June 17, 2008
Set Up A Google "News/Alert" On Your Best Customers
Here's another free way to know about any of your competitors and/or suppliers. Go to Google News (http://news.google.com/) and set up accounts for any company you want to track. You can do this with your best or most important suppliers and customers too.
Now let me distinguish Google "Alerts" from "News". The Alerts are sent to you whenever the keywords you give Google come up in any site or blog mention, so you know what's going on with the firm or person referred to in the keywords. The "News" however, occurs kicks into action when a 'news item' occurs anywhere in the English-speaking media globally. If there is a story about your supplier, customer…or competitor...you will INSTANTLY know about it.
Why set up a Google Alert on your best suppliers? Imagine their surprise when you email them with congratulations on being mentioned in Today's Restaurant News, Nations Restaurant News, Foodservice & HOSPITALITY, RestaurantU.com, or Foodservice.com? You will probably be the very first to bring it to their attention…at least from the 'outside' of their company.
Additionally, every time you can graphically DEMONSTRATE that you care and have your customers' best interests at heart, you're placing another brick in the 'relationship foundation' you are building with them. Take your top 20 customers and list their names with Google "News" (do it for Google Alerts" too). Chances are you will only have to send out one email every other day; but what a "differentiated-preemptive" way to set yourself apart from all the others!
What do you think? Care to share your 2 cents? I'd appreciate your feedback and comments below.
Filed under Restaurant Marketing Tips by Roy MacNaughton
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Comments on Set Up A Google "News/Alert" On Your Best Customers »
Roy..
This is a fine column and recommendation.
I'd take the alert list one step further. If you have any concern about a customer, next door business neighbor or supplier, the Google Alert just may provide you with early intelligence re financial, legal or other challenges pertinent to that company, venture or organization.
So, the Google Alert may be effective, as you report, in recognizing customers and vendors while, at the same time and with the same program, it can help you avoid problems or losses.
Such are my two cents on this day.
Len Hansen
Bellingham, Washington
Yes Len: You're absolutely correct in your comment.
I guess you could look at both Google Alerts and News as
"early warning systems" to help you know in advance if trouble is coming down the road.
Forewarned is forearmed, eh?