In the old days (before the Internet) you went to work. You did your job. You saw your patients. You sold people cars. You painted houses or fixed their air-conditioning.
People liked your work and told their friends. You got new customers and grew your business.
Easy Peasy. Build it, and they will come. Do a good job and business will follow.
But, maybe that was never the way it worked. Have you forgotten about all of the other, more expensive marketing tools we had to rely on to expand our visibility and increase business?
Remember… People bought ads in magazines. They advertised on billboards. It was always great to get a coveted feature in the newspaper. Physicians paid to get a profile as a doctor of the year in a local city magazine. People wrote articles, sponsored Little League teams, put the name of their dealerships on the back of each of the cars they sold.
You may not like Internet marketing. It may seem foreign to you, especially if you are a proud Luddite or somewhat technically challenged. But think about it. The tools we have today level the playing field and give everyone a chance to have their voices heard no matter if they don’t have big budgets for marketing.
The Internet provides us with a platform to share our ideas, our stories, our successes, and dreams with an audience hungry for what we have to offer. And, it gives our clients, customers, and patients the ability to get the word out for us!
Of course, we do need to be doing a good job and provide excellent customer service so that the message they share is a positive one. But, if you’re are doing a good job and people like it why not ask them for a review, and help them get the word out, not just with their immediate family friends and neighbors, but for anyone searching for the type of service you provide?
According to one of our new clients, Reputation Sensei, that helps companies increase the number and quality of their reviews, 91% of people looking for a new service provider will check the online reviews before making a decision and 84% trust an online review as much as they would a review from a friend. You can’t afford to ignore these figures.
You can’t win if you don’t play. So, go ahead and get in the game.
