Stay-in-touch marketing is a vital component of a professional service firm’s marketing system. Therefore, I thought I would spend the next few posts talking about the different ways to stay in touch with our existing customers, referral partners, and prospects.
The newsletter probably the most basic form of Stay in Touch marketing that professional service firms use. While some firms still print and mail their newsletter, most of us probably think of newsletters as e-newsletters, newsletters delivered via email.
One way that professional service firms choose to “get their newsletter out” is to purchase newsletter content from a service. Now, I will concede that when it comes to marketing, doing something consistently is better than doing nothing at all, so if the only way you will stay in touch with your customers is through one of these services, then by all means, use them.
Personally, I am not a fan of professional service firms using canned content for stay in touch marketing. While using these services can be a highly efficient way to “getting marketing done”, I don’t believe they are very effective in terms of making a connection, starting a conversation, or building your relationship with customers and prospects. They are not written in your voice and they don’t talk, in a specific way, to your particular customers. If you have taken the time to properly differentiate yourself, using canned content usually isn’t going to “feel right” to your customers.
If canned content appeals to you because you struggle with creating your own content, here are two alternatives for you to consider:
- Start with the canned content, but rewrite it in your own words.
- Add your own commentary, either during the rewrite or separately. Explain how the topic specifically affects your particular audience. What actions should they take (if any) as a result of this information. What additional things do they need to consider before taking action?
- Pay a copywriter to interview you and then use the results to write your newsletter. This is my favorite tactic for professional service providers who can’t or won’t write for themselves. It allows you to create content from your expertise without getting hung up on the writing or trying to decide what to write about.
These are only a few was in which you can be efficient with your time but still effective with your message in your stay-in-touch marketing efforts. Leave a comment and let me know how you handle this issue at your firm.
