Recently I was reading a great blog entitled from B2B to B4B… What an inspiring statement! I wish I had come up with that myself! So simple, but really spot on!

So what does it mean to be there ‘4’ your customer?

We are all in business because we have a solution that helps solve a customers’ problem. Our customers, whoever they may be, have a goal in mind, and if you can be “4”them, then you can truly help them accomplish that goal.  In other words, it’s not just about selling the products in my portfolio; it’s about truly understanding my customers’ needs and taking the time to be there for them, helping them succeed. My goal has always been, and will always be to help Connect, Inform, and Educate the industry I love and, above all, be there ’4’ my client.

Over the past two weeks, I presented on Networking, Marketing, and Social Media topics at both the Hydraulic Institute fall meeting and the ASPE meeting in Phoenix, AZ.

I was asked what my ‘takeaway’ was and what did I want to accomplish from my activities at these events.

• My takeaway: if you take the time to get these three elements of your campaigns right then increased sales is just around the corner.
• My accomplishment: to help my clients, who were present at both events. I did exactly what I set out to do, which was to raise their awareness of the role social media plays in their daily marketing activities and the importance of being able to network to create relationships that help build a strong business network.

I have to say that its been harder ‘said than done’ to accomplish what I set out to do as the past few months have been a series of back-to-back events that have taken my focus and consumed most of my time. To say its been exhausting would be an understatement, but as Lt. General Russell L Honoré said when I got the chance to hear him speak about Leadership at the fall HI meeting: “We have to be resilient. We have to battle and inspire our team by setting an example and demonstrating Leadership at all times.”  It is so powerful when you are able to surround yourself with those who work hard and do it to give back to the industry that helped support them over the years. I am extremely fortunate to have a network of industry leaders that have done just that.

So over the past month, which started with the Fluid Sealing Association’s Fall meeting in Nashville, TN, and ended this week with the ASPE conference in Phoenix, AZ, I have had the chance to speak to so many people that have given their time for the mission… not because they had to, but because they believed in it. They believed that being there ‘4’ their customer was the right thing to do.