Who do you Prefer to do Business With?
Do you purchase solely on price?
Do you purchase based on the sales person or company?
Do you shop around and find the cheapest product?
How much do you research a product before you purchase it?
Do you only buy from those that you are comfortable with?
Last week I received an email from a potential customer. At the end of the email, she asked me if I would be willing to put together a quote for her. Of course I responded. I called her back instead of in an email so my questions were not as confusing. At the end of our conversation, of course I told her that I would be more than happy to give her a quote. I ended up stopping by her office later in the day to drop off a catalog. I sat in her office and had a great conversation with her and one of her coworkers. It was very nice!
During the conversation I found out that she knew a lot about me and we had just met. How did she know so much about me? I asked and found out that she had really researched me. She checked out my website and read several of the posts on my blog. She knew more about me than some of my existing customers! It was great! This was proof that what I am doing and spending my time on . . . IS WORKING! Now we have not completed an order for her yet but it is moving in the right direction!
Then today I had a conversation with a great friend, Amy Stark. During this conversation, I found out that she feels as if most people do business with those that they like and are comfortable with. For me, this is very true! I will do business first with my friends, those that I have met networking or from a referral!
Does everyone else feel this way? Unfortunately I am not so sure that they do.
What do you think? Who do you like to purchase from?
Do you purchase based on the sales person or company?
Do you shop around and find the cheapest product?
How much do you research a product before you purchase it?
Do you only buy from those that you are comfortable with?
Last week I received an email from a potential customer. At the end of the email, she asked me if I would be willing to put together a quote for her. Of course I responded. I called her back instead of in an email so my questions were not as confusing. At the end of our conversation, of course I told her that I would be more than happy to give her a quote. I ended up stopping by her office later in the day to drop off a catalog. I sat in her office and had a great conversation with her and one of her coworkers. It was very nice!
During the conversation I found out that she knew a lot about me and we had just met. How did she know so much about me? I asked and found out that she had really researched me. She checked out my website and read several of the posts on my blog. She knew more about me than some of my existing customers! It was great! This was proof that what I am doing and spending my time on . . . IS WORKING! Now we have not completed an order for her yet but it is moving in the right direction!
Then today I had a conversation with a great friend, Amy Stark. During this conversation, I found out that she feels as if most people do business with those that they like and are comfortable with. For me, this is very true! I will do business first with my friends, those that I have met networking or from a referral!
Does everyone else feel this way? Unfortunately I am not so sure that they do.
What do you think? Who do you like to purchase from?
Labels: Amy Stark, blog, Competition, Embroidery, Fishers, Friends, Indiana, indianapolis, kristie, Kristie B, Kristie Bradford, Kristie's Kreations, logos, Networking, Promotional Products, Purchasing, Stark Reality, Website
posted by Tailwynd at
12:23 PM
8 Comments:
I prefer to do business with people who are competent, reliable and honest. Usually the best way to confirm these characteristics is to go with someone local. Keep up the great work!
@robbyslaughter
Good post. I see this as further evidence of how social media can work for a business. Do you think you would have received the call if you did not have the website to demonstrate your services or the blog to provide credibility and an insight to your personality?
Sometimes I struggle with whether social media can have a direct impact on generating leads or revenue - but it is at least fair to say social media tools/communications can be used as an influencer to provide credibility. Don’t get me wrong, I see value in social media communication and Three Hats Marketing uses it actively as a brand awareness tool and to “listen” to those talking about us.
It’s great to hear/see success stories of how social media has impacted generating leads/revenue. As you eluded to in this post, your blog allows you to have a personality on the web and a potential customer to get to know you – thus building trust. If you are more expensive than your next competitor, does this give you an advantage and will the potential customer still buy from you as a result?
Thank you for your comment Robby! I totally agree with you! I also prefer to do business with local businesses although I never really thought about it until now! What is the best way to get to know who the person really is? You have to get to know them or 'check them out' ahead of time!
Chad. . .Thank you so much for your comment! Great thoughts!! I agree! This is 100% proof of what social media can do for a business!
This particular person originally found me by searching for companies who embroider in Fishers, Indiana. There are several of us listed so I am sure that I am not the only one she checked out. She chose me because she felt the most comfortable with me. She was comfortable with me for several reasons including her appreciation for my website and her feeling of having a connection with me. That connection was listed in my blog and only on my blog therefore she had to know me (which she did not before this meeting) or had to have read up on me. To answer your first question, the answer is probably not. She would have continued to shop until she found someone that she was comfortable with.
My goal with social media is that customers and potential customers will feel comfortable with me and get to know me. With this level of comfort, I will be the one that they will think about immediately when the need arises for embroidery, screen print and promotional products.
I always try to buy from people I like, but I also try to buy from people that provide good value. Understandably, when people are cutting back, it's natural to buy based on price. This makes the salesperson's job harder, because they have to overcome the customer's fear of "wasting money." They have to show that value outweighs price, and build that relationship even more so the customer is more willing to spend the money.
Although I am not a fan of being asked to "quote" which is a sign of a price buyer, it is part of the process for many buyers. Be sure when this happens to get to the reason for their purchase, and their fears of how a bad purchase might hurt them instead of help them. Demonstrate your expertise by better fact finding more than pushing more products, and you'll continue to develop profitable long term clients.
Kristie, In the book The Worlds Best Known Marketing Secret, by Dr. Ivan R. Misner and Endless Referrals by Bob Berg there is the following statement:
All things being equal people want to do business with people they know, like and trust.
You story is further proof of that.
I'm a big fan of shopping around for the best deal. However, if someone gives good customer service and is willing to go the extra mile to get my business then I'm willing to spend a little more money.
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