Help Others to Help You

I went into one of my favorite delis/caterers this morning to grab a cinnamon mini loaf for my breakfast and some of the awesome gazpacho to go with my dinner. While there, I got to chatting with the owner. He said he was now on Twitter, but he was lamenting that he didn't feel he had the time to be tweeting as much as he wanted, especially when he was at an event. He wanted to be better about it, but didn't have the time when he was busy making sure everyone got fed.

I offered up an easy solution that I hope will work for him... and you. I told him he should create a sign that he placed on or near his catering tables. Something along the lines of: "Are you on Twitter? Enjoying our food? Let people know." And then list his Twitter ID and a business-specific hashtag. (Sort of like when a conference creates a hashtag for its participants to use.)

Why should he do this? It's easy for a few dozen people to find time to send a quick tweet about enjoying his gazpacho, amazing chicken salad, or infamous cookies. It's more difficult for him to provide great customer service if he's worried about marketing in the moment. Plus, by having his customers tweet for him, he's letting them speak on his behalf (i.e., lending credibility to the recommendation) and reaching all of their followers vs. just his own followers... in the hopes that he'll find new business through these recommendations.

Do you remind your customers to tweet for you? Or post to your Facebook page? Or write LinkedIn recommendations? Because as nice as it would be for people to do so on their own, the truth is that more people think to comment, tweet, or provide feedback when they're UNHAPPY. Sometimes, you have to remind people to do so when they're pleased with the service they're getting. And if they're truly pleased with what you're providing, they'll have no problem letting others know.

Curious who the deli/caterer is? The Bean Bag. (Twitter ID: @TheBeanBagDeli)