It’s 1956. I remember my best friend at the time, Eddie, and he was a pretty with-it guy. His mom came home from work one afternoon with a brand-new Schwinn Tiger bicycle. It was well after dark before Eddie’s mom could get him off his new bike and into the house for dinner. By that time, every kid in a 3-block radius had seen, touched, some even got to ride, the bike.  That night began a lobbying effort on the part of every one of us kids, begging our parents to buy us a bike just like Eddie’s. It wasn’t a week and nearly all of us had our very own “Tiger,” albeit in different colors.

A few years before, 1952, or thereabouts, my dad bought a 21-inch Stromberg-Carlson television set, encased in a beautiful Salem-Maple console. Wildwood Drive to Pinehurst Way, we were envied our TV. It didn’t take long for envy to translate into new televisions throughout the neighborhood.

Apparently, human nature plays true to form, be it with children or adults. Not one of us consulted the latest advertising glossies that came folded inside the Sunday San Francisco Chronicle. Each put their faith in another’s judgment when it came time to make a buying decision. We kids relied more on the “cool” factor. Today, it’s known as viral.  The only difference is that the audience is now in the millions.

There’s a phrase I learned (recalled from my walk down memory lane) called “word-of-mouth,” that has endured these many years. One could arguably make a case that it is the best marketing tool ever used to sell a product (or service).

Most of my clients know I work only by referral. I find it a pretty good word-of-mouth system. I choose not to depend on visitors who happen upon my website. [Not by accident, this is the topic of my next post]. Indeed, every client I have was referred to me by a current client. There are a couple of benefits provided by this system. First, the person referred is already a qualified lead, if not a pre-sold customer. They wouldn’t have contacted me if they didn’t have a certain amount of faith in the person who referred them. The second benefit is I generally get prospective clients who are professional and can afford my services, will be mindful of the value I provide, and will, in turn, treat me as a professional.

The key to making this system work is fulfilling the expectations of new and current clients, alike. If that means I have to put in non-billable extra hours to complete a project, I do. It helps that I am a perfectionist, by nature. And there’s another long-lived phrase, the customer is always right, even when they aren’t. I do whatever necessary to give a client what they want. Whether it’s a newsletter, website or that new Schwinn Tiger bike!

Up Next: Maybe you really don’t need a website, but .  .  .