My wife got up early today and headed to the polls while I stayed home with the kids. She texted me shortly thereafter and said, “Oh My God, you should see the line!” (of course she didn’t use punctuation, after all, she was just texting). She left, got her free cup of coffee from Starbucks (give away to everyone who voted) and I went about two hours later and there was still a line out the door. I thought that was pretty cool and here’s why: In our small town in Illinois, a state that is going to vote Democrat, in a county that always votes Republican, there is still massive voter turnout. Why? We already pretty much know how it is all going to come out, right? As I said, the state will go Democrat and the county will go Republican. It has been that way for years. But still, there is a line. Why?
I think people want to be a part of this election. I think people want to have “ownership” in this election. I think people are “buying” whatever the candidates are selling, regardless of who the candidate is. Both sides, on the national level anyway, are selling “change” and we, as a country are “buying” by showing up in droves to vote. The morning talk shows showed lines everywhere, especially in the so called “battleground” states. So, the business of this election has succeeded, we will have more buyers than we can handle today at the polls. Like I said, I think that’s pretty cool.
So, how does this all relate to sales and marketing? Well, I think that too many of us take our customers and clients for granted sometimes. When was the last time you reached out to your clients? Do you have a “keep in touch” strategy that continues to add value to your relationships with your customers? Are your customers so excited about you and your business that they are out there selling for you? If not, maybe you can take some cues from the candidates and their campaigns.
Let me know your thoughts on this by leaving me a comment!
