In the last post I was discussing the issue of what happens when people talk about you and/or your products.
In this post, I want to talk about how to get the conversation started.
I often think that businesses treat their customers as transactions or problems – not as people. If, just for a moment, you thought of your customer as a person with all the needs, wants and desires of your average human, I’m sure that would change the way in which you did business with them. Furthermore, I’m sure that it would change the way in which they thought, felt and dealt with you.
(I’m not a huge fan of Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs – I think the model simplifies too much – but it is everywhere and provides a useful signpost for people to gather around.)
So begin with thinking about “What do I need as a human being in order to feel good?”
If you ask this question enough times to enough different people, chances are that eventually you’ll be able to narrow it down to a few mega-themes; and one of those mega-themes is likely to be: I would like to be liked.
Q. So how do you demonstrate to someone (your client) that you like them?
A1. Ask your best friend.
A2. Better still, think about how your best friend treats you.
Chances are, your friend will give you thoughtful little gifts from time to time. Chances are that they will write to you from time to time. Chances are they will call you from time to time. Chances are that they will think about you from time to time. Chances are…. you get the idea.
So how do you turn that process into something that your clients will love, and that will get them raving about you?
A good friend of mine is an architect. Bloody talented too, and we were talking about how he might be able to ‘touch’ his clients in a way so that they feel more connected with him and his firm…
He was talking about the process that he goes through when he designs for his clients. Particularly he was talking about the idea generation process and what it means to be able to get an idea out of someone’s head and onto a piece of paper.
Now, I’ve seen him sketch ideas before – countless times – and each time I’m impressed. I wish I could do that. I wish I could share that with my friends. It’s so personal. It’s ‘just for me’.
BAM: I was just touched.
So how can my Architect friend keep touching his clients? Well, what about a thoughtful, personalised set of cards/note pads/somethings that has some of the images from the idea generation stage printed on it?
For example, below is an image of someone’s journal. Imagine (just for a second) that it was full of the scribbles, drafts or diagrams from the Idea Generation Process of my Architect friend.
He takes this book, gets the image scanned in hi-res ready for printing and then uses a print-on-demand service like this service from lulu.com to have those images turned into something personal – like a set of cards that his clients could use to send notes to their friends.
The cards become a social object. My Architect friend’s client feels touched, and he or she voluntarily uses the social object to begin a conversation with their friend. The conversation gets started and, hopefully, it continues in a positive fashion.
Publishing is no longer for the experts. Anyone with access to a half decent printer, a digital camera, some basic software and a guillotine can make this stuff – and it doesn’t have to cost the earth.
So what are you doing for your clients that will make them begin to talk about you?
