How-to: Connect With Your Customers

Defined as “an unpaid form of promotion in which satisfied customers tell other people how much they like a business, product or service, ” word-of-mouth advertising has, and always will be, one of the most credible forms of advertising for your business.

With the launch of social media–the new word-of-mouth advertising–your brand ambassadors have a much larger platform to share the love. They’re tweeting and blogging about your business. And if you aren’t listening, you’re missing out on an opportunity to connect with your customers AND build your brand reputation.

But how do you do it? I thought you’d never ask.

Here are a just few guidelines to get you started:

• Listen to the buzz about you, your company, and your industry
• Identify where people are talking about you
• Reach out and make friends, and engage in the conversation
• Build your online community and invite your “friends
• Create and share relevant content
• Rinse and repeat

If you aren’t participating in conversations and growing relationships on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc, I can assure you your target audience is …and more importantly, your competitors are!

Building a tribe takes time, but the best place to start is with your happy customers.

What are you doing to stay connected with your customers?

Do you have social media questions? Follow me on Twitter, LIKE me on Facebook, or connect with me on LinkedIn. I’d love to “meet” you!