Speciality BLEND

When we talk about communicating and gathering responses we must understand that as important as it is to deliver the message, the manner in which the message is delivered is what truly builds relationships over time. Empathy is the overwhelming key to a successfully cultivated relationship:

"Interactive Marketing is the evolution of marketing to a conversation. “The term interactive, as we interpret it, points to two features of communication: the ability to address an individual and the ability to gather and remember the response of that individual. Those two features make possible a third: the ability to address the individual once more in a way that takes into account his or her unique response. Thus we see interactivity as a tool that allows good marketing to become good conversation. The promise of the interactive paradigm, we anticipate, lies in its ability to put a more human face on marketplace exchanges without losing the scale economies of mass marketing.”  Source

Relationship Marketing

For those of you who may follow Social Media Examiner or have heard of Mari Smith - these are two great resources to enhance your understanding of relationship marketing. In the below video, Mari explains how Starbucks engages with their customers and shows that they "care" about them. This empathy strengthens the relationship, and, in turn, strengthens the brand. Its not about B2B or even B2C marketing, it's simply a concerted effort to have a P2P conversation.

Not only has Mari taken notice of Starbucks and their ability to build relationships, but Social Media Today also agrees. In a very recent article, they express the keys to engaging with customers. The below email is one example of how Starbucks builds and strengthens relationships:

If we refer back to our working definition of interactive marketing, we must focus on several key factors: reach the individual, remember the response and use a previous response to further build the relationship. Starbucks is very clearly taking these words to heart. Their reward? Loyal customers that feel that they have invested in a relationship with one of the world's most-trusted brands.