Big Business Needs To Think Small Today

Mass advertising and throwing tons of money at marketing is not always the most effective means of reaching today’s customers. No one wants to be a number. {EAV_BLOG_VER:e7bfac329ae7375e}

Big business is starting to discover that their efforts to reach customers is failing. People are tuning advertising out. Simply throwing more money at the problem is not going to fix it either.

People are getting smarter in how they spend their money and how they respond to business advertising. Ever since social media has become more mainline, customers have discovered that they are more than a wallet. They have influence, and what they say matters.

This used to be the way many years earlier in business. Business owners knew their customers. Big businesses made sure that their front line staff connected in a meaningful way with their customers. Then the big box stores came in and customers became wallets. “If you don’t like it, go elsewhere” they said. This worked for a while.

But today, customers have power to “Like” or “Dislike” a business. Word of mouth is very effective today. What customers are saying today effects others and their buying decisions. Businesses that ignore customers do so at their own peril.

Now I know that there are practical limitations in big businesses that can hinder that personal touch. But some how, big business needs to adopt a small business feel for their customers. Big business needs to focus more on who they are connected with right now, than trying to bring more new customers in from outside. If business does not start doing a better job with those who have shown interest in their business already, they will lose out on a great opportunity.

So what can big business do right now? They can try to create meaningful connections with those who will connect with them. They need to demonstrate that they value and care about each customer. Social media can help in that process. But it should not end there.

Big business may need to do some restructuring to create a small business feel. A look back at their humble beginnings might be a great place to start. What did your customers like about you before you became a big business? Can that be recaptured again somehow? These are questions to think about.

But big business can always bull their way along as per normal and hope for the best; just throw money and pray for a miracle. That could be good for my small business. #justsaying!

At the end of the day, I know I have power and I am not…”NUMBER 4!” I am Jeff. I am worth getting to know.