Obtaining and retaining loyal customers is about developing relationships. Companies spend $millions annually on advertising, hoping to influence the buying habits of their prospective customers. Advertising does not build relationships, it only hopes to influence the moment and convert those few seconds into a buying decision for a product. Word of Mouth (WOM) is the…
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In 2005 I consulted for a start-up that was owned by an entrepreneur who had a public relations back ground. I learned the value of good Public Relations (PR) and since then I have always consider it the next best form of advertising. I believe the best form of advertising is word of mouth. PR…
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We conducted a survey of several Puget Sound companies asking them which area of their business caused them the greatest concern. The issue rated the highest was the failure to introduce successful new products. When asking these companies to explain why they see this issue as their greatest challenge, the responses were as diverse as…
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There are many misconceptions as to what is marketing and what it can do for an organization. Marketing is best described as a process intended to increase the perceived value and to stimulate demand for a product. A product, in our case, will mean both a physical product and a service, which is then translated…
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Marketing and sales are often used in the same sentence as though they were synonymous. This happens frequently enough that many organizations structure these functions into the same department and cost centers. Being combined in this manner is not a major issue for most organizations, as long as they understand the true functional differences between…
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