Small Business Today Magazine FEB 2015 TAYLOR CONSTRUCTION MANAGMENT | Page 35

EDITORIALFEATURE

Love vs. Lust: Long-Term Marketing                     

Success Trumps the One-Night Brand
By Aimee Woodall

O

h the thrill of the chase!  When you meet
someone new it’s all snap, crackle, and pop. 
You’re getting to know each other and
it’s EXCITING.  Then things start becoming complacent.  You know your brand has your
audience’s attention; so now what?  You need
something different; something new.  So you start
focusing on grabbing a new audience’s attention
and ignore the ones you already have.  Welcome
to the life of the one-night brand1

Not content to create a lasting relationship
with customers, the one-night brand goes after every hot young thing that saunters onto
its Twitter feed.   It’s all about flash and dazzle
and romancing new conquests.  Like the local
bar lothario, the one-night brand fails to invest
in its audience, going instead for shiny new customers and ignoring those who are tried and
true.  Don’t be like that.  Set your sites on the
long term.  Look for a more meaningful relationship with your audience.

Here are some sure-fire ways to keep things interesting and make a real connection:

Define Your Ideal Match

Is your perfect customer an avid Twitter user?  Or
are they more of the strong, silent type, content
to just like or follow without describing exactly
how their day was in 140 characters?  More importantly, do they share your values; your sense of
humor?  Like filling out a Match.com profile, you
need to know what you’re looking for before you
start to woo.  Look to your customer data and
see what trends emerge.  It’s very likely that you’ll
be surprised by what kind of people you really
connect with.

Plan the Perfect “Date”

Once you know who you’re looking for, it’s time
to be strategic.  You want to reach your audience in the right ways; planning experiences and
interactions that are real, delightful, and engaging.  Don’t just grab some grocery store roses

and think you’re sweeping them off their feet;
create a plan of action to reach your audiences in the ways they want to be communicated
with.  A strategy that contains research about
your audience, your core messaging, plans for
outreach (online and off), and tactics for executing those plans is essential for making sure your
brand is thinking through all the ways you can
make your customers feel special.

Make a Commitment

With your perfect ma