Every Business Needs a Frontman to Connect with Customers
Human beings make their strongest connections with other human beings -- not with logos, brands, or crazy mascots. A catchy business name or attractive company logo won't help you establish the same connection that's possible between two people: you and your customer. That's why it's important, especially when starting a small business, to become the "face" of your own company in order to connect with customers.
Think about the legendary bands that have left their mark. What do you remember about each of them? If you’re a musician yourself, you might think about the extreme talent each member of the band possessed. But if you’re the average listener, you’re probably going to remember that one person who was the face of the band -- the frontman (or frontwoman) as they're known in the music world. The Rolling Stones had Jagger, Kiss had Gene Simmons, and The Beatles had ... well, was it Paul or was it John?
When you’re starting your business and trying to build your brand you won’t have a lot of recognition to leverage, so people will make a decision whether or not to do business with you based on their impression of you.
This applies to both the physical and digital worlds. Sure, your brand should have a presence on all of the digital media channels that make sense, but you should do the same. People are more likely to engage with an interesting person they haven’t met than another brand they’ve never heard of. This engagement is what will lead to discussions about your business, which in turn can lead to opportunities you wouldn’t have found otherwise.
Here are five tips to become the frontman (or frontwoman) your business needs "on stage":
- Use your personal profile on Linkedin to bring attention to the business you’re building instead of just trying to grow your network. Share your business’s blog posts as status updates and in targeted groups to drive relevant traffic back to your website.
- Via your personal G+ account, participate in online communities and create, or participate in, conversations that might be relevant to what your business does.
- Use your personal Twitter account to share some of the content your company's account is sharing. Feel free to retweet yourself on occasion to expose people to your brand in a less forceful way.
- Write guest blogs and articles for relevant publications, blogs, or websites that will provide true value to your potential customers. When people read your thoughts and see that you really know what you’re talking about, they’ll be more interested in doing business with you.
- Get away from your computer. It may seem like you can get more done when you’re behind a computer, but there's a difference between making progress and simply making yourself busy. Get some face time with potential customers. Offer them an idea or two to broadcast your expertise and to get them excited about doing business with you. A personal connection is much more likely to create referrals than any digital connection.
As your company grows and your brand becomes more recognizable, you’ll be able to back off a little bit and enjoy what you’ve built. Until then it’s your job to grab the microphone and put on one hell of a show. It was your idea to build the business and your potential customers need to hear, from you, why it was such a great idea to begin with.
