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Our customer relationships section provides the information we need to create our marketing and sales plans. In this video, we're going to explore the different types of customer relationships in my freelance business and how they can help our business.
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Okay, so now I know my value proposition
and customer segments.
0:00
Now I need to think about my channels.
0:04
How do I get ahold of my customer?
0:08
In our previous videos, we broke down the
channels into five steps.
0:10
Let's do the same.
0:14
The first step is awareness.
0:16
How should I raise awareness of my
services?
0:18
I define my customer as someone with no
online presence.
0:21
So I think I should focus on reaching them
through some traditional methods.
0:25
I can place ads at the local small
business administration or
0:29
Chamber of Commerce.
0:32
And that might work, but how often does
someone go into their Chamber of Commerce?
0:33
A better strategy might be to attend local
events where I
0:38
could find my ideal customer.
0:40
Or even better yet, go directly to their
place of business.
0:42
This might seem cumbersome and I, for one,
0:46
hate cold calling, but when starting out,
you have to build your network somewhere.
0:48
I'm also going to go through some more
modern channels like Google Ads to try and
0:53
target those customers that may look
online.
0:57
Next, I need to let my customers evaluate
[SOUND] my value proposition so
1:00
that they can make a decision.
1:04
My best option is to build a really good
portfolio page that highlights some of
1:06
the other work I've done.
1:11
Since I'm entering the market for the
first time, I'm going to reach out to
1:12
my existing network and build a website
for friends so I can showcase my skills.
1:16
And the next step in this channel is
[SOUND] delivery.
1:22
How am I going to get my clients the final
product?
1:25
Taking my typical customer into account, I
don't think they'll be able to
1:28
handle anything on the web, given their
lack of experience.
1:32
So I think I'll handle delivery.
1:35
And by that, I mean getting the website
online and doing all the hosting.
1:37
Come to think of it, if I'm going to do
all that, I should be consistent and
1:41
add that to my value proposition.
1:45
So in addition to designing and
1:48
implementing websites, my value
proposition will include hosting,
1:49
maintenance, and any other delivery or
post-purchase service.
1:53
Now that I have defined my value
proposition, my typical customer and
1:58
the ways I can reach them, I should be
able to define my customer relationships.
2:02
In our previous videos,
2:07
we also broke down customer relationships
to a few different types.
2:09
The first was regarding acquisition
[SOUND] strategies.
2:13
Or in more simple speak, our marketing
ideas.
2:16
We kind of went over them briefly when we
discussed our channels and
2:19
where we could find our typical customer.
2:22
This is more about specific strategies we
have.
2:25
In my case, the most reliable marketing
strategy is word of mouth and
2:29
personal connections, so that's where I am
going to focus most of my efforts,
2:33
getting out there, meeting people and
establishing my name.
2:37
There are many indirect ways I could do
this than just plastering ads.
2:41
I could talk at local events.
2:45
I could run workshops and
2:46
even take on projects that lead to client
introductions in the future.
2:48
Next, we have retention [SOUND]
activities.
2:52
Keeping existing clients happy is a very
important part of your business.
2:55
You can make it your strategy to keep
finding new clients, but
2:59
that's very time consuming.
3:03
So I'm going to spend a decent amount of
time making sure
3:05
my existing clients are happy.
3:08
This ties in with host purchase support.
3:11
If I maintain their websites, I can both
keep them happy and charge them for
3:14
the service, thereby having an additional
steady stream of
3:18
revenue from each existing client that I
add on.
3:21
Since I don't plan to have tons of
clients,
3:25
I can provide personal assistance to each,
but I have to go about it carefully.
3:28
Rules need to be laid down about what
additional requests would mean in terms of
3:33
time and money.
3:37
Thinking through these things before they
happen ensures that I won't be caught off
3:39
guard and out of a lot of money.
3:43
If I take care of my existing customers,
well,
3:46
that offers me chances to up-sell other
services in down times.
3:49
Maximizing [SOUND] revenue from existing
customers is my endgame.
3:53
And I can do that in many different ways,
like providing logo design,
3:56
helping with marketing and SEO, and
designing them email newsletters.
4:00
Remember, I said these were things I did
as well, but rather than overload my
4:05
value proposition, I can up-sell these
activities if the client is happy.
4:09
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