How-To: Becoming a Company Evangelist
5 Tips from TechSmith's Betsy Weber
"The way we look at it, word of mouth is not marketing. It's building relationships and learning from each other," says Betsy Weber, Chief Evangelist for TechSmith. "Word of mouth marketing is all about creating deep, authentic relationships and then bringing those conversations inside to TechSmith."
Here, Betsy shares her five tips on becoming a company evangelist.
Tip #1. Be a power listener
Listen as much as you talk (if not more). Then, bring those conversations with customers into your company so the user's voice is heard. Keep the conversations going. Relate the feedback you hear to product teams, be the voice of the customer, and fight for what they want at your company.
Tip #2. Get out of the marketing department
This isn't a marketing job. This isn't to create sales. It's about customer care and customer relationships. Dump the marketing lingo. Be transparent, open and honest. You have to be an extrovert and people person. It's almost a way of life -– you're either suited for it or you're not.
Tip #3. Get your whole company onboard
It takes more than a Chief Evangelist to create customer evangelists. Every area that the customers interact with must be on board with creating customer evangelists. If one department fails to give outstanding service or gives the customer a negative experience the whole company is affected.
Tip #4. Open the front door and be accessible
Give out your direct phone number and real email address. If you hide behind voicemail and an email alias you might miss a great opportunity. Give VIP tours and arrange for customer meet-ups. Customers will appreciate it and it can be a competitive advantage. (If you're a gadget lover, you'll be right at home, as you'll need a BlackBerry or Treo to keep in touch with everyone.)
Tip #5. Have passion
You must love and believe in the products, and you have to be passionate about the people who use them. If you won't, who will?
More about Betsy:
Read Betsy's WOMBAT 1 presentation (PDF download)
