It's a prime example of using social media marketing the right way.
After linking in her blog to Grasshopper (a B2B provider of phone service), Perry received a hand-written thank-you note from the company's "ambassador of buzz."
Included were the ambassador's business card and a Starbucks gift card.
Grasshopper reps also commented on Perry's blog and Tweeted about it.
The upshot? Perry now has "a new Twitter friend and an even warmer and fuzzier feeling about Grasshopper."
Was the company merely soliciting Perry's business? Not really. In fact, Perry had recently cancelled her contract with Grasshopper, because she no longer needed its service.
Grasshopper was simply using social media marketing the right way.
"Obviously, this is a company that has a process in place," Perry writes. "When I left them as a customer, they sent an automated email. When I blogged about them, someone Tweeted my post (good move on their part because of the backlink to them) and left a comment for me. It could have stopped there but it didn’t."
Does your organization have a social media process in place?
- Do you habitually thank readers who comment about your blog posts?
- Do you follow links left in comments and leave comments for readers?
- Do you thank readers who Tweet about your blog?
- Do you go the extra mile and reach out to readers off line?
