Five Steps for Expanding Your Customer Base with Guerilla Networking

As a single company, it is impossible to provide your customers with all the services they desire for every aspect of their life; but with guerilla marketing, you can come close. By partnering with companies that provide different, yet complimentary, services to your business, you can create a network of reliable resources for your customers. In turn, your company will gain credibility and strength from the size and stature of the group.

The goal of the guerilla network is to expand your customer base by being a part of a diverse web of companies that will appeal to a wide range of customers. Because your company will be the only one in this web to offer your unique product category, every customer who enters into the web will be referred to you for that specific service.

1. Brainstorm

To establish a guerilla network, you must first consider what other resources could be provided for your customer outside of the products and services that you have available at your company. Get to know your customers to discover what other services they generally need when considering your products.

Could they use a designer to help decorate a home gym for the new treadmill they just bought from you? Or how about pet supplies for the dog they walk when using their new pedometer? Whatever it is, think outside the box! More variety means more customers.

2. Make a list

After brainstorming potential additional services, it is time to narrow your search and prepare for the recruitment process. Make a list of the product and service categories that you think will be beneficial in the guerilla network that you wish to create. Then, list specific companies that fall under these categories. Naturally, you should start with companies that you have referred customers to in the past, and who have, in turn, referred customers to you.

Expand that list by thumbing through your local yellow pages or searching the internet. Choosing local companies will give you the flexibility of working with partners who are able to make marketing decisions at the local level, without the inconvenience of running it by their corporate office first. Add companies that you instinctively feel may be fitting for your network. Do not forget to continuously update this list, even after you have moved on to the next step. The longer your list, the better chance you have at building a large and powerful network.

3. Do your homework

Once you have a substantial list of companies in which you are interested, begin researching them. You will want to know if they are a high-end store and if you want their customers frequenting your business. Determine whether or not the company is one you would like to be associated with. Do they exemplify the values that are most important within your own company? Be selective and remember that you will be sending your best customers to their company. Their service will be a reflection of your company and its values.

Look for companies that have taken the time to create and maintain an impressive website. This will give you the opportunity to learn more about their business and will provide countless opportunities for marketing within your network in the future. You should also try to recruit companies with strong brands, so that your brand will strengthen when you co-brand with them.

4. Establish contact

After you have learned about the companies on your list, you should begin establishing contact with them. Your means of presentation will vary depending on what you are comfortable with and how you feel you will best be received.

A letter is obviously not the most effective means of initial contact. It can be impersonal and easily discarded. It does not demand their attention like a personal visit will. However, it is a simple way to cast a wide net and see what you catch. You should use this method if you simply do not have the time to visit these businesses individually, or if you have enough relationships already established in your community to recruit 3-5 companies into your guerilla network right from the start.

I recommend that you simply ask the owner for a few minutes of his or her time. You can initiate this meeting through a letter, by phone or by just walking in. Because you are not selling anything, this meeting should be relatively easy to set up.

These few minutes with the owner will allow you the chance to determine if they are the type of person with whom you can work. You will also explain who you are and what you will accomplish through this partnership with local companies. Impress the owner with a professionally designed and bound brief of your strategic plan. These professional packets include company logos on a few conceptual pieces that could be used in a guerilla marketing program.

It goes unsaid that this network will generate more traffic for your business, so focus their attention on the benefits THEY will receive from the network. Let them know that you have already noticed that some of your customers would be great referrals for their business. The promise of immediate results will be sure to catch their attention.

5. Follow through

After you have established a relationship with the company, be sure to follow through with your arrangement. Everything you and your guerilla partner agree to do needs to be thoroughly discussed and put into writing. You should set up parameters and expectations of the marketing program and agree on a specific date to begin and end each program. When the regulations of the agreement are clear, both parties will be more likely to follow through and benefit from the guerilla network.

The ideal partnership is one that remains balanced: each company putting in an equal amount of work and reaping an equal reward. By becoming a part of a strong guerilla network, you will be a major resource for each customer's unique needs. Your company will gain ideas, support and loyal customers from partnering companies and your marketing audience will expand dramatically without the costly risk of traditional advertising.

Tom Richard is the author of Smart Sales People Don't Advertise, which can be found at http://www.tomrichard.com, and founder of the online training university http://www.trainactive.com

---

Alliances: More Than A One Way Relationship

What is the biggest advantage of forming an alliance?Everyone has... Read More

Networking - Facts to Ponder

Right here in Europe, the very last continent to enter... Read More

Examination of Discovery - Finding the Right Networking Group

Why would I pick this group over another group?How many... Read More

How to Keep from Sounding LIKE Totally Stupid

June is reality check month. Lots of the resolutions have... Read More

Give People Something to Talk About!

My husband and I tried an experiment one night. We... Read More

Growing Your Network of People Can be Easy and Fun!

A few years back when I moved to Charlotte, NC... Read More

The Five Step Formula For Getting Prospects to Call You

Are you tired of prospecting for new business?Are you sick... Read More

The Secrets of Effective Networking

Before we talk about specific networking tips I want to... Read More

Time to Hire a Professional Networker?

It used to be that people said that there was... Read More

Why Bother With Social Networking Sites Like LinkedIn?

Q: I think I understand the value of networking as... Read More

How Well Do Your Customers Know You?

Know your customer, know your customer, know your customer. Three... Read More

Five Best Ways To Build A Network

I have been working from home on the internet for... Read More

Are You Building Relationships Online?

How's your relationship?I'm not prying into your personal life, so... Read More

How to Avoid Falling Asleep Behind the Conversational Wheel

Think about the last time you feel asleep behind the... Read More

Defining a Quality Networking Group

When it comes to quality, how do you choose the... Read More

Networking

Put join a networking group on your to do list... Read More

Community Involvement Networking

It is important for you to join at least one... Read More

The Power of Word of Mouth

Most of us remember the commercial that said, "I told... Read More

34 Power Affirmations for Networking with the Affluent

Here are 34 affirmations I have created after studying the... Read More

Networking: Is Your Approach Too Self-Centered?

It's a classic mistake by networkers: their approach is focused... Read More

Discover Your Own Source Of Business Leads

Generating new business leads is critical in your success, no... Read More

How to Create an Interest Story for the Press

What makes a good interest story?An interest story is just... Read More

Lesson 69 - When Networking Events Fail

The StoryIn a quest to create strategic alliances, coalitions, and... Read More

Networking to a New Life

Research shows that talking to strangers -- not people in... Read More

5 Ways to Wow People Who Wear Nametags

People wear nametags more often than you think. The majority... Read More