Inbound Marketing

I was talking to a friend of mine the other day and he said in times like these (with the Haiti earthquake) he just has to turn off the t.v. and isolate himself because it is so hard to watch the news unfold. I know for myself, I have to become very aware that it doesn’t consume and then immobilize me.

The very best thing any of us can do is to try in some small way to help. When we tie the things we have to do anyway (we all know marketing is a necessity, right?) to things we care deeply about, then we are creating a  positive message and a greater way for our customers to get to know us. It’s a proven fact that people buy from people they feel they know, trust and can relate to. We are extremely lucky when we can do something to benefit ourselves (get new customers or remind the old ones about us) and at the same time do something that will benefit our neighbourhood or country or the world.

A few months back I attended The Thirty Day Challange where the hosts were obviously using this marketing to increase their customer base. Nothing wrong with this because they are known for giving great value whenever they speak. But they went beyond the normal and linked with Kiva so that participants could donate as a group and then could see the difference they were making to people’s lives. When it came time for them to sell their product they also pledged to give some of the proceeds to Kiva

In my post,  “How blessed are we?” I was asking for everyone to take a breath and do something now to help the people of Haiti. Now I’m asking if you can find a way to go beyond that, to work it into your every day marketing and keep the act of giving alive. Here’s the challenge. Spend an hour or two today (include your staff if you have some, or even make it a topic around the dinner table) and see what ideas you can come up with.

I have to caution you that in order for it to be successful it has to be sincere.

1. People will smell a phony act of kindness a mile away so tie your giving and your marketing with something you really, truly, care about. Tell those you are marketing to why you care about this.
2. Don’t just slap any old thing up on the internet to sell, add a charity to it and hope for the best. Always remain true to your products and services and give the best value possible.