Can Your Small Business Culture and Values Win You Sales?
December 28, 2009 by
Matthew
Filed under
Business, Entrepreneurship
In the United States, do we really value the culture of our people as much as we say we do? After all, this is supposed to be a country that was founded and based on a coming together of cultures, a veritable melting pot, as they say. Culture is something that we should all cherish as it makes us all stand out in one way or the other and allows us to create and diversify. As those sage spokesmen and women say again, it takes all sorts to make a world!
When it comes to marketing, why not go back to your roots and really focus on what makes you and your business different? Where do you hail from and are your standards, beliefs, approaches and values a core part of how you do business? If not, then maybe they should be. By pandering to your strengths in terms of how you essentially live and breathe each day, then you should be making yourself and your brand equity stronger and more vibrant as well.
Always remember that it is to tough to fundamentally change who or what you are and you should be very cautious if you think that you can portray layers and elements that do not really represent your true spirit. However, be free to really underline and take advantage of the things that make you tick.
Very often our small businesses are built on a solid foundation of reputation. If you are known as being a helpful and enthusiastic trigger and always go out of your way to make things happen, then capitalize on this “yes we can” popular culture and make your glass permanently half-full from a marketing perspective.
We know how important social interaction is and how people like to deal with a real, live human being, even though this is becoming more challenging in our increasingly virtual world. With customer service, make sure that your staff are all on the same page and treat the customer in a positive and happy way each day. You will be surprised how clients and prospects warm more to your organization if a genuine feeling of love is being exuded!
Pander to your strengths. If your organization is operating on the cutting edge of your particular niche and if you business is known for its ingenuity or innovation, make your marketing exciting and interesting as well. Don’t be afraid to use individual personalities if they fire when challenged and be careful before repressing any unusual or out-of-the-box ideas.
These days it is very populist to be “green” and any organization that puts the issue of sustainability ahead is sure to gain footing as we go forward. Climate related issues are not going away and as more scientific evidence becomes apparent, linking our lack of efficiency to environmental damage, an organization that operates via the culture of the environment will likely gain market share.
How do you use your culture to best effect?
Matthew Toren
Really impressed with your article, you have mentioned such nice information, waiting your your future posts.
thanks for your sharing..
Great Article Mathew - some food for thought there!
i THINK IF YOU RUN YOUR SMALL BUSINESS WITH MORE OF A PERSONAL FEEL WITH YOUR CUSTOMERS THEN YES, YOU WILL WIN A SALE OVER A BIGGER COMPETITOR.
i THINK THAT IS EVEN MORE THE CASE TODAY IN THIS ECONOMY, PEOPLE WOULD RATHER SUPPORT A SMALLER BUSINESS THEN FEED A GIANT
I am absolutely agree with you. In order to be excellent in marketing you mustn’t forget about cultural values. Social culture, moral values, creative and individual approach to every customer make the whole reputation of your company
Culture has been a huge initiative this year here at Grasshopper. We have worked hard to empower employees and customers and it has really made a difference.
Being a small business, you don’t always have the resources to constantly be in touch with clients. However, we have focused much more on customer service - twitter, email, weekly phone calls, hand-written notes, etc. We want employees and customers to not only use our product but to genuinely be happy and tell others about it. Through this we have gained new clients and more importantly kept clients who were considering going elsewhere. That is directly attributed to the culture changes that have happened.
Great ideas in the post. If you’re not unique, you’re a commodity. That’s no way to get higher fees or attract more business. Make doing business with you a great experience and you will stand out above the rest. Compete with a higher standard of customer service, a unique bundled package of services, or a single exceptional product. If you only try to compete on price, you’re history! Somebody can always do it cheaper.
An unfavorable comparison with citizens of other countries in terms of patriotism and/or support for moral principles.
Culture, religion or language players an important role in future sales generation. For example, advertising campaigns always run into the regional languages showing celebrities of the same culture.
Culture and values are very important and more so for a small business; additionally in a small business you need to be (you are actually ) closer to your customers so you can keep true to your values and original mission more easily… in the end who said that words like “mission” or “values” can be used only by big corporations such as Google, Yahoo, Microsoft…?
I think that in periods of economic hardship, culture and values are emphasised less in the minds of consumers but it’s definitely something to keep in the back of the mind.
I guess it also comes down to what you want to achieve. If you’re just in business to make a quick buck then values wont seem that important but if you got into business to change the world, then they take on much more relevance.
Thanks for the post.