Episode 8 - It's Not About You, It's About the Customer - a podcast by Vanessa Shepherd & Terrica Strozier of Shes Got Vision

Episode #008 It’s Not About You It’s About the Customer

[00:00:00] Welcome to the marketing cocktails podcast. We're your hosts, Terrica Strozier, that's me a brand designer and sugar attic and Vanessa Shepherd, launch strategist and content creator with a love of all things Disney. Each week, you'll hear our behind the scenes conversation and expert advice on marketing and launching your next offer or product while doing it all ethically and organically.

And giving that bro marketer advice, the boot. Thanks for spending some time with us today. Grab a drink and let's jump into today's episode.

Welcome to episode eight of the podcast. And today we're tackling a really important topic, which is customers, and that it's not all about you. And it is about the customer. The customers are at the heart of your business. So if you want our advice on how you craft offers and keep the customer at the forefront of your mind, even though they're not always right, stay tuned to this episode.

In business, it is not all about what you want, [00:01:00] but you need to create your offers and your items that you sell or services that you provide with your customer in mind. So, while I don't love the ideal customer avatar, there does need to be, I'm going to, I'm going to keep saying this guys, whatever, here we go.

Terrica: You do need to have an end goal for your customer, whoever that customer is, having some specificity on that customer will allow you to craft offers and, products that fit the needs of that client. But along the way, one thing that I focus on a lot is the customer journey. When people work with me or purchase something from me, I want that process to be seamless.

I want it to be easy. I don't want them to feel that they have to click on that about 10 gazillion links [00:02:00] or get inudated with like popup ads all the time. Cause that'll make people run like so fast. I want the people during the process to feel like, Oh my gosh, this was so easy to buy her product.

I love it. I love the support that I got. I love the process of it all. So having that in mind, when you're crafting these things is like paramount. I know that we create businesses based off of what we're good at or what we want to put into the universe, but it's not all about you. It's not, it's not, it's not.

And if you focus on yourself, Then even if you do make money, cause I'm pretty sure there's people out there there's always an exception to a rule. You will get to a point where you plateau, you will get to a point where you can't go any further or you will get to a point where people really start to see you for you are not saying that's a bad thing, but in business it could be on the end that.

[00:03:00] Someone says, Oh, I mean, their products are nice, but the customer service socks, or they don't care about me. And I sent an email, never, no one never answers. Like, do they not value my money? Do they not value my time. Well, if they don't value me, then I'm going to go to their competitor. maybe across the physical street or across the proverbial virtual street and I'm going to purchase from them because they obviously don't value me.

Vanessa: That happens so often in business. And there's even like a whole, whole segment of industry research around being able to craft those awesome customer experiences. Like, I don't know what it was maybe four or five years ago. Now I went to an entire conference that was just around customer experience, customer journey and customer service.

And we spent 48 hours talking. Nothing else. And let me tell you the ideas that were coming in were wicked. And I went, you know, went back to my corporate job cause I was one of two people that got sent or no, there's three of us on that [00:04:00] trip. But two people from the area I worked in and we went back and I was like, let's implement, you know, some of what we learned, not all the things, cause not all of them made sense, but, and the other person was like, No, we're good.

It was a fine conference. It was got me in the office. I was like, Whoa, we can be doing so many. I think better if we actually were approaching the way we do business with that end customer in mind, even, even though like at the time, our end customer was just people in a different department. I said, if we think about those people as our customers a little bit more than our coworkers, then we can actually come out with.

A process and assistance and collaboration that works and, and strengthens that relationship instead of us always butting heads with them or them always butting heads with us. And I actually got to spearhead that whole, kind of like kickoff of the project to be able to frame out what [00:05:00] would work and what didn't work.

And we had so many different conversations about it that it actually reformulated the entire way our department was structured and the way we brought people in. And that shift allowed there to be a lot less contention between what our department did and what the other department date. And now the collaboration is even stronger than where it was when I, when I worked there a few years ago

Terrica: And see, I love that. If you all don't know, then people are my jam, but then we get into customer experience. And it's really, my jam is it's combining my love for people and my love for making people happy and satisfying a need. But that's here nor there, regardless of that, what I really love about that is it shows you that it doesn't always have to be a.

Business to customer type relationship, relationship for you to really have that, that end goal in mind [00:06:00] that it can be, I think, at the baser level it's relationship building. Cause that's what it is. And even super, super foundational book below that, to me, it's. Having that empathy in mind and putting yourselves in the shoes of your customer on a consistent basis.

It's not only a one time deal. Guys. You don't start your business or, or craft an offer or craft a product and say, Oh, this is going to be an, you know, the customer journey of the customer is gonna start here, here, and I'll walk into our store. They will be greeted. Then they will be able to browse for X amount.

And then they get here and they buy, they sell, we follow up and it's done. That's great that you have that laid out and you should have it, However, this is an ongoing process. Your customers will change as your offer shape as your product changes as the market changes because the world is always changing and being in tune with your customer being open, [00:07:00] being receptive, the feedback and not immediately taking it as a hit to you.

I know guys. to quote Erkyah Badu, I'm an artist and I'm sensitive about my shit. I am. So when you tell me you don't like it? Yes. There's initial like pierced to the heart, like, Oh, I spent so much time and it's amazing, but I have to step outside of myself and then see, okay. What was it about it that you did not like, how can I make it better?

And that openness to changing and crafting and pivoting yourself in a way that really serves those people will have you with, you know, what we call super fans. I mean, look at Apple guys, and I'm an Apple super fan. I, you know, iphones, they annoy me and they're like sometimes glitchy, but I keep buying one.

I will keep buying one and I will buy another Macbook. And, and right now I'm sitting on my [00:08:00] desk. I have a Macbook an iphone and a iPad. Air pods, Apple pencil.

It's a bad, however, I am so going to cause cause when I go into an Apple store, I'm immediately greeted. I mean the atmosphere's is light and it's bright and you see all these new tech goodies that just get you like the little kid, that little gift that goes the little girl that gets skipped so excited.

Like I just want to go play with them. I want to touch it. And even though people tell me the price point is like, Oh, ma'am,you like that that's $1,400. I'm like, shit. But then I'm like, Oh, it's Apple. I'll buy it. I don't know what I gotta do to pay for it, but I'm gonna buy it. You want people to have that feeling and that experience when they engage with you and your business.

Vanessa: Absolutely. Like, there's so many different reasons. Like if you, if I actually think about all the different reasons that I've [00:09:00] boycotted a brand or that I've like gone in and gone out of my way to drive clear across the city to shop at a store when I probably could have found something similar, you know, probably in my neck of the woods.

I don't know there stores I don't shop at here because the services sucks. And there's stories that I'll go out of my way to shop at because services is awesome. but it's about that experience from the way it looks the way it feels all the way down to how your people interact with, with the customer when you're in the store, all of that matters and listening.

Oh my gosh. So if you ha, if you do, if you're doing everything right, if you're checking all the boxes all the way down, but you're not actually listening to the customer in the end, The again, you're going to get, like I said, I'm just going to go somewhere else because people want to feel like you're actually hearing what they have to say.

and internalizing it and, and making what you do even better. It's a kind of a continual, its a continual cycle that is never going to end for as long as you're in business

Terrica:  And that is so [00:10:00] true. we've seen it. So many times I've seen it in, in really small businesses where, where people give a service and people at their core, they love it. They're like we really don't want to go anywhere else. We want to stay here. We want to continue learning from you, buying from you. But your customer service has to be better. Like, I want to feel like I'm heard, do you hear me? And then the owner, someone says like, yeah, I hear you. But in their head, they've immediately turned off already because they want it done their way.

And then I look at apps and I've worked in those businesses and I'm like, Hey, I need you to listen. Because if you don't, you're gonna stop right here. You won't get any further than where you are right now, because no matter how amazing it is, people don't feel valued. And if people don't feel valued, they leave.

and I can't [00:11:00] quote verbatim. So guys, this is going to be like, you know, just a roundabout synopsis, but Maya Angelou has a quote that says. People will forget what you have said to them, what you have done to them, but they will never forget the way that you make them feel. Yeah. So people may not even remember.

I don't even remember why I was angry with you, but whatever you, you said something and it hurt me to my core and I'm not forgetting that. Okay. I mean, you can't, but I've seen businesses where. When they are open and receptive to feedback, even when they make mistakes, their customers are like, you know what?

I'll still shop with. You I'll wait for you to get your shit together because at the end of it, you care about me. You're trying to serve me in the best capacity that you can understand you're going through growing pains. We all do, but they will work with you. They will be. [00:12:00] Lenient to everything. And people will take a lot more than you think when they know that at your core you are doing it for them.

It's a reciprocate reciprocate. That's not a word reciprocal. There you go. It's one of those words, guys, I'm counting issues sometimes was, but anyway, it's almost at the point of symbiotic relationship. We're not fungi, but you know how it goes is that. I give something, you get something because we do that.

We just stay like in line together. Like we're locked. I'm not going anywhere. You understand me? I understand you. We have this. It's like, you know, the best friend relationship that you have for, you know, like 25 years,

Vanessa: And if you get somebody in that kind of a relationship. Guess what? They're going to bring 20 of their friends.

Terrica: Yes. Yes.

Vanessa: And that's most people go, okay, that's great. If I had this like one on one relationship, but what's, where's the benefit to that word of mouth marketing, somebody going out and telling somebody else, a friend or [00:13:00] coworker, the guy at the supermarket, you have no idea how many people you'll wind up telling something about if it's awesome.

Terrica: Like I do it all the time.

Yeah. So do I like over stupid things? Like the stupidest things you don't even think you'd ever talk about? I carry a colored handbag pretty much like all the months of the year, except in the middle of winter, because I need to have a big purse and maybe for Slack, besides the point everywhere I go, somebody comments on my handbags and we wind up talking.

About these stupid, colorful handbags, which is not a conversation that I ever thought I'd have with anybody outside my friend circle, but then the ones I bought and pretty much the only ones I buy are the ones where I have good customer experiences in the store. So if I have those good experiences, I'm going to share that with somebody else.

Vanessa: I'm also going to tell them, Hey, here's a fun tip. You can get a sale on that. Cause that's how I roll. And that person is then going to go and check it out and probably buy something.

Terrica:  Yeah. I mean, I tell people all the time, word of mouth, word [00:14:00] of mouth marketing is not dead. It is thriving. It is, it is as its peak, actually more so than ever, because we can talk to people so much easier than we ever have.

Can send a text and in like two seconds until someone you can blast it on Facebook, on Twitter and it can go viral and everybody knows. but I'm the same way. Guys, if you haven't seen, I have. Teal turquoise ish hair. I get stopped on a daily basis that people are, I like your hair color, who did it?

Where'd you get it? And now we'll have a 10 minute conversation with somebody.  Well, I didn't go to anybody. I did it myself. I had these blinders, don't do this, use this. I love this product that works amazing, whatever, whatever, to a point where I have friends of friends that have messaged me and say, Hey.

I really love your hair or your hair is thriving, or I have colored hair and it's not working. What do you use? You're going to look a little similar to mine and I'm thinking like, I'm not a stylist.

Vanessa:  [00:15:00] I'm not even a beauty blogger. You're like, I don't create content on this stuff. I might, I have the odd picture of my hair, but that's about as far as it goes.

Terrica: Right, but I have, done my own, I guess this point market research, I've tried so many products that have failed because guys, if you're on YouTube, that's what most of these beauty bloggers start is. Like, let me tell you all the things that didn't work. Hmm. And then this one thing that does work and then people are like, I used to have those things that you used to work for me.

So you're saying this is amazing. I'm going to go buy it. What? You don't even know this person and they're marketing your stuff because they tried all the competitors. They didn't work, but you know what your stuff works and then they will tell you, because we love these now the unboxing videos, .

As a designer guys print is my jam. So I see some good packaging and I'm like, Ooh, I get so excited. And you want to tell people. You want to tell somebody guys? [00:16:00] I like, all I did was order the scarf, but it came in as a really funky, unique packaging. And I love it. I think I'm going to keep the packaging. I don't know what I'm going to do with it, but I don't want to throw it away.

I'll go back to them. I don't throw away like Apple boxes its bad cause they just feel so nice. Like that soft matte finish. And I just keep it. I don't know what I'm going to do with it, but it just feels good. Like such a waste collection of Apple boxes in my basement.

I see what investing most people say, your online business, you do not need to invest. And printed materials or things like that. But in this day of digital and getting things so quickly, people value things. I kind of, I laugh now where we're laughing is be dealt with this is that I feel like I've turned into my grandmother.

My, I don't know if your grandmother is my grandmother used to keep bags like in her closet. [00:17:00] Plastic bags, paper bags and everything. And I would say, Nana, why are you doing? She's like, it's a good bag. You never know when you may need this. And I'm like

Vanessa: reusable bags. Well, flexible bins. Like there's no categories of technology around bags that she didn't know what's going to happen  and I'm doing the exact same thing.

And I'm not yet 40, like this. I know my grandma pretty much raised me. I know there's a few things you're going to pick up, but I'm like, I learned a lot about product packaging before I ever knew anything about actual marketing. And now it's all like coming back to you and it's like, aha moment. That's awesome.

Terrica: My grandmother was really instrumental in raising me too. So I guess I'm like you, osmosis as it kind of suck it to us and it activated when I'm in my mid thirties, these guys, I guess we get to our mid thirties to forties and it activates, and now we become our grandmothers.

Vanessa: I've been doing this stuff since like I left home at 17.

I can't even [00:18:00] say it's a mid-forty thing. Like if there's, if there's good packaging experience darn to it and I'm going to save it. If it's a mediocre package, I'm not going to save it. I get a cordial stationary. Cause that's how I roll. I save every one of those boxes as long as it's pretty and fits my color palette.

Terrica: Yep. So at the core guys, this just shows you that investing in your customer experience is vital to the success of your business, to the longevity of your business too. Marketing your business. This is a marketing Avenue that you don't have to pay extra for it. You're not throwing in extra money on ads or, putting an ad in like we're talking about digital or print ads or advertising some other type of way.

You literally invest yourself in your customers and then they in turn will invest in you and they will get other people to invest in you. And it is a domino effect. [00:19:00] And when it is done well, it looks beautiful and it is profitable. And. If you have not dived into your customer experience lately, I charge you all with taking a deeper look into your business, how you can serve your customers better.

and listen. So if you haven't connected with your customers wherever you communicate with your customers, best if that's an email, Instagram, Pinterest, even if tech talk is your thing, all those places have room for comments and DMs. Ask for feedback. Say guys, what can I do to serve you better? What do you want to see?

creating content with feedback is like so key. I see so many YouTubers doing that. They asked for it and they actually create the content that people ask for and people continue to follow them. Cause they're like I could ask a question and answer and you create content and it's amazing.

Vanessa: That's how half have our blog press came to me.

I start asking people. So I [00:20:00] spent, what was it, 2018 traveling across the U S teaching people about social media marketing and along the way, I'm like, what else, what else do you want to know about. What else? What more do you want to know about? And I kept losing, I had a whole journal and I put out blog posts on the regular answering those questions.

And those are some of like the heaviest traffic blog posts on our, on our website. So you guys, it works and it takes no money, takes time a little bit of time, but that time comes back two fold. So again, like you go out, you ask the questions, you, listen, you take in that feedback. It's probably. The most powerful strategy you can do in marketing and growing your business is just to listen and turn it around and put out an awesome customer experience strategy.

where again, you're doing more listening and implementing and fixing and changing and growing. But you, you take the time, you listen, you find out what people want to know about. You create content around that. You take that content, you translate it and you build a digital [00:21:00] product around it, or two or three or four.

And it becomes this like little ecosystem and it doesn't cause you to hurt your brain and people love you for it. And you build super fans in the long run, which is the ultimate, absolute, ultimate place we all want to be.

Terrica: Exactly. And I will. End on this note, if you're listening to this and maybe you're new in business, or maybe you've pivoted recently, and you feel like getting feedback is tough.

Cause I've been there. I've asked, put it out to the universe and I got crickets there. It's still a wealth of information online. One tip that I got and I always do this husband laughs at me, anytime I purchased something, it can be so simple. I could be trying a new restaurant. Right. I dive into reviews cause I want to, I want to like read what people will have to say.

Go look online. Amazon is an amazing [00:22:00] place and search for either books or products that are in the same niche as yours and see what people were saying about them. See what people are loving, see what people are hating, and then take that. As research note, some of those commonalities you find, and then merge that with what you want your customers to experience at the beginning, you should have an idea about when people interact with your business, how should they feel at the beginning and the middle at the end.

So merge that with what you're finding and then craft an offer that. That serves where people are lacking in other things, and then adding your personality into it and your own personal spin with your knowledge. And you will create your own unique experience at that end. And hopefully you will start to really build some of those raving fans and eventually super fans.

Thanks for listening. Y'all you can [00:23:00] find the show notes at she's got vision.com/podcast. If you've enjoyed what you've heard today, please leave a review and subscribe to the podcast. And because word of mouth is still the best marketing Avenue. Please tell a friend to share it. If you do, don't forget to tag us at she's got vision on all platforms until next time y'all we're wishing you much success. and remember there's always time for cocktails.

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