Let’s Make Personal Business Connections Again

Making that sincere connection is always important. We nurture it in our private lives enough to include it in our business activities, though it’s not always clear how it should manifest in the latter. Getting it right is the challenge, particularly as technology makes us feel more in touch. We’ve gotten good at mastering the ever-evolving opportunities in the social media-sphere. But how is that really coming along?

Many words have been tapped out examining whether or not technology is doing the opposite of its intent. Is the digital connection replacing crucial human contact? We don’t know the answer, but we like ruminating on it because it gives us a chance to toss around some ideas.

Does Your Average Customer Interaction Have That One-on-One Feel?

If you run a business you understand the value of collaboration. Your enterprise has a lot of moving parts, and you rely on many other personalities—consultants, experts, maybe even a guru—to keep things humming along, and so you can focus on what you’re good at. Thanks to mass communication, business now utilizes customer feedback more widely than before things like beta testing and online user reviews. You don’t simply pour some tonic in a bottle, slap a label on it, then tell your customers why they need it. To give your business a fighting chance, you find out what flavor of tonic they’re looking for, or even what shape bottle they’d prefer. In short, you listen to your customers.

Obviously, every business is a little different, so these tips come in broad terms. But reaching out with personalized communications and assuring your customers you value their feedback fosters trust. This article that caught our eye delves into tapping the customer’s emotions, which heads in the right direction, but it can get a little manipulative if not handled with care. We’re suggesting building that relationship of trust with business practices that say, “Hey, we heard you, and this is what we’re doing to better serve you.” We’re  thinking in a more targeted way than those sweeping advertisements—which, face it, are all about the business. We’re talking about capturing attention based on a core shared principle, or a personal promise or guarantee—which becomes about the customer and her needs.

Some Tools To Consider

That Forbes article mentions technology, which of course is always an important aspect of any successful enterprise, but it’s worth noting that ‘technology’ comes in many forms. Papyrus, cave walls, iron oxide, and charcoal are all technologies of a sort. Having said that, as we roll into 2019, here are a few of the many facets of our business’ personas we might be able to maximize or just freshen up:

• “About Us” Page: When was the last time you updated it? Has your company changed management structure? Is it too long? Does it really speak to your current and potential customers? This can be a great repository for little seeds of information about your organization when the content there is true to form and well-crafted.
• Facebook Cover Image: “Above the fold” is valuable real estate. Many designers will argue that a great image is the number one best way to present your products or services, that text is unnecessary. Others favor a text/image combination to deliver a compelling message. Ultimately, you’ll decide if a tagline or contact info, or other text makes sense for your cover image. You can also load it with a slideshow or video. This blog post is from 2017, but the 7 tips are well-thought out and still hold true today in our humble opinion.
• Handwritten Correspondence: If you’ve been relying on email and other digital media for a while, maybe it’s time to upgrade to the ultimate personal communication—Thank You notes and seasonal printed greetings—the original technology. Use these to remind your customers of your contact information, or just to acknowledge their contribution to your business.

It’s all about technologies putting us in touch with our friends in the business community, and keeping us connected. Of course, none of this replaces a job well done, but it’s nice to know these personal touches are running in the background while we’re busy doing what we’re good at.