By: Richard Earls
Way back when, insightful observers like our good friend Nolan Burris were telling everyone the
The same principles informing good networking, work of mouth, advertising, brand management and customer relationships are the cornerstone of social media marketing as well. But what is really fascinating is the way in which those individual disciplines all come together in a clearly observable matrix in social media marketing. So this week we will look at five very important marketing rules regardless of whether you are posting on Facebook or greeting travelers in the lobby of your hotel.
In all instances, it is about engaging the public and forming a relationship.
Key #1 The Concept of a Relationship is Central.
When you greet a client at a trade show or you answer a question on Facebook, you take the first step in forming a relationship by engaging the client. You give them your time, you demonstrate an interest in their needs and how you can meet those needs. You have to make it personal to the client. The client is the center of the universe. Not your company, not your awards or the number of employees you have. What does the client need? Figure that out and then make it clear you can meet that need better than anyone else. Which leads us right into the next point.
Key #2 Great Companies Inspire their Customers.
Be exceptional at what you do and communicate your unique abilities. Learn to involve the client in the story of travel, of their own life-long adventure. The client should be absolutely convinced by virtue of your company’s unique selling points no other company can do a better job at meeting their needs. When you fulfill those expectations not only do you have a client for life, you likely have an evangelist who will recommend you to others. Inspire the client by hitting their emotional hotspots. When they think of travel – they will think of you. You don’t have to sell travel, your clients already want to travel. By inspiring them, by becoming the facilitator of their dreams, they will want to travel with you. Inspire people, and then show them how to better live the inspiration.
Key #3 Carry on a Two Way Conversation.
Here is where social media has best highlighted fundamental marketing principles. With social media, input from customers is immediate, public, and thereby amplified. Far from avoiding criticism, the company must actually develop a culture of soliciting feedback. Moreover, merely going through the motions of taking in complaints is not enough. Your travel company must live an ethic of continual adjustment to client needs and input. This can only be accomplished by developing a system of taking in commentary, responding to the clients for clarification, internal improvement, and adjustment and then responding to the reaction of your adjustments. It’s a continual process of refinement and care – just as any relationship might be!
Key #4 Every Point of Client Contact is Important.
The impression clients have of your brand is the cumulative effect of every point where the public comes into contact with your company. Here is where you have the greatest control over your brand. Every post you make, every time you are seen in public, each and every customer service effort, is another brick in the wall. Continual maintenance and forethought are necessary to crafting the brand you hope to project.
Key #5 Intentionally Work on Your Branding!
You project an image of your brand whether deliberately or not and at the core of that image is your corporate personality. When you do so intentionally, the public is more likely to understand your brand the way you want them to understand you. A lot of good things can come from brand maintenance, and it all begins with a very clear articulation of your mission statement.
Remember, yours is not just a profit driven company. Your company is a brand with a mission and a core set of values. Make those values your brand, and do so deliberately.
Richard Earls has spent the last 24 years in the travel industry as an agency owner, a technologist, a publisher and a writer. The publishing credits to Richard’s resume are many, including Weissmann Travel Reports, STAR Service, Intelliguide, BTP24, Voyager Travel Guides and Travel Research Online. He is currently self-unemployed.
Learn how to become a home based travel agent and open your own online travel agency. www.HomeBasedTravelAgents.ORG
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