The Art of Building Customer Relationships
By: Bianca M. Strzalkowski
Retaining customers is good for business … and your bottom dollar.
The cost of attracting a new customer can be six to seven times more costly than keeping a current one, according to research conducted by Flowtown, a social media marketing platform. This cost is a leading reason why building loyalty through an excellence in service and focus on customers’ needs can determine a company’s longevity.
Lakesha Cole, owner of She Swank Too – an online boutique operated from Okinawa, Japan – says word-of-mouth referrals are the lifeline of her success. She places high value on building strong relationships with her clientele, who often become like family.
“Customer relationships are what drive your business. Keep in mind your most profitable customers are repeat customers. Build relationships by rewarding your loyal customers,” Cole said. “Stay in touch often, and give them something of value in exchange for their business.”
Client Profile: LUSH Wine Events
Powerhouse Service Provided: External Communications
The Powerhouse team works with businesses to provide external communications support in a variety of ways:
- Product/service campaigns
- Speech writing
- Media crisis management
- Analyst relations
- Branding
- Brochures
- Social media
- Website development and maintenance
- Graphic design
- Contributed articles drafting
- Press releases (writing and targeted distribution)
- Media relations
- Press/media tours
- Magazines
- Annual reports
- Script development (video, commercials, and radio ads)
- e-Newsletters
At Powerhouse we love working with all types of companies…and when you get a phone call that an elite sommelier wants to work with you regarding their branding, you jump at the opportunity!
“Working with Powerhouse was an awesome experience. Before hiring Jessica, I was worried that they wouldn’t be able to capture my brand message in print. The team at Powerhouse did a great job of bringing my vision to life. Jessica handled all the moving parts with professionalism and was super-efficient. I was really impressed with the level of communication she provides for her clients. She made certain that I was kept abreast of every single detail, and now I have beautiful marketing materials that I am proud to display! Thank you, team Powerhouse!!”
-Kim Dozier, Founder of LUSH Wine Events
Interested in learning more about how Powerhouse can help you with your external communications? Email us at [email protected]. If you want to learn more about LUSH Wine Events, visit their website at www.lushwineevents.com.
Business Resources
Conferences provide many more benefits to entrepreneurs than solely travel and adventure to new places. Each year, you can find an unlimited number of events that focus on a specific niche, business ownership, or military-affiliated entrepreneurship.
Attending a conference can offer a continuing return on investment if you remember to do the following:
Network
Make sure to have plenty of business cards handy because you never know whom you may meet. Whether it be a vendor who can give you a great deal or someone who can refer business your way, conferences are an ideal platform to make new business relationships.
Tip: Make notes on the back of business cards you receive from contacts to help you remember anything important you discussed or details that stood out about the connection. For example, if you met someone who mentioned giving you 20% off marketing services, jot it down on the back of the card.
Follow-up
As soon as you return home from your travels, follow up with your new connections. You want to reach out to the people you interacted with while you are still fresh in their minds and the motivation of the event is still in the air. Send an email to thank them for the connection and include any follow-through on items discussed.
Nonprofit Profile: InDependent Leads Spouses Toward Better Health
By: Lisa White
During the spring of 2013 in Bamberg, Germany, five military spouses took a leap toward their dream of making a difference in the spouse community.
With decades of combined first-hand experience, they knew how the burdens of military life can weigh on spouses, causing them to put fitness and self-care on the back burner. With obesity and diseases such as cancer, heart disease, and type 2 diabetes on the rise, these five women were determined to make a change. They devised the InDependent project to inspire military spouses to take charge of their health.
InDependent connects military spouses to local health and wellness resources while lending support in their journeys. The program provides a wellness blog, community ambassadors, virtual programs and events, fitness and health-related resources, and a weekly e-newsletter to military spouses from all branches of the Armed Forces.
To date, InDependent has partnered with over 50 military spouse contributors who provide related blog content and runs more than 15 installation-based community groups, averaging 140 people per group. It has also established a strong social media base, reaching over 2,500 military spouses worldwide with its private Facebook support group and ambassador-run community pages reaching over 1,000 followers.
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New Hire at Powerhouse
Randi Cairns joins the Powerhouse Planning team as our content creator.
Randi Cairns is a consultant, nonprofit professional, and freelance writer. She is the Founder/CEO of On Call Mama, a business known for its unique ability to combine what’s best about business (efficiency and effectiveness, the good stewardship of resources, and getting your message out in a way that resonates with your intended audience) with what’s best about Mama (the one who’s always got your best interests at heart). Randi prides herself on her ability to help others shine in their personal and professional lives.
Randi has a Masters in Human Services with a specialty in Not-for-Profit Management. She has served vulnerable populations in numerous capacities for over twenty-five years. She’s been recognized by Babble.com as a “mom changing the world” and by Harlequin More Than Words as a “real-life heroine who is improving her community.” She’s the proud recipient of the National Infantry Association’s Shield of Sparta – Heroine of Infantry award and The Chapel of Four Chaplains Legion of Honor Award.
Randi is one of the coauthors of “Stories Around The Table” and a frequent blogger in the military spouse space. She has written for NextGen MilSpouse, Spouse Buzz, Homefront United Network, and the Military Family Advisory Network. She’s also the part sassy/part inspirational voice of Throwing Pots & Pans – coming one day to a bookstore near you.
New Hire at Powerhouse
Nicole Keeny joins the Powerhouse Planning team as a quality assurance rock star.
Nicole graduated from Grove City College in 2008 with a Bachelor of Arts in English as well as certification in Secondary Education. She has spent the past eight years teaching English language arts to middle school students both in North Carolina and Virginia. In addition, she shares her love for reading and writing by privately tutoring students after school.
She may not be a military spouse, but Nicole has befriended and loved many military families as she grew up in Northern Virginia, where she now lives with her husband, Jeff, and their beautiful son. When she became a mother in 2016, Nicole began looking outside the classroom for opportunities to share her passion for language, starting at home with her son and now working with the Powerhouse Planning community. She enjoys spending time reading, writing, drinking coffee, and loving on her sweet family.
Nicole can also be found discussing the use of the Oxford comma with anyone who cares to listen.
