The value of marketing when customers already know your name

At times, Southwest Florida can feel like Cheers – a place “where everybody knows your name.”

Even in a community of familiar faces, businesses cannot expect name recognition alone to continue generating foot traffic and sales.

An effective strategic marketing campaign places just as much emphasis on connecting with well-known customers and clients who have been buying goods and services from you for years as it does new customers. Here’s why:

• Choices: Southwest Florida’s population growth has led to a proportionate growth in businesses. Across the five-county region, the U.S. Census now reports 39,857 employer establishments, plus another 145,302 non-employer establishments, a category that includes self-employed workers like independent real estate agents, Uber and Lyft drivers, freelancers and contracted workers. Residents now have many options when eating dinner, buying a car, installing a pool cage or replacing a roof.

• Competition: Nearly every type of product across every industry is available online. With lower overhead costs, online retailers can often price their products lower than local, brick-and-mortar stores. Free, expedited shipping can make online shopping just as convenient as shopping in a neighborhood store.

• Additions: Successful businesses continuously innovate. That means introducing new products, menu items or services and telling them about it. Former and current customers that have had positive interactions with your brand are more likely to buy a new item or register for a new service… if they know about it.

Every business wishes its customers were more like Norm and Cliff from Cheers – loyal, lifelong and devoted – but businesses can never rest on their laurels and assume customers will keep coming back for more. Effective marketing, advertising, public relations and social media strategies keep businesses top of mind with their existing customer base while also attracting the eyes of prospective customers and clients.

About the Author
Teri Hansen, APR, is president and chief creative officer at Priority Marketing, Southwest Florida’s largest full-service marketing, advertising, public relations, website development and digital marketing agency. Visit PriorityMarketing.com or call 239-267-2638 for more information.