What is Community Relations?
For a company to be successful, it must develop a relationship with the community in which it operates. To see results, the relationship must be beneficial for all parties involved.
In today’s world, customer relations is an essential part of marketing, so choosing a cause that’s appropriate for your customer’s needs is crucial.
But where to start? Your company can identify an essential need of the community and find a way to fix it– through donating money to that specific cause or even sending a representative from your company to a function for the cause.
Extending assistance through services, goods, or your time helps strengthen your relationship with your community and boosts your business.
Research has shown that 8 out of 10 people buy goods from their local business because of how that same business helped the community. Positioning your business as one that’s involved and invested in its community builds goodwill among your potential customers, generating leads and driving traffic back to you.
A veteran marketer once said,
“People buy relations, magic, and stories – not goods and services.”
He was proven right over time. Many more companies are learning that marketing their products alone won’t do. They have to get hands-on with their communities.
Check out these tips by Holistrix Media Co. on Strategies for doing
The Importance of Community Relations
Community relations is considered a two-way benefit to its society. It positions businesses as civically and ethically responsible in their local communities, fosters goodwill among the locals–your potential customers, and helps the community thrive as a whole.
Community Relations Allows Giving Back ; Businesses that participate in community relations benefit by being able to give back to their communities. The beneficiaries in that community prosper from donations and other services.
Community Relations Builds Credibility ; Building credibility is essential for all businesses, and it’s no different with community relations. A solid strategy helps boost your company’s credibility and create a personal connection with your customers as compassionate, trustworthy, and invested in local growth.
Community Relations is Great for Advertisement; Word of mouth marketing is king today. Your community relations strategy, when coupled with public relations outreach, can work wonders in generating buzz for your business. The resulting news coverage fosters positive sentiment of your business in the eyes of locals, driving traffic right back to you.
Community Relations helps with Networking ; If you extend your time to do community relations, you’ll find that your network will grow exponentially. You might start attracting potential investors and get new customers.
It’ll be easier to retain employees, connect with fellow local business owners for future partnerships, and your credibility ratings will go up as new customers view you as reliable, trustworthy, and honest.
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