Mar 20, 2008
Diva Marketing Talks is
a live, internet radio show. 30-minutes. 2-guests. 1-topic about
social media marketing. Why? To help you understand how to participate
in the "new" conversation without getting blown-up. Miss today's show?
You can pick it up as a podcast or listen on your computer.
Today's Diva Marketing Talks with Mary Clare Hunt author of In Women We Trust and founder of Ecolutionary Selling and Ginny Dyson, Sustainability Strategist at DMJM H&N to discuss how to use social media marketing as a grass roots strategy to education and promote a complex topic .. in this case sustainability standards and green marketing.
Topic for March 20, 2008: Social Media Green Marketing
Time: 6:30p - 7p Eastern/ 5:30p - 6p Central/ 4:30p -5p Mountain/ 3:30p - 4p Pacific
Call-in Guest Number: 718.508.9924
Guests
Mary Clare Hunt
Mary is a consultant and author of www.InWomenWeTrust.com and also Ecolutionary Selling: Taking the Confusion out of Sustainable Furniture. She calls herself a very social media consultant matching women’s groups to business opportunities and educating both on a shared vision of Sustainability. She is also the editor for the Sustainable Products Blog the blog for the Institute for Market Transformation to Sustainability. MTS is the non-profit behind the SMaRT Sustainable Standard.
Mary’s background includes a rare blend of consumer goods and intangible services anchored with manufacturing processes. She’s created print, TV and Radio campaigns for a mega Mall, and also managed over 200 industrial accounts while with (now) www.ThomasNet.com. Mary is a “connector” who believes that every woman should have a blog and every business should read it. She debates social issues with her manufacturing engineer husband in Orange County, CA and lives online.
Ginny Dyson, IIDA, LEED AP
Ginny Dyson is an interior designer with 20 years of experience in the Washington, DC market. In addition to projects for financial institutions, government and corporate faculties, she has been an active and contributing member of the sustainable design community.
In December 2005, Ginny completed three years of elected service on the board of the National Capital Region Chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council. She is also the founding chair of the IDA Mid-Atlantic Chanter's Sustainable Design Forum, a group that she started in 1999 to develop programs solely on sustainable topics. Ginny is an officer of the SMaRT Sustainable Product Standard Committee, an initiative of Market Transformation to Sustainability (MTS). In addition to planning and outreach for these organizations, she has spoken to a number of audiences, promoting green building criteria and the LEED Rating System.
Ginny joined DMJM H&N in August 2003 to be part of the Pentagon Renovation Program Office and since September 2004 has been working in the Arlington, VA office in their newly established interiors group. DMJM ROTTET. She is currenty a full-time Sustainability Strategist, guiding all of the projects in the Arlington, VA office that are seeking LEED certification as well as a few projects for the other offices of DMJM ROTTET. She received a Bachelor of Interior Design from Louisiana State University's College of Design, School of Architecture and is a native of Northern Virginia. Ginny is a contributing author of the MTS Sustainable Products Blog.
Tips From The Diva Bag
Complements of Mary Clare Hunt and Ginny Dyson
Three Top Themes
1. Transparency – Can you see the proof? Blogland and Greenland come together.
2. Authentic – Can you prove it? Blogland and Greenland come together again.
3. Getting your message across. – Is your green story repeatable?
Develop A Credible Green Marketing Strategy
- Get your product certified as Sustainable. You can’t claim you’re “Sustainable” until you do.
- Use LCA, Life Cycle Assessment, Third Party Audits and of course Standards in your blog posts and links.
- Partner with other bloggers and businesses who are Climate Change evangelists first and business people second.
- Create ONE Summary Sheet of all green facts pertaining to your company and product. This isn’t a branding document, it’s raw data and the proof behind everything you say on blogs.
- Take the word to the women who do 80% of the buying and word of mouth influencing.
Links Mentioned
Big Green Purse
EcoMom Alliance
Can't call in but have a question? Drop a comment and I'll ask it
for you. Let me know what you'd like Diva Talks to chat about. Don't
forget Diva Marketing Talks morphs into a podcast.
Mar 17, 2008
When was the last time you hung out with your customers or clients? I'm not talking about the last time you watched behind the two way mirror: 8 to 10 women, 18-34 years of age, who lived in a metro area and skate boarded to work wearing their Jimmie Choos. Nor am I talking about reading the customer sat report that your research department sent over .. which by the way you really should take out of your "To Read" pile and read.
It's not comfortable to be a brand manager sitting behind the two-way mirror munching on M&Ms and suddenly hear customers bash your latest brain child. It's devastating to read a research report that coldly informs you that 91.27% of your customers believe your service stinks. Don't you sometimes wish that you could drop the formal research strategy and meet Becky or Brian or Betty or Brandon at your neighborhood Starbucks and just dish? (Note: I am not saying disregard traditional marketing research.)
When was the last time you talked, listened, laughed and learned with .. not From .. but With your customers or clients? Divas and divos I'll bet you a chocolate martini that for a few savvy marketers it was your last trade show but for most the answer is - Never.
The concept of conducting business is an odd duck to me. Marketing teaches us the more we know about our target audience the better we can service them. The big however is .. how do you to get to know the millions of individuals that make up the customer base of global brands? I don't know about you but it's damn difficult for me to create new products, marketing programs or service a demographic group that seems more like wisps of vapor than people with hearts. Enter stage left research-based personas that begin to provide some texture and depth. While there is value in these composite profiles, and great fun to build, they've always seemed rather like playing with paper dolls.
The son of the Godfather was wrong .. dead wrong. Business IS personal. However, creating corner grocery store relationships can be as challenging with customers in Madrid as with clients on Main Street. We compete every day for precious moments of time with our customers. There are so many priorities in our lives from family to work to friends to self. Yes Girlfriend self (but that's another post!).
It sure is hard to fit a relationship with your favorite brand into the mix. I'm not sure if I want to anyway. Time spent with my shampoo brand .. time spent with 
Max. No need to flip a coin on that one.
But time to drop a comment on the blog or social network site of the shampoo's marketing manager that I've come to know and like and respect .. that's a different story. Time to even chat with a friend I met online line about how I perceive her newest product. Sure. Of course, I'll help out a friend.
Marketing research pros might argue .. but you are biased because you have a relationship with your-friend-the-brand-manager-of-your-shampoo. Perhaps. Perhaps my feedback will be colored but then again, because I want to help her succeed perhaps my feedback will be even more honest.
Business friendships built online in social media venues? May sound strange to you but trust me on this one Girlfriend, it is not strange for Kinsey and Caroline who are redefining "What Is A Friend." Building those relationships that do morph into friendships over a virtual backyard fence will become are becoming more common and accepted with each click.
Thanks to BBF Ann Handley for the inspiration for this post.
Mar 6, 2008
Diva Marketing Talks
is a live, internet radio show. 30-minutes. 2-guests. 1-topic about
social media marketing. Why? To help you understand how to participate
in the "new" conversation without getting blown-up. Miss today's show?
You can pick it up as a podcast.
Today's Diva Marketing Talks takes the wraps off of Real Simple Syndication - better known as RSS. Our rock star guests Bill Flitter and Lee Feinberg will make RSS simple. They'll share how they used RSS to encourage viral marketing campaigns, talk about ads on RSS feeds, discuss if RSS complements or replaces eMail marketing and lots more. If we're very lucky Bill will tell us what Santa Clause, the postman and the TV clicker have to do with RSS.
Topic for March 6, 2008: RSS: Alphabet Soup or The Power Behind Social Media
Time: 6:30p - 7p Eastern/ 5:30p - 6p Central/ 4:30p -5p Mountain/ 3:30p - 4p Pacific
Call-in Guest Number: 718.508.9924
Guests:
Bill Flitter
Bill Flitter is CEO of Pheedo. Bill is considered an industry expert on syndicated content advertising and speaks regularly on this topic at industry events. Prior to Pheedo, Bill founded Email Shopping Network and directed its sales and marketing activities until its acquisition by eUniverse in 2002.
In addition to Pheedo and Email Shopping Network, Bill has started and helped build numerous early stage companies, developing hundreds of innovative products and services. Bill is also co-founder of Fastlane Ventures, a boutique management consulting firm focused on early-stage investments. Bill is a founding member of the Internet Content Syndication Council and chairs their advertising committee
Raised in Wisconsin, Bill graduated with a degree in Advertising from the University of Wisconsin. He founded the University of Wisconsin Interactive Advertising scholarship to reward outstanding excellence in this innovative field. Bill’s ruminations on a number of topics can be found on the Pheedo Blog.
Lee Feinberg
Lee Feinberg is a business development leader and has devoted his entire career to create and launch interactive products and services. For 20 years, he has guided innovation at Fortune 500 companies in financial services, automotive, consumer hardware, and healthcare. His experience includes Internet marketing and eCommerce, high-volume transaction systems, mobile communications, and interactive TV.
Lee is currently Strategy Director, Avenue A | Razorfish and previously held the position of Vice President/ Associate Director, Digitas. He was the President and Founder of e-thusiasm, inc. an independent interactive strategy consultancy whose clients included Johnson & Johnson, CheckFree, and Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of NJ. Lee has also held positions with Chase Manhattan Bank, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, and AT&T Bell Labs.
He received a B.S. and M.S. from Cornell University. Lee serves on the advisory board of Pheedo, holds a U.S. patent for a PC-telephone interface, is a member of the Marketing Executives Networking Group, the Cornell Entrepreneur Network, and the Sandler Sales Institute Presidents Club.
Can't call in but have a question? Drop a
comment and I'll ask it for you. Let me know what you'd like Diva Talks
to chat about. Don't forget Diva Marketing Talks morphs into a podcast.
Feb 21, 2008
When Diva Marketing launched in the spring of 2004 business blogs were barely a blip on most people's radar. To help marketers understand why organizations were beginning to view blogs as a business tool, how to sell-in to management and most importantly to pass along critical lessons learned, in 2005 I launched the Biz Blog Profile Series where people who were doing "it" shared their experiences.
Fast forward to 2008 and blogs are just one tactic in an over-flowing social media tool box that are now used by Fortune 100 companies, small business and not for profits.
Recently Alex Brown and I had an interesting email volley. Alex was one of the first people I interviewed for the Biz Blog Series. He had the innovative idea of turning the Wharton Admissions blog in a portal which has since become the go-to place for how to get into B School. Inspired by Alex, I thought wouldn't it be fun to take a look at "Where Are The Early Business Bloggers Now?"
Seemed appropriate to start with Alex. I think it's fair to stay that social media has not only changed Alex's life but impacted thousands of people and horses too!
Background: I now manage alexbrownracing.com which is a horse racing web-site that focuses on horse welfare. Our mission statement (something we needed to create once we became a large community) focuses on ending horse slaughter, and rescuing horses that are in the slaughter pipeline. To date we have rescued more than 2,000 horses headed for slaughter raising close to $850,000 in doing so (not bad for an organization that does not exist ?) alexbrownracing.com used to be timwoolleyracing.com and gained traction on the internet as we followed Barbaro's fight for life after his accident in the Preakness Stakes.
Basically I was in the right place at the right time and chose to blog about Barbaro with all the access anyone would need. We gained a large community quickly. Along the way I had to add a discussion board as the community grew too large to be managed simply by a blog. Subsequently I also created a wiki to manage additional content: alexbrownracing.com/wiki
We are now working with others in the anti-slaughter community to put together Americans Against Horse Slaughter, two days of lobbying in DC, March 4 and 5. We are gaining momentum and hoping to end horse slaughter once and for all. I have committed to this project to the extent I no longer teach at the University of Delaware (Internet Marketing) nor work at the Wharton School (MBA Admissions). My business card now reads: Horses.
What were your success?
I think as a community we can be proud of what we have accomplished. 2,000 horses have been saved to date, we have helped gain some ground on horse slaughter legislation. It is wonderful to be doing something you can be truly passionate about and something that combines all my interests (Internet Marketing: which I began teaching in 1997) and horses (I have worked in horse racing on and off for more than 20 years, in the US and in the UK.) Site data is also pretty cool. Our busiest day, 70,000 visits. Our discussion board gets on average over 1,000 posts a day (thanks Prospero). Our community is large and active.
What were your challenges?
We have a huge online community that while can all agree on one issue (horse slaughter is wrong) has fundamental differences of opinion over many other issues. Myself and one other administrator (WendyMI) has to try to keep this community together, and when things start to unravel, we need to figure out how to get people back on track. I have realized that I do not have to agree with everything, and to be perfectly frank, I don't have to like everyone, but I do have to act with a very even hand. That is very hard. Some issues that came to the community came from previous history of which i was unaware. There is a group of people on the internet who absolutely dislike more than one participant in our community. Their goal is to get them banned. Banning people is another issue. When you ban someone, their friends leave with them. These sorts of things I had not factored when we began. Shit, I thought we would have no problems given the mission of the site. Well welcome to the horse rescue / slaughter world to me! I can provide links of discussion threads on other boards that absolutely bash me and the work of the site, and these are from anti slaughter people. Odd stuff!
Tomorrow the site may be over. It is unique I think, but a challenge to keep it going for sure. It is the most intellectually challenging job I have undertaken, and I am thankful of a little knowledge in game theory and other fields to compliment my internet marketing background, and what I learned setting up communities at Wharton and teaching Internet Marketing with Blogs at Delaware.
What would you do differently?/What lessons have you learned?
Fortunately the mistakes I have made have not (yet) been catastrophic in terms of managing the community. There are a few people I banned that perhaps with hindsight I should not have banned. Early efforts to get help managing the site were a little rough, but overall I think for what we have done and the size of our community we have managed to bumble along without too much disaster!
What's next for Alex and the Barbaro in the world of social media?
I truly hope we can end horse slaughter this year. I also want to explore a little more deeply what we have done, and what we can learn from it. I want Knowledge at Wharton to do a case study on it etc. I also plan to move out of this grotty motel room in Houston ... and by the end of 2008 be back in the UK!
Feb 14, 2008
Happy chocolate hearts and candy kisses 
on this day when we celebrate love and relationships. On Diva Marketing there is a lot of time spent talking about the Big R (Relationship) Word.
In all honesty, I have always been a bit confused about how one has a relationship with an animate object like a box of cereal, a computer or even a red rose. However, what I do get is that I can develop a relationship with a person. That's one of the reasons why this social media world makes so much sense to me.
On Valentine's Day it seemed like a fun post to explore business relationships. How do you build great business relationships with people? Do "clients" and "partners/vendors/suppliers" (I'm never sure word to use)have different points of view about what is important for each?
I asked a few successful marketers to play along with me on this one. I'm excited to present 62 inspirational insights from people who work in a wide range of verticals: academia, packaged goods, retail, services, engineering, healthcare, high tech, online and in B2B, B2C and Not for Profit. To add a global perspective there are thoughts from marketers in India, Belgium and Canada. Special thanks to Julie Squires, Michael Rubin and M/errill Dubrow for extending the viral buzz to their networks. A heartfelt toss of the 
pink boa to all! Happy Valentine's and may all of your relationship be sweet.
How Do You Develop Great Business Relationships?
Clients
1. Hilary Weber, Kaiser Permanente - "Own" the relationship, meaning, "your pain is my pain and your success
is my success" -- if you have that from both parties, you will act as
one and success will follow naturally. (It's the business version of
"walk a mile in the other one's shoes", in a way).
2. Ken Bernhardt, Robinson College of Business, Georgia State University
- Never forget that relationships 
are two-way; both parties must see
things as "win-win" (which requires an understanding of a win is for
the other side). The words vendor and supplier should be abolished in
favor of partner.
Donna Lynes-Miller, GourmetStation
- Easy as 1.2.3...First, there must be an alignment of needs to what is
being offered (product specification)...secondly, there must be clear
communication regarding ability to provide the product and/or service
(demand VS supply), and lastly there must be shared values (keeping
commitments, doing the right thing, behaving with integrity).
3. Nick Jacobs, Windber Medical Center - If you actually believe in a vendor, their product, their work, their support . . . voluntarily serve as a reference for the vendor. It's amazing how many breaks you'll get from a vendor with whom you partner to assist in their growth.
4. Tim Jackson, Masiguy - When it comes to supplier/ vendor/ client relationships, it's just like any other personal relationship- be honest and communicate the truth. (I could go on for days on this…) I straddle both worlds all the time, so I get to juggle both relationships every day- I have many vendors to work with and many retailers and even consumers to work with as well. All require a little something different, but they all get the same treatment of open and honest communications.
5. Randal Moss, American Cancer Society/Community Mobilization Blog - Practice courtship! Nothing turns me off more than a vendor that contacts me on a cold call with no frame of reference. Some of the
best solicitations ever have been from people who know me, or read enough of my stuff to know me, and engage me in a conversation and work their pitch into it. It is like dating, you have to engage me in a conversation to get to the next level of the relationship. By spending quality time with me you let me know you care, and I am much more apt to listen to you.
6. Becky Carroll, Customer Rock Blog (from the perspective of when I was with HP as Director of Marketing, UK and Ireland) - Include your vendor/supplier in your planning, where appropriate. When I worked for HP in the UK, I used to include a few key vendors in planning meetings once we had our internal idea session completed. This helped us make sure we were taking all needs into account - with the added benefit of making those vendors feel like part of the "team"!
7. RichardatDELL/Richard Binhammer, RichardatDELL Direct2Dell - "Listening”…which is more than hearing. It is interpreting, evaluating, learning, reacting, engage-deliver. Listening includes true dialogue and conversation, as a component.
8. Rob Madonna, Palisades Insurance - I like my vendors/suppliers to know my “story.” I don’t like to repeat
myself. I want them to know me so well that they can anticipate my
needs, how I will respond to situations and how those that use me as an
internal consultant need to understand issues.
- Hire your staff
wisely. Nothing bothers me more than frequent turn over which means I
have to “break in” a new project team. See item #1 about knowing my
story.
Let your project team have a life. I don’t like my team to
be fatigued. If they make a mistake then my recommendation will be
wrong. If that happens they make me look bad at the least and can put
me on the unemployment line at the worst. Keep them fresh, rested and
ready to be brilliant. Always price the latest project for the next
one. If you do the job I need and at the best possible price you will
earn my trust. I will come back to you for project after project.
9. Michael E. Rubin, GasPedal - "Don't go to bed angry." Communication is a two-way street, and if
there's a client-vendor issue, don't wait to air it out until later when it could boil over and permanently damage the relationship.
10. Joe Jarvis, Banana Florist - Make realistic promises and honor them to the letter, regardless of short-term losses (or gains).
11. Rick Short, Indium - COMMUNICATE: proactively, freely, honestly.
After you’ve followed
the fundamental tips of a) vetting out vendors so you only work with
highly-qualified people and b) working only with vendors you love and
love the vendors you work with
…then COMMUNICATE:
Proactively:
offer up your reactions, feelings, thoughts, uncertainties, and
everything you’ve got inside. If these vendors are good, and if they
truly care about you, they want and need your thoughts to better serve
you. They might not know to ask what’s on your mind – so offer it up.
Freely:
don’t wait to be asked, and don’t think that you are a nuisance. Since
your vendors care, they want to know everything you’re thinking. Be
free in your feedback – good vendors appreciate it – and will use it to
your benefit.
Honestly: sometimes we are all good, and sometimes we
aren’t so good. Don’t hide your weaknesses from your vendors – make
them obvious. Once they know your shortcomings, as a company, and as a
Marketing professional, they become able to “cover” for you and to
augment your offerings. Additionally, they can even hire complimentary
staff to complete your total package.
12. Nick Ayres, TheHomeDepot - Never assume - always over-communicate. As simple and "basic" as it sounds, I find I get into the most trouble when I start assuming instead of asking, prodding, inquiring, and generally working to understand exactly where peoples' heads are at.
Partner, Supplier, Vendor, Knowledge Partner, Consultant, Broker/matchmaker" of Client-Vendor Relationships, Advisor, Strategic Partner, Agency
13. Pinny, Ice.com - Just like in a real relationship you need to woo the perspective woman treat your customer that way.
14. Nettie Hartsock, Hartsock Communications - Build them with the foundation of true collaboration for the long-term marathon, not the short term sprint or just the bottom line ROI.
15. Rajesh Lalwani, BlogWorks - Passion for client's business.
16. Mary Hunt, Sustainable Products Ecolutionary Selling - Client Relationships. Do you use reciprocal currency? If money wasn't involved, would there be enough value and joint mission purpose to hold the two of you together?
17. Lewis Green, L&G Business Solutions - Meet your client’s/customer’s wants and needs, not yours.
18. Steve Woodruff, Impactiviti - Here is my (battle-tested!) input - in fact, it is the core of my business model: Discover needs that may not even relate to what you have to offer, then find a way to help out.
19. Elana Centor Funny Business - Flexibility. Sometimes clients have a good reason for missing their deadline. Sometimes you have to be able to turn on a dime. Sometimes you have to give up your weekends. If the client doesn’t have a good reason, then they need to compensate you for your flexibility, or they need to become a former client.
20. Laura "@pistachio" Fitton, Pistachio Consulting - Be genuine, helpful, friendly and useful. Demand for your services is unlimited if you create value for your clients.
21. Stacy Williams, Prominent Placement - To build a successful business relationship, you have to be willing to give more than you receive and think more about how you can benefit the other person than how they 
can benefit you. -and- Business relationships are more meaningful, lasting and rewarding if you reach beyond the sometimes impersonal nature of a business connection and get to know the warm, interesting, unique person behind it, and establish a personal relationship with them as well.
22. Larry Benet, Larry Benoit The Connector - I think one of the best ways on building successful business relationships is to tell and show your partners, vendors and suppliers how much you appreciate them.I like to send personal heartfelt greeting cards along with small tokens of my appreciation. I will enclose a Starbucks gift card, or a gift certificate to something I know they might be passionate about. If they are a reader-I will send a Barnes and Nobles gift card, if they are into home improvement-a gift card to Home Depot. I do this thru a stay in touch system I use http://www.referralmagic.net
23. Lee Odden, Top Rank Results Top Rank Blog - Start right by clearly identifying and managing expectations. There is no bigger business relationship killer than the perception of over promising and under delivering.
24. Merrill Dubrow, M/A/R/CResearch -In order to build successful business relationship it needs to be a win/win for both sides.
25. Sally Falkow, Pro active - Really listen to what your client is saying. We tend to be focused on our own agenda. We’re waiting for the chance to get our point of view across and we often miss what the client needs and wants.
26. Wendy Piersall, E Moms At Home - My advice on building successful business relationships is no different than building any other kind of relationship - build a relationship with 'people' not with 'prospects' or 'clients'. :)
27. Greg Rathjen, Marketecture - Try to remember that it is not about 'me.' Have always thought that
good marketing was simply "smart empathy" in action. Same principal applies to client vendor relations. Things go best when I put myself in their shoes and feel "their pain," so to speak, and create smart ways to fix it. When I was in the agency biz and we were pitching new business I always fell on my sword to make sure the agency credentials were last, not first. Nine times out of ten, if we demonstrated smart empathy they never even asked to see the credentials.
28. Julie Squires, Soft Scribe - Read Dale Carengie’s “How to Win Friends and Influence People” and go and do likewise. [Interesting, this book was mentioned from stage at two separate conferences I attended in the past two weeks: SoCon’08 in Atlanta and ALIS in Los Angeles. It happens to be Softscribe Inc.’s corporate manual; every new team member gets a copy.]
29. Bill Flitter, Pheedo -The key to any successful relationship (personal or business) is to engage the other person through meaningful questions and active listening.
30. Scott Monty, The Social Media Marketing Blog - When I selected my title at crayon ("Consigliere"), I wanted to convey that I was a trusted advisor, both to my colleagues as well as to business contacts, because I believe that trust is the basis of any good relationship. But it takes more than simply telling someone you can be trusted - you need to earn their trust by demonstrating your value. As in personal relationships, it helps to put the other person first. Get rid of the WIIFM ("what's in it for me?") attitude.
Advise your client without any expectation of additional work; give them the best business advice possible; even show them solutions that may involve your competitors. If you demonstrate that you're there to help them succeed, the good clients will recognize your efforts and find you indispensable.
31. Elaine Fogel, Solutions Marketing and Consulting - When you give great customer service with honesty, integrity, and quality, they will come.
32. Joe Reger, Jr., Dneero - Whenever you ask a potential client to spend $X write two numbers on a piece of paper… the $X that you want the client to spend and the amount of cash you have in the bank. Take a moment to reflect. Even if you’re fabulously wealthy, putting the $X into the context of your personal cash will sober you up and help you empathize with your client.
If you’re married and you don’t like paper you can just say this at dinner “hey honey, I just spent $X on a new [bowling ball/fishing rod/pneumatic jack]” and see how it goes. Remember to duck. Oh, and be honest, open, genuine and kind… duh.
33. John Cass, PR Communications - Instead of concentrating on what you want, concentrate on what your partner needs, take care of them first, and you will establish credibility and trust. Once established, your partner will either reciprocate or not have the common sense to respond.Don't be downhearted if you receive no immediate response, relationships are not build in one day; they take work and a steady head.
If you are a manufacturer or software developer and working with partners, give them business initially to sweeten the relationship, its an investment in future sales opportunities. Rather than relying on an empty piece of paper for a partnership agreement, forge a real relationship with your partner/customer by calling or meeting with them on a regular basis to discuss ideas instead of sales contracts.
What's important is to work together on something, that way you will forge a relationship, and both parties will see one another in action. Don't worry in the long term the strategy will pay off and sales will follow!
34. Holly Buchanan, Grokdotcom - Don't interrupt. I know it sounds almost stupid, but don't interrupt your client when they talk. If they pause, do not rush to fill in the gap. Let them think and then complete their thought. It is MUCH harder to do than it sounds. But when your client is talking, keep your trap shut. Don't interrupt. It has this crazy effect - they think you are actually listening to them."
My two cents worth. (oops, that was probably more than one line - sorry - I do love to pontificate)
35. Patsi Krakoff and Denise Wakeman aka The Blog SquadKeep in touch with clients by sending them links to blog posts that are relevant to their niche/field. Not only are you providing useful information, you stay top of mind with your client and position yourself as a valuable resource. For us, this has resulted in more referrals from satisfied clients.
36. Debra A Pearlman, Cambridge Buzz, Pearl Productions Love Loss Forgiveness - Like with any successful relationship, honest and open communication is key so I never try to inflate my abilities while instilling the sense that I can get the job done well.
37. Kris Krug, Static Photography - Remember names. Send bday greetings. Take blame and deflect praise. Get in where you fit in.
38. Wayne Hurlbert, Blog Business World - There is no substitute for maintaining close contact with your customers and clients. For a smaller firm, contact is maintained easily via telephone, email, social media sites, and IM. For larger client bases, a blog, social media sites, email newsletters, as well maintaining as much personal contact as possible. will maintain relationships with customers. When clients know that you are available for them to help solve their problems, and in a timely manner, they develop trust and a sense that you truly care about their concerns.
When problems arise, prompt information to the customer base is also essential. No one likes surprises, and respect will be gained for trusting your clients enough to let them know you may be experiencing some difficulties as well. Your customers can even supply the solutions to your problems, as trust and assistance are a two way street. Developing mutual trust helps everyone succeed.
39. Sherry Heyl, Empowering Concepts - When you do not know, say "I do not know"
40. Ann Green, Millard Brown - My tip would be "suspend your agenda". We should always enter business relationships with open minds and a partnership mentality.
41. Paul Chaney, Bizzuka Conversational Media Marketing - Remember that your clients aren't a number on a spreadsheet. They are real human beings with needs, passions, families and lives. As such, it's best to treat them with respect and find ways to connect on a more personal level when possible. As Seth Godin has said, "Turn strangers into customers and customers into friends." Oh, and an ancient adage still holds a timeless truth: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."
42. Mark Goren, Transmission Marketing - Always listen and be as reliable as possible.
43. Jody DeVere, AskPatty.com - Become a people collector: Attend a wide variety of networking events each year as your budget and schedule allow, collect business cards, build relationships and add them all to an email address book program like constant contact or other to send a monthly fun newsy enewsletter to stay in touch and keep them up to date on what you and your business are up to!
44. Mike Sansone, ConverStations - Engage in the conversation by listening first and last.
45. Dave Taylor, The Business Blog @ Intuitive.com - Pay attention to the details. If they tell you they're not feeling well, ask them if they're better a day or two later. If their child won a prize, mention it again next time you chat.
46. Dmitriy Kruglyak, Trusted MD - IMHO, successful business relations are driven by having complementary abilities and needs. This is all about finding something that the partners or clients / vendors can help each other with. Interpersonal chemistry goes without saying.
47. Penelope Trunk, PenelopeTrunk.com - Build a successful business relationship by talking about something that's not business.
48. Drew McLellan, Drew's Marketing Minute - Always give them a little more than they’re expecting or they paid for.
49. David Berkowitz, Marketings Studio - Be giving of yourself.
50. Peter Kim, Being Peter Kim - 
Go “long” when building relationships, rather than seeking short-term dividends.
51. Des Walsh, DesWalsh.com - Love your client's business as you love your own, because in a very real sense your client's business is your own (which is probably why lawyers say "we" when they speak for their client).
52. Tom Collins, WME - See everything their way; you still may not agree with their point of view after seeing it, but this habit will give you the best chance at a long-term relationship.
53. Michelle Lamar, Online and Social Media - If YOU would not write a check for the product or service out of YOUR personal checking account, don't recommend that a client should spend the money. It helps prioritize client spending decisions for marketing.
54. Dina Mehta, MOSOCI - "Be the change you want to see in the world" - Mahatma Gandhi
Playing Both Sides of the Street
55. Wendy Maynard, Kinesisic - Always respect your vendors and pay them on time.
56. Ann Handley, Marketing Profs MPDailyFix.com annhandley.com
- I guess I don't really draw a distinction between business
relationships and personal relationships -- not in a weirdly
inappropriate way, but in the sense that I try to treat those I
interact with some similar fundamentals: I try to be approachable,
accessible, friendly and respectful. Until, you know, you piss me off.
: )
57. B.L. Ochman, WhatsNextOnLine - Instead of behaving like the Vice President of Sales Prevention,
concentrate on what you CAN do, not what you CAN'T; then under-promise,
over-deliver.
58. Beth Kanter, Beth's Blog - The rules of reciprocity help build successful business
relationships. Following this rule, I've never had to make this
speech: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O1RcTeAJ6GY
59. Luc Debaisieux, mind blob - Empathy and trust. If the first one is possible (empathy) and
bilateral, the second (trust) leads to building successful business
relationships.
60. Y
vonne DiVita, Lip-Sticking
- Listen between the lines. People often don't verbalize what they
really want or mean. They skirt the issue a bit, they hem and haw, and
hope you'll read their mind. If you feel this happening (by listening
between the lines), start asking some focused questions to uncover
what's really going on. Then, solve the issue - even if it means
sending them to a competitor.
61. Christopher Carfi, Social Customer - Stop creating tired brochures and cookie-cutter websites and templated press releases, and instead to actually interact at a human level with your customers and prospects.
62. Toby Bloomberg, Diva Marketing - Leave your ego at the door but bring your skills, passion and values to the party. Know when it's time to leave the party too.
63. Your Ideas ...
Today's Friday Fun is for the Divas. The girlfriends - Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte and Miranda - are back in a Sex In The City film. For me SITC means shoes shoes and more shoes. Well okay throw in Mr. Big, some great fashion, cosmos, friendship and fun in NYC too. 
Maybe, as suggested by Mary one of my dear GNO friends, a SITC movie and beverage night. Perhaps you'll even be wearing
designer shoes ;-)
