Building Relationships

My little French bulldog, Beamer, has a thing for expensive facial products. Or – more precisely – where they’re sold. Several times a week he pulls me to a store in the neighborhood that sells $75 cremes and organic exfoliation systems. This store has a cool tile floor, it smells nice, and every time we visit the salespeople make a fuss over him and feed him all the dog treats he can eat. We are there so often that it’s getting embarrassing. Mostly because I never buy anything. We wouldn’t blame them if their enthusiastic hellos when we arrive started to tail off. But by now we have a relationship – a casual friendship – with these people that goes beyond being potential customer and courteous salespeople. They never, ever treat us like we’re wasting their time.

PR people, too, know the value of building relationships with key constituents – media, consumer advocates, community leaders, and policymakers – and especially so during the periods when we aren’t pitching something to them. When you invest in learning the interests and the needs of these groups, you can better serve your clients because you’ve built credibility and contacts. Good PR people are making calls, sending quick e-mails, and arranging background briefings every day. Not just when the release goes out or when you need a quick win. It’s the difference between selling and building a long-term relationship

Someday I will be in the market for body oil and hand treatments that cost about as much as dinner for two. And I know exactly where I’ll buy them. Beamer could lead me there with his eyes closed.

Julie Townsend