Messaging and Communication for an Online Business
Communication is so important for business.
You always want to be communicating with any potential clients. You also want to communicate to your larger audience, including referral partners and biz besties. Plus, you need to communicate well to all of your current clients - to keep customer service top-notch.
Let's talk about potential clients first. When you are networking or marketing, you don't want to use a ton of industry jargon or how-to lists. You really just want to invite them in to learn more about who you are, and what you do — but most importantly, how you solve their problem.
What are the solutions that you provide? And not only that: Where do they see themselves after working with you or buying your products?
That is the key to communication for people who have not said yes yet. Once they are clients, you want to make sure to keep the communication lines open so they know all the FAQ info when they need it. If you can provide a high-touch relationship, your customer service will be top-notch. And your clients will feel well taken care of!
Now that you know what to communicate, let's talk about the how — and the where.
Are your potential clients hanging out on social media? Are they in networking groups? Are they part of masterminds and other groups where you would be able to share your information?
Once you know where they're hanging out, then you can start messaging them and cultivating that relationship where they are. This could be through LinkedIn, Facebook, or Instagram messaging. It could be texting, or there’s always email. If you do in-person or Zoom networking, it could be getting their direct information and communicating with them through those channels.
For example, you want to build on a relationship that started from Instagram messenger, why not continue that messaging there, providing the information you want or answering questions through that channel? This could be through a voice memo, texting through the app, or even GIFs or emojis.
Then have a clear way for them to connect to your lead nurturing system (email newsletter, FB or Insta group, blog, etc).
Now, if you're thinking that messaging and communication will take up too much time, think about batching this work!
Take a little time each day to go through your networking and marketing channels.
Follow up with any messages or reach out to anyone that has shown interest.
It’s not as important to respond to people immediately as it is important to get back within 24 hours or at least a business day.
If you’re struggling to keep up the momentum, schedule 10 minutes every day to just check all your channels and respond to outstanding comments and messages.
Don't be spammy or yucky — no one wants to work with a bot. Find a way to connect and open up the conversation. Then, you can lead them to subscribe to your newsletter or opting in through a freebie. That way, your nurturing and lead generation can be dripped content.
For more information about shifting from hustle to CEO, check out our other blogs and information!