Marketing is the act of creating a compelling message for an offering that clients will buy and then won't be able to stop talking about'
Maribeth Kuzmeski
When people find out about a sale or a special event they are often willing to wait in line for many hours just to be the first one in the door or the first in line to buy tickets. Why are they willing to do this? The reason they will do it is that they are extremely happy customers who absolutely rave about the product. They will tell anyone who will listen to them how fantastic the product is. They will make that brand their personal symbol. A perfect example is sports fans. They will buy the gear, travel miles to see their team, talk about their team as if they are personally on it and will be willing to go to great expense just to belong in some way to that club! What makes it happen is that those business tap into the emotional connection that will bond their customers to them for a long time, if not for life. It has well known that unless you are able to get your customers to become emotionally involved with you and your business in some way then it will be extremely difficult to hold on to them.
In our business of owning a dance school or studio we have two sets of customers. First of all we have the main one which is the student and then we have the auxiliary one, the parents. Both are equally important and both need to be equally emotionally bonded to you, your faculty and staff and the studio.
In a way we are perhaps more fortunate than other businesses in that we have opportunities during the year to demonstrate to our clients how we are unique and experienced and that what we do has quality and benefits. We are able to give ourselves credibility and show that we can be trusted to give the best to both our students and their parents. We are able to do this by putting on productions that give everyone WOW moments and by keeping the daily atmosphere at the studio upbeat, fun and energizing.
If you feel that you have not yet reached that level of customer loyalty and enthusiasm then it is a good idea to try to assess where you can make improvements to get your clients( both of them) to be more appreciative, loyal and excited to be a part of your studio. It is helpful if you can put your personal assessment of your business down on paper and perhaps include your staff in the whole process because very often they are the ones who have the most contact with one part of the equation, the parents and they hear on a daily basis all of the accolades and gripes. We have found it extremely helpful to hear from our front desk staff especially and they have definitely enlightened us on many occasions and helped us to bring our business to a new level.
Take this assessment to rate yourself and your business:
EMOTIONAL ASSESSMENT SCALE
Are you providing your customers with the following:
1) Quality products and services? 1 2 3 4 5
2) Benefits that they both want and need? 1 2 3 4 5
3) A fantastic experience for both clients? 1 2 3 4 5
4) Classes and faculty of the highest quality? 1 2 3 4 5
5) Services and events that exceed their expectations? 1 2 3 4 5
6) Trust in you and your expertise? 1 2 3 4 5
7) Credibility in you, your staff and faculty? 1 2 3 4 5
8) Something unique and special? 1 2 3 4 5
Grade yourself on a scale of 1 through five to see where you feel that you could improve but also to see where you feel that you are on target with your customers.
You may not be the only dance studio in your area but you can certainly be the one that everyone wants to go to and be a part of.
