In business, we want to think of our customers and prospects as relationships, not transactions.
We want them to like and respect us, to think so highly of our businesses, brands, products and services, that they’re loyal to us forever.
We want them to feel close to us, to know that we’ve got their backs, that we’re listening to them, that we care about them, that we want them to be happy with everything they get from us.
I recently read a blog post written by Mark Schaefer in which he talked about something called parasocial relationships. That’s what I’m talking about in this post and the accompanying video.
As Mark explains in his post – which you can read here – a phenomenon that started out in the ‘50s, with people feeling so close to the stars they watched on TV that they felt they were friends, is now associated with social media.
You. Me. Anybody can take advantage of this idea. We may see it in ourselves as viewer, readers, listeners and consumers. But as marketers, we can capitalize on it.
We can use social media and other forms of communications to form long-lasting, mutually beneficial relationships with those on the receiving end of our content.
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