First Comes Mind Share, Then Comes Wallet Share

When you think of soft drinks, what brand almost immediately comes to mind? (And don't say 7UP, because you know that's not it.) Why, of course, Coca-Cola. Where I live in the southeastern part of the US, we don't ask someone if they want a soft drink, pop, or soda. We say, "Do you want a coke?" Then, we ask what kind...Pepsi, Mountain Dew, etc. Talk about mindshare, Coke's got it where we live.

The same thing holds true with facial tissue. What one brand do you think of? Kleenex, right?

I could go on and on about brands that have captured enough attention over the years to have significant mindshare, what one person called a "franchise in the mind." What about your brand? What kind of mindshare do you have with customers and prospects?

Internet marketing expert Christian Sarkar says that, first we have to create mindshare, then we can achieve what he calls "wallet share." His term for it is "double loop" marketing, and blogs, according to Sarkar are one way to gain the former in order to achieve the latter.

How do you achieve this? Three words: Trust, Reliability, and Transparency, all of which are foundation stones upon which blogging is built. Blogs written from the heart, authentically minus the PR spin or marketing hype, can foster trust with consumers. Reliability has to do with the usefulness of the information presented. Keeping you blog very customer-centric will help you attain that goal.

Transparency comes when you seek consumer feedback, ask for their opinion, as well as stating your own. Interacting with the customer in an open, honest way, even when they are critical, will help you gain significant mindshare and improved customer loyalty over the long-haul.

It really all comes down to treating people like they want to be treated. Blogging merely gives you a platform for doing that in a way that everyone can see.

Blogs may not be a direct-response sales tool (at least not yet) so much as they are a "trust" tool that will, over time, lead to sales. You know the old adage, "first comes love, next comes marriage." Well, you've got to get the customers to "love" you...at least trust you before you can expect them to share their hard earned cash with you. Blogs are a vehicle through which you can do that.

First comes mindshare, then comes a share of the wallet.