them all.
Everyone is unique and has different loyalties, different preferences, different opinions. And they’re different for a reason. Whether it’s biology, life experiences, understanding or just plain ignorance, it’s still different. The solution to this is to get them to ingest the message and they will then decide to buy or not and all you can do is get that message into their heads…
Want to Work at Affinity Media Partners?
Come join our team! We are always looking for creative and positive people to be a part of the Affinity Media workplace. From graphic designers to video editors, we have a job that will fit your media passion. If you are artistic and like to have fun on the job then we are looking for you! Visit our website at http://affinitymediapartners.com/ and send your resume today!
Advertising a Marketing Company
As a marketing company, we have to be very careful of what we say and how we say it. Which causes problems for our advertising department. We cannot just come right out and say that we’re better than our competitors because it’s considered taboo and tacky to do so. It’s been proven that doing just that causes consumers to skip over your brand and go to the next one, simply because they view that as “being rude”.
Working in this industry for many years, I personally, don’t understand why someone would think it’s rude to be competitive. You need competition in order to lower costs. If there wasn’t any, we’d all be paying an arm and a leg for everything we purchase. Okay, well not everyone needs to hire an advertising and marketing company. Understandable. But how to market to the people that do?
Be different. Be honest. Be what they need. That’s how you do it; with a little bit of finesse and finagling on the side. In this way, you’ll satisfy your customers and attract potential ones. A great first step to advertising a marketing company.
Flexibility is Everything
If you’ve read any of my posts, you’ll notice a trend I have that something important is ‘everything’ every week. And I guess the most important one of these is flexibility. It’s vital. If you are flexible, you will maximize not only what you can get done in a day, but also everything else that needs to be done. That’s the beauty of being flexible.
In today’s economy, the need to for flexibility is even more important because you have to be everything to your customers. They will go someplace else in a heartbeat and replacing them may not be possible. It’s the nature of the beast, if you will, and boy is the beast vicious.
So here is a tip for becoming more flexible. Get organized. The best way to be flexible is to quickly analyze what you have on your plate. Then finish the tasks that are most important. When something else comes up that is pending and needs to be done, do it and then go back and finish the first thing. But make a note of it! It takes about two seconds to remind yourself of what you need to do and may possibly be the most helpful two seconds of your day.
Customer Satisfaction at Affinity Media Partners
Customer satisfaction is everything. Bottom line, you have to please your customers or you will cease to have customers. There is a line to be drawn when they start taking advantage of your willingness to please, and then you should say no. But then, and only then, should you be any kind of harsh, firm, stubborn, unsympathetic, etc.
You want your customers to want to return and you should really want them to love the good or service you offer. If they don’t, no word of mouth will happen and less distribution of your company name will get spread. I don’t have to tell you how important that is, you already know that.
So, be there for your customers. Be there when they have a question or concern and be there for them after the transaction has finished. Don’t forget about that part, it may be more important than landing their business in the first place. Because you can’t really annoy someone who has never been yours versus infuriating a customer who will tell everyone about it.
Affinity Media Partners Trick of the Trade
When it comes to marketing and advertising, you have to realize that public image is everything. And when it comes to life, you have to realize that perception is reality. Put those two together and what have you got? When it comes to your public image, the public’s perception is reality.
No matter who you are or how much good your company has done, if someone has heard of even one negative thing, that’s who you are to them. The good news is, not forever.
Now, what does that mean for you? You have to get on board with the fact that people may not see your business the way you think they do, or in the way you want them to. The good news is that you can change that.
So how to change your company image? Promote the heck out of it. The more your name is in front of the public, the more change they have of checking you out themselves, instead of letting other’s dictate who you are. And be sure to get people to remember it. That’s the important part.
Spread, gossip. Spread!
Word of mouth is everything. That’s how our business started to grow and how many small companies should utilize this free yet genuine marketing strategy. And you want it to be genuine. When people talk about you and your companies’ efforts, you want the feeling that gets conveyed to be authentic; real. You never want to have advertising seem fake or insincere.
This is a huge tip we tell people who are looking for a cheap or at least, inexpensive way to get their name out there. And that’s what we do at Affinity Media Partners. We work hard to produce marketing approaches that will conquer our clients’ industry.
How does word of mouth get started? Well for us, it started with a compliment. Someone commented on a client’s website and they mentioned our name in reference to the design. That person then visited our site and it took off from there. Clients are usually happy to pass along your name and help you market your business.
Remember, the easiest way to get your company’s name out in the general public, is to spread it virally, by word of mouth. And who better to start that snowball than you, the person closest to the goings on of the company.
AffinityMediaPartners's Blog 