No More Trade Events? You Can Still Build Lasting Customer Relationships.

Photo by Marcus Byrne on Unsplash

Have you noticed some events have been cancelled the last two weeks?  Of course you have.  The business world is in the grips of fear about the Coronavirus, otherwise known as the Novel coronavirus or COVID-19.  It is having enormous ramifications on the global events and hospitality business.  Facebook F8, Mobile World Congress, Game Developers Conference and many more trade events are not happening this year or are going virtual.  The cancellation of these events is projected to have as much as a $1trillion impact on the global economy, but what about your business?

Events are a primary way to engage with your customers and foster stronger relationships.  They are a consolidated opportunity to interact with numerous customers in a single location and provide scalable engagement opportunities.  In the absence of those events, you have to find other substantive ways to build and foster those relationships.

That’s where “swag” comes in.

Swag is a horrible term, but when you hear it you start thinking about merchandise.   Rather than swag, let’s talk about client gifts, tokens of appreciation, and thoughtful branded merchandise that act as reminders about your business. A well-thought-out piece of branded merchandise becomes a prized and useful possession for your customer.  It gives them something of value while also reminding them of the value you bring to the relationship.  It can also be a thoughtful expression of how you value the relationship or partnership and can tighten the bond created between you.

Customer relationships are like any relationship – you have to invest time to foster it and keep it strong.  Events are a great way to do that, but since you probably aren’t going to any events anytime soon, why not send your clients a reminder of the relationship.  Furthermore, why not send them something that fits the following criteria:

·      Is thoughtful, creative and represents the relationship.

·      Is useful and won’t be tossed in the garbage.

·      Is sustainably sourced or eco-friendly, which helps the environment and presents your brand in a positive light.

·      Is scalable enough for you to send to a large group, but doesn’t come off as “cheap”.

These unprecedented times are when business needs to be innovative in finding ways to foster the relationships that will drive growth for years to come.  You should be investing in your customer relationships now so you don’t have to worry about your competitors picking them off later.  If you are interested in brainstorming a couple of great, targeted ideas for your customers that tick the boxes mentioned above, let us know.  Globeflower Promos has the team ready to go and the relationships to execute that will help make sure your client relationships are stronger than ever, even if you can’t go see them in person right now.

After all – who wants to go to a fancy dinner in Barcelona anyway?  :-)