INSIDE:

Taking the High Road
Try though we may to avoid them, mistakes are inevitable. They may be small, only involving one client or customer, or large, as in the case of the Toyota recall crisis. Either way, the question isn’t if they’ll happen, but rather how to make amends.

It’s safe to say that Toyota’s faux pas was more than just a mistake—it was an outright image disaster. But there may be a lesson to be learned from the company’s attempts at reputation repair. From television commercials to interaction with the public via social networking, Toyota is acknowledging its problems, and promising to make them better.

The company’s Tweetmeme-powered site Toyota Conversations lays it all out for consumers with aggregated news stories and video about Toyota, the company’s Twitter feed, and other information regarding the Toyota recalls—no game face, just honest facts.

Toyota’s case is extreme, but the lesson can apply to any business: consumers want not just the truth, but acknowledgement that a company knows an error has occurred. This admission is the first step on the road to redemption—and regaining the customer’s trust.

Where Do the Messages Go?
When it comes to marketing via email, the more specific the data is concerning inboxes, the better. It’s been possible to attain information on the number of emails blocked, but determining where delivered email actually goes has been problematic.

According to an Online Media Daily article, research firm Email Data Source (EDS) has developed a system that shows “percentage of active email inboxes that receive an email message ... (and) the percentage of emails actually being delivered to the inbox versus the spam folder.” In addition, EDS is offering “an independent verifier of audience measurement for email, which can ‘help marketers evaluate email partners and vendors,’” according to the Online Media Daily article.

Click here to read the full article.

Big Gains for Small Businesses
There’s no question that the economy is tough right now, and sustaining a small business in these conditions can be a bit more than a challenge. Cutting costs while both maintaining and attracting customers is imperative; according to the third wave of the Small Business Success Index, social media is the way to do this.

Many small businesses have already figured this out, as their social media usage has doubled from 12% to 24% over the past year. Creating a company page on a social networking site (75%), using social media to acquire new customers (61%), and developing networks on sites such as LinkedIn (57%) are some of the top methods small businesses are using.

The Small Business Success Index reports that in addition to being able to identify and draw in new customers, business owners are able to cut back significantly on costs; as an example, Dr. Alan Glazier, CEO and Founder of a vision care center, was able to reduce his marketing budget by more than 80%.

Though some small business owners have concerns about social marketing, such as the amount of time that’s required and the created opportunity for public criticism on the Internet, Janet Wagner, director of the Center for Excellence in Service at the University of Maryland, states that spending time on social media sites “is an investment in making it easier for small businesses to compete.”

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April W. Boone             April@GMStheBest.biz
John Boone                  John@GMStheBest.biz
Laura McGill                Laura@GMStheBest.biz