Today’s consumers look to social media as a prime way to reach out to businesses for customer service needs. From requesting help with a problem, to simple answers to product questions, many consumers take to platforms such as Twitter and Facebook.

Recently, Facebook upped the ante for businesses with a new way to communicate with customers that post to their Facebook wall. It comes with public accountability ratings to motivate businesses to pay attention to those customers and respond quickly.

In the past, when a business encountered a complaint on its Facebook page, it had to reply publicly and ask the customer to message the business to take the conversation into a more private setting. Of course, it was always the customer’s choice whether to comply, or continue to air their frustrations publicly on the company’s Facebook page.  The company could not initiate the private conversation – only the consumer could.

On August 5, Facebook began rolling out a new, more business-friendly way for companies to reply to customers. Now, when a consumer posts to a company’s Facebook page, the company can chose to either message the customer privately, or respond publicly. Presumably, this new feature is an effort by Facebook to allow businesses to communicate with unhappy customers without having to do so in a public setting. The trade-off is that Facebook will also hold businesses accountable for their non-responsiveness and make the results public.

Consumers visiting business Facebook pages will now know immediately if the company is paying attention and how responsive it is. Perhaps the page visitor is simply visiting to decide if they wish to do business with the company. It certainly won’t impress them if the business is labeled as unresponsive. To qualify for the “very responsive to messages” label, companies must respond to “90 percent of messages and have a median response time of less than five minutes.” That’s a pretty tall order for most companies. But, through the various notification tools and apps, isn’t impossible.

If a company chooses to message privately, rather than reply publicly, the customer’s post indicates to other visitors that “the business responded privately.”  In this way, other Page visitors can know that the business handled the request. There are certainly occasions when a company may find it more appropriate to respond privately, such as customer complaints, grievances or concerns. Facebook seems to recognize that some situations are more delicate than others and does not differentiate between public versus private replies when calculating a company’s responsiveness rating.

It is imperative to be responsive to your customer’s concerns. Not just because it’s one of the most basic good business practices, but also because it is one of the first steps in building brand loyalty. If customers see that a business is responsive to their (or others) needs, they can then gain the impression that the business cares about its customers. Being labeled as unresponsive to customers could make a potential customer think twice about doing business with you. It could also show your current customers that you aren’t paying attention and leave the impression that you don’t care.

If your company hasn’t been paying attention to customers who post on your Facebook page, now would be a good time to start.

My primary goal as a PR Professional is to assist my clients in achieving the most exposure possible and build top-of-mind brand awareness among their potential customers, namely auto dealers. To help better understand how to best position my clients for success, last year, I did a little research into how dealers perceive vendors and their practices.

I reached out to Bobbie Herron, Digital Sales and Marketing Manager for the Garber Automotive Group. Herron was named to Automotive News’ “Retail 40 under 40” list last year, and she was kind enough to share a few things with me that vendors do to irritate her, causing them to potentially lose her business. She also shared some best practice tips on how vendors can better approach dealers.

The blog generated a lot of attention and received many responses, varying from agreement to complete irritation. In an effort to balance the scales, Bobbie agreed to a second interview in which she shares some of the things that she feels vendors do right -- that help catch her interest and earn and keep her business.

Here is what she had to say on the matter:

1.  “Be personal in your approach: When vendors reach out to me trying to entice me to look at a new product, all too often the initial contact is via an e-mail template. Many times my name is misspelled. Or they assume I’m a male. Some of these templates are horrible and full of grammar and/or spelling errors -- just really sloppy work. I don’t want to be made to feel as if I’m just some random person on some e-mail list that a vendor obtained - actually, quite the opposite. Vendors who take the time to e-mail me personally – not as part of some e-mail blast – will get my attention. If the e-mail impresses upon me that they have done their homework about Garber. If they have identified specific ways in which they feel their product can help my marketing efforts be more successful. And, if they portray a genuine interest in Garber, they will get my attention.
2. "Make me feel like I matter: People do business with people who make them feel important. I want a vendor to make me feel valuable. That I matter. Vendors can accomplish this by showing an interest in helping me use their product to its maximum potential. One way in which vendors can do this is through training. I’m not talking about webinars and conference calls, but rather in-store training with me and my whole team. It’s sad that there are times in which I find out about new features and products for services I already use by walking an exhibit hall at a conference. I purposefully walk an exhibit hall without my badge so that I can get honest demos (or sit in on one) from my existing vendors. Sometimes this is how I discover features I didn’t even know existed in my current services.”
3. “Pay regular visits: I absolutely love vendors who visit my store regularly – at least once a quarter – in order to come and teach me, and any new employees, about their product. Everyone needs refresher courses. And new employees need actual training. Who better to train them on these services than the reps? They know more about their product than I do. Vendors who do this prove to me that they have a genuine interest in the auto group’s success level.  I want a vendor to be my partner. I don’t want to be just be a sale, but want the vendor to care about our success just as much as we do. Instead of just selling us the farm, these vendors start with the meat of their product… the cows. We can plant corn in the next step of the improvement process. In addition, I love vendors who are willing to share information they have learned in the industry that could help us improve. Who knows their industry, products and best practices better than they do?”

4.  “Manage my expectations by providing good data: I want a vendor who sets and manages expectations for results and is clear on what those results are based on. I don’t want some vague reports where I have to attempt to gauge the ROI of their product or service. I want data that will give me a realistic ROI based on the areas that matter to me – not what their bosses tell them to share. I expect my vendors to ask me what data or reports matter to me. If they throw in a few additional reports that they think I should see, that’s fine. This is a collaboration; a partnership. By asking me what’s important, then providing that data, it shows me that they recognize that what I think is important is relevant.”

5. “Dealer Advisory Boards: I love vendors with dealer advisory boards. This shows me that they listen and give us (their dealers) a voice in building and improving their product. It’s not uncommon for vendors to focus on adding features that they think we want, when we’d rather see them tweaking their product for better or easier usability. It’s all about the customer experience. Vendors who listen, know their product, have great training and support, and give me a voice in building and improving their product, will keep my business.”
6. “Friendship: Finally, I love that, through my vendors, I am able to make amazing friends. Not only within their companies, but also within the industry itself. Friends that inspire me, motivate me and make me stronger as a professional, as well as an individual. That’s my absolute favorite part.”

I think Bobbie makes some excellent points and hope this serves in some way as useful information.

My primary goal as a PR Professional is to assist my clients in achieving the most exposure possible and build top-of-mind brand awareness among their potential customers, namely auto dealers. To help better understand how to best position my clients for success, last year, I did a little research into how dealers perceive vendors and their practices.

I reached out to Bobbie Herron, Digital Sales and Marketing Manager for the Garber Automotive Group. Herron was named to Automotive News’ “Retail 40 under 40” list last year, and she was kind enough to share a few things with me that vendors do to irritate her, causing them to potentially lose her business. She also shared some best practice tips on how vendors can better approach dealers.

The blog generated a lot of attention and received many responses, varying from agreement to complete irritation. In an effort to balance the scales, Bobbie agreed to a second interview in which she shares some of the things that she feels vendors do right -- that help catch her interest and earn and keep her business.

Here is what she had to say on the matter:

1.  “Be personal in your approach: When vendors reach out to me trying to entice me to look at a new product, all too often the initial contact is via an e-mail template. Many times my name is misspelled. Or they assume I’m a male. Some of these templates are horrible and full of grammar and/or spelling errors -- just really sloppy work. I don’t want to be made to feel as if I’m just some random person on some e-mail list that a vendor obtained - actually, quite the opposite. Vendors who take the time to e-mail me personally – not as part of some e-mail blast – will get my attention. If the e-mail impresses upon me that they have done their homework about Garber. If they have identified specific ways in which they feel their product can help my marketing efforts be more successful. And, if they portray a genuine interest in Garber, they will get my attention.
2. "Make me feel like I matter: People do business with people who make them feel important. I want a vendor to make me feel valuable. That I matter. Vendors can accomplish this by showing an interest in helping me use their product to its maximum potential. One way in which vendors can do this is through training. I’m not talking about webinars and conference calls, but rather in-store training with me and my whole team. It’s sad that there are times in which I find out about new features and products for services I already use by walking an exhibit hall at a conference. I purposefully walk an exhibit hall without my badge so that I can get honest demos (or sit in on one) from my existing vendors. Sometimes this is how I discover features I didn’t even know existed in my current services.”
3. “Pay regular visits: I absolutely love vendors who visit my store regularly – at least once a quarter – in order to come and teach me, and any new employees, about their product. Everyone needs refresher courses. And new employees need actual training. Who better to train them on these services than the reps? They know more about their product than I do. Vendors who do this prove to me that they have a genuine interest in the auto group’s success level.  I want a vendor to be my partner. I don’t want to be just be a sale, but want the vendor to care about our success just as much as we do. Instead of just selling us the farm, these vendors start with the meat of their product… the cows. We can plant corn in the next step of the improvement process. In addition, I love vendors who are willing to share information they have learned in the industry that could help us improve. Who knows their industry, products and best practices better than they do?”

4.  “Manage my expectations by providing good data: I want a vendor who sets and manages expectations for results and is clear on what those results are based on. I don’t want some vague reports where I have to attempt to gauge the ROI of their product or service. I want data that will give me a realistic ROI based on the areas that matter to me – not what their bosses tell them to share. I expect my vendors to ask me what data or reports matter to me. If they throw in a few additional reports that they think I should see, that’s fine. This is a collaboration; a partnership. By asking me what’s important, then providing that data, it shows me that they recognize that what I think is important is relevant.”

5. “Dealer Advisory Boards: I love vendors with dealer advisory boards. This shows me that they listen and give us (their dealers) a voice in building and improving their product. It’s not uncommon for vendors to focus on adding features that they think we want, when we’d rather see them tweaking their product for better or easier usability. It’s all about the customer experience. Vendors who listen, know their product, have great training and support, and give me a voice in building and improving their product, will keep my business.”
6. “Friendship: Finally, I love that, through my vendors, I am able to make amazing friends. Not only within their companies, but also within the industry itself. Friends that inspire me, motivate me and make me stronger as a professional, as well as an individual. That’s my absolute favorite part.”

I think Bobbie makes some excellent points and hope this serves in some way as useful information.

Content marketing, in general, can provide many valuable benefits. It can help create and maintain a brand presence; assist in search engine optimization; and position executives as thought leaders. It can also serve as a valuable source of information for both customers and potential customers.

There are many types of content marketing. Technically speaking, everything your business creates and publishes is content marketing. This can include such items as marketing pieces, videos, blog articles, articles published in trade magazines, social media posts -- you name it. If your audience sees it, chances are that it’s content marketing.

While most businesses understand the importance of content marketing, many get stuck when trying to make it an ongoing reality. Think of it as an extreme case of writer’s block. Someone is tasked to create this “content” but they don’t know what to create on a regular and ongoing basis. Some companies create comprehensive content marketing strategies, but then lack the creative time and resources, so they never get implemented. Others simply stare at a blank document without a clue as to where to start.

As a starting point, the focus of this blog is on one type of content marketing: a company blog.  Blogs are one of the easiest ways to produce and disseminate good content, but for some can be tricky to execute. Typically, the lack of execution is simply due to not having any ideas to write about.

Here are 4 basic tips to help establish a winning blog:

1. Provide Useful Content – Companies and individuals that focus on providing an audience with useful information will see more engaged and loyal followers. Customers generally appreciate the time and effort it takes to produce quality material. Providing useful information helps to gain the trust of your audience and further positions you as an industry expert.
2. Provide Timely Information – A good company blog should also share relevant industry news accompanied by commentary and analysis on how this news affects your specific industry. It’s wonderful that you’re sharing Google’s latest algorithm change, but how will that affect your customers? Remember that YOU are the experts. That’s why your customers are interested in what you have to say.
3. Blogs as a Human Resources Tool – Blogs can help drive in prospective new hires. Just as you do research on applicants, applicants will also do some research on you. Your blog can provide valuable insight into your beliefs and company culture. A good mix of content will show potential employees that you care about your staff, customers and the industry as a whole.  I have heard of cases where blogs have been an important part of the decision process for prospective employees.
4. Educational Value – While your blog should not solely serve as a marketing platform to promote your products and services, it CAN from time to time be used as a tool to provide customers with educational material about your company. For example, when something changes – a new feature is introduced, a new model is unveiled, or a new service is offered. In this way, your blog can be a great venue to help keep your customers informed.  Just be sure to strike a good balance -- don’t use your blog as purely a promotional platform. If you do, you will quickly loose readers.

If you choose to integrate a blog into your website (which is where it should be, by the way) be consistent in publishing. Consistency breeds expectation. There’s nothing worse than having a company blog in which the last post is months or years old. It shows apathy as well as a lack of commitment. And those are not favorable attributes for any business to be projecting. This type of blog just helps to drive customers away. Decide how much you want to publish and then determine how often. Choose a day of the week and ensure that you are always publishing on that day. Your customers will start looking forward to the articles, as will the potential new customers.

One last key piece of advice: Please do watch spelling and grammar, as you would with any communication you wish your customers and potential new customers to view. 

Blogs don’t have to be long, nor do they have to be masterpieces of literature.   Show your personality and start a conversation: that’s how great relationships are built!

Content marketing, in general, can provide many valuable benefits. It can help create and maintain a brand presence; assist in search engine optimization; and position executives as thought leaders. It can also serve as a valuable source of information for both customers and potential customers.

There are many types of content marketing. Technically speaking, everything your business creates and publishes is content marketing. This can include such items as marketing pieces, videos, blog articles, articles published in trade magazines, social media posts -- you name it. If your audience sees it, chances are that it’s content marketing.

While most businesses understand the importance of content marketing, many get stuck when trying to make it an ongoing reality. Think of it as an extreme case of writer’s block. Someone is tasked to create this “content” but they don’t know what to create on a regular and ongoing basis. Some companies create comprehensive content marketing strategies, but then lack the creative time and resources, so they never get implemented. Others simply stare at a blank document without a clue as to where to start.

As a starting point, the focus of this blog is on one type of content marketing: a company blog.  Blogs are one of the easiest ways to produce and disseminate good content, but for some can be tricky to execute. Typically, the lack of execution is simply due to not having any ideas to write about.

Here are 4 basic tips to help establish a winning blog:

1. Provide Useful Content – Companies and individuals that focus on providing an audience with useful information will see more engaged and loyal followers. Customers generally appreciate the time and effort it takes to produce quality material. Providing useful information helps to gain the trust of your audience and further positions you as an industry expert.
2. Provide Timely Information – A good company blog should also share relevant industry news accompanied by commentary and analysis on how this news affects your specific industry. It’s wonderful that you’re sharing Google’s latest algorithm change, but how will that affect your customers? Remember that YOU are the experts. That’s why your customers are interested in what you have to say.
3. Blogs as a Human Resources Tool – Blogs can help drive in prospective new hires. Just as you do research on applicants, applicants will also do some research on you. Your blog can provide valuable insight into your beliefs and company culture. A good mix of content will show potential employees that you care about your staff, customers and the industry as a whole.  I have heard of cases where blogs have been an important part of the decision process for prospective employees.
4. Educational Value – While your blog should not solely serve as a marketing platform to promote your products and services, it CAN from time to time be used as a tool to provide customers with educational material about your company. For example, when something changes – a new feature is introduced, a new model is unveiled, or a new service is offered. In this way, your blog can be a great venue to help keep your customers informed.  Just be sure to strike a good balance -- don’t use your blog as purely a promotional platform. If you do, you will quickly loose readers.

If you choose to integrate a blog into your website (which is where it should be, by the way) be consistent in publishing. Consistency breeds expectation. There’s nothing worse than having a company blog in which the last post is months or years old. It shows apathy as well as a lack of commitment. And those are not favorable attributes for any business to be projecting. This type of blog just helps to drive customers away. Decide how much you want to publish and then determine how often. Choose a day of the week and ensure that you are always publishing on that day. Your customers will start looking forward to the articles, as will the potential new customers.

One last key piece of advice: Please do watch spelling and grammar, as you would with any communication you wish your customers and potential new customers to view. 

Blogs don’t have to be long, nor do they have to be masterpieces of literature.   Show your personality and start a conversation: that’s how great relationships are built!

Things change. There’s no getting around that. The most effective marketing strategy in the world can be rendered ineffective in a day by an algorithm change. Or your thriving Facebook page could become a ghost town due to the monetization of Facebook. The only constant in the world is people’s desire for content. Content comes in many forms. In fact, everything you put out into the world as a business is your content – from advertisements, to press releases, blog articles and webinars – all of these are meant to be consumed and shape who you are as a business.

Google recognizes this. That is why it has begun to place more value on relevant content than anything else. Most businesses recognize that they need content and every day more are jumping onto the content marketing bandwagon. The problem is that many marketers don’t understand why they are producing content and what the end game really is. The easy answer to that question is: to increase sales through exposure. While at its very basic level that has a bit of truth to it, unless there’s an understanding of how to do it, this content production is doomed.

An effective content marketing strategy should not be tailored towards the instant sale. Content marketing is designed to increase exposure over time. It’s a soft sell approach to engaging your audience and building relationships. The largest benefactor of content marketing is your business. Rich, fresh and relevant content builds value in your website. It increases your digital footprint through SEO. If your content is well written and relevant, people will read it. Other sources may even begin to syndicate it and share it with their audience. Great content can transform your business’s executives into thought leaders. Producing that content consistently can achieve anticipation and familiarity. All of this increases the chances that the prospect you wish to attract, who may not yet be ready for your solution, remembers you when the time is right.

While there are many types of content you can produce, here are some ideas to get you started:

1)    First, ensure that you have foundational content. This type of content serves to identify your businesses core values and beliefs. It defines who you are and assists in creating your business identity. An easy way to understand what this content would be is to decide what you want every customer who visits your blog to see when they visit.

2)    The next type of content to consider is topical and/or industry-related articles. With the death of Google reader, it has become more difficult for people to find and keep up with information. This type of content serves to provide a valuable source of information for your audience and the opportunity to provide related insight.

3)    Last, but certainly not least, thought-provoking content can engage audiences and start conversations. Any content that makes your audience think about what you wrote also serves to further connect them to you and solidify that connection.

While this is certainly not a list of all of the types of content you could be producing, it should certainly help get you well on your way to developing a solid content marketing strategy. A good mixture of these types of articles will help your audience get to know you as a business, position you as a source of relevant information and build relationships by making your audience think.

Things change. There’s no getting around that. The most effective marketing strategy in the world can be rendered ineffective in a day by an algorithm change. Or your thriving Facebook page could become a ghost town due to the monetization of Facebook. The only constant in the world is people’s desire for content. Content comes in many forms. In fact, everything you put out into the world as a business is your content – from advertisements, to press releases, blog articles and webinars – all of these are meant to be consumed and shape who you are as a business.

Google recognizes this. That is why it has begun to place more value on relevant content than anything else. Most businesses recognize that they need content and every day more are jumping onto the content marketing bandwagon. The problem is that many marketers don’t understand why they are producing content and what the end game really is. The easy answer to that question is: to increase sales through exposure. While at its very basic level that has a bit of truth to it, unless there’s an understanding of how to do it, this content production is doomed.

An effective content marketing strategy should not be tailored towards the instant sale. Content marketing is designed to increase exposure over time. It’s a soft sell approach to engaging your audience and building relationships. The largest benefactor of content marketing is your business. Rich, fresh and relevant content builds value in your website. It increases your digital footprint through SEO. If your content is well written and relevant, people will read it. Other sources may even begin to syndicate it and share it with their audience. Great content can transform your business’s executives into thought leaders. Producing that content consistently can achieve anticipation and familiarity. All of this increases the chances that the prospect you wish to attract, who may not yet be ready for your solution, remembers you when the time is right.

While there are many types of content you can produce, here are some ideas to get you started:

1)    First, ensure that you have foundational content. This type of content serves to identify your businesses core values and beliefs. It defines who you are and assists in creating your business identity. An easy way to understand what this content would be is to decide what you want every customer who visits your blog to see when they visit.

2)    The next type of content to consider is topical and/or industry-related articles. With the death of Google reader, it has become more difficult for people to find and keep up with information. This type of content serves to provide a valuable source of information for your audience and the opportunity to provide related insight.

3)    Last, but certainly not least, thought-provoking content can engage audiences and start conversations. Any content that makes your audience think about what you wrote also serves to further connect them to you and solidify that connection.

While this is certainly not a list of all of the types of content you could be producing, it should certainly help get you well on your way to developing a solid content marketing strategy. A good mixture of these types of articles will help your audience get to know you as a business, position you as a source of relevant information and build relationships by making your audience think.