Kevin Daum is the best selling author of Video Marketing for Dummies and ROAR ! Get Heard in the Sales and Marketing Jungle ; and columnist for Inc . com and Contributing Editor at Young Presidents ’ Organization ( YPO ). Mr . Daum is an Inc . 500 CEO , with more than $ 1 billion in sales record , who grew his online audience from 50,000 followers to more than 800,000 in less than 18 months .
can quickly make older businesses irrelevant . Patrick and his company are constantly adjusting so that they always deliver top-notch customer service .
We work hard to differentiate our customer service from our competitors so that we create consumer preference in each of the specific customer segments we compete in . Certain customer segments respond better to low prices , others to discounts and promos , others to a more exclusive product mix , others to a more valuedriven product offering , and others to a more personalized customer experience .
5 . SEEK OUT MUTUALLY BENEFICIAL BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES . You can only grow so far and fast on your own . Devlyn looked beyond its own capabilities to those who could offer exponential growth .
We started by creating a commercial alliance with Sears to manage their optical department in most of the Sears stores in Mexico . Now we have more than fourteen commercial alliances . Other commercial alliance opportunities have led us to opening optical shops in major supermarket chains , low-segment department stores , and in the leading luxury department store chain in Mexico .
6 . GET TO KNOW YOUR CUSTOMERS TODAY . When Patrick ’ s company first opened its doors , there was no such thing as social media . Patrick saw the trend as a way to learn more about to whom he was selling .
By precisely segmenting our target customers , we ’ ve been able to engage customers in conversations that are more relevant to them . This helps us sensibly increase our average “ ticket spend ” as well as reduce the time it takes for our customer to return to our opticals .
7 . GIVE BACK TO YOUR COMMUNITY . When the community has shown you support for many generations , it becomes important for those generations to support the community . Patrick explained the family approach .
The Devlyn Foundation ’ s beginnings truly come from one of our founder ’ s values . As my grandmother used to say , ‘ Always help those who are in need .’ Although we have always engaged in socially responsible activities , during the mid-1990s , we formally created the Devlyn Foundation . Led by my cousin Jessica , the Foundation can achieve our charitable goals in a much more professional and sustainable fashion . We hold events to support people in need of glasses . We do so independently as well as through alliances with our business partners , like Optometry Giving Sight , One Sight , and FedEx . u
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