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Marketing to Your Customers

Marketing to Your Customers - A Reasoned Response to the Aftermath of I-695 and I-722

Carolyn Browne*
Principal
Carolyn Browne Associates

When I do a strategic planning workshop with staff and elected officials, my first question always is, "What business are you in?"

Many in the public sector are unable to see that they are in a business serving a customer base just as much as Home Depot or Safeway. A city official of one of the rapidly growing cities that ring Puget Sound responded to my question with, "we are in the business of governance." He continued on, "we have just as much obligation to communicate with our public as we do to provide police, fire protection, public works and all of the other services associated with running a municipal government."

Some of the tasks associated with the business of governance include:

  • Managing the affairs of the community
  • Providing a vision for the community
  • Managing the concerns of neighborhoods
  • Managing the concerns of local businesses
  • Making decisions that are in the best interest of the whole

What happens when your customers don't want to "buy" your services? They can refuse to pass bond issues and other funding. They can vent their anger at council members, staff and each other. They can make their lack of support known in ways that bring disruption, confusion and misery to those who believe they are doing their best.

Any seasoned business professional knows that it is essential to do continuous marketing to your customer base. Customers need to understand what you provide, the quality of the services you provide and they need to believe they are getting good value for the dollars they are spending (in the case of government, the spending is in the form of taxes and fees).

In the case of city governments, citizens - your customer base - need to know what you are giving to them for their tax dollars. It's essential to begin with some basic marketing research to understanding the awareness levels and attitudes of your citizens. Once you know what they know, you can develop a public relations strategy (yes, I am using that term, even though I know it makes some uncomfortable) to educate and inform.

A vital concept in successful marketing is that of the "key message." Every product, every service that is marketed has two or three themes or messages that are repeated over and over in all promotion that is done.

How many cities have developed key messages for their citizens (how many have developed any messages for their citizens)? Your messages should communicate what you are doing for them and how you are doing it. For example, "We are using your tax dollars to provide the most responsive services for our citizens." Every clerk, every person working on a street project, everyone who answers a phone at City Hall, should be versed in the key messages you want conveyed.

Getting your messages out will require continuous repetition using every public relations tool available - daily and weekly newspapers, city newsletters, neighborhood newsletters, web sites, senior citizen centers, schools….whatever is in your community. For people to accept and understand the value of a product or service, they need to hear repeated messages.

It is said we are living in the information age. How well do you understand what your constituents know and understand about the workings of their government. How many of your citizens know what their taxes are paying for?

You are in the business of governance, and your citizens need to be aware of what you are providing and how well you are providing it.

Read previous articles in this series:

*Carolyn Browne is principal of Carolyn Browne Associates, a successful community involvement and marketing research firm in the Seattle Area since 1977. Carolyn's firm has handled numerous community involvement projects, marketing research surveys, focus groups, public workshops and strategic planning meetings for a broad range of large and small municipalities and for several state agencies. She is an associate member of Association of Washington Cities and is a frequent presenter and workshop leader at their conferences. Carolyn can be contacted at: chbrowne@earthlink.net.