Customer, LLC: The Small Business Guide to Customer Engagement & Marketing

by Hillary Berman

Small businesses that thrive integrate the customer's perspective throughout their business. They don't market to prospects, they connect with potential customers. They create relationships. When small businesses embrace their customers at their core, customers show them love in return. The result? Unmatched customer satisfaction, loyalty, referrals and growth. Customer-centric marketing doesn't have to be hard. And it doesn't have to be expensive. Customer, LLC is a marketing book just for small business owners. Whether you run a restaurant or a fitness studio, are an attorney or a photographer, make custom jewelry or mass produce widgets, Customer, LLC is for you.

Genres: Nonfiction

244 pages, Paperback

Published July 7, 2016

About the author

Hillary Berman is passionate about small business and customer-centric marketing. She leads the Popcorn & Ice Cream team, is the author of Customer, LLC: The Small Business Guide to Customer Engagement & Marketing, and a Google Small Business Advisor. No, she doesn’t get much sleep.

Hillary brings experience working in and for businesses of varying size to her small business clients. Cutting her teeth on Madison Avenue, Hillary got her first taste of small business at a dot.com reminiscent of Facebook, but sadly before its time. Upon moving back to Washington, DC, Hillary worked for a start-up technology company before turning back to the agency world. Prior to launching Popcorn & Ice Cream, Hillary worked with her husband to build and grow a financial services business.

A graduate of Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications and the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, Hillary can also be found building lemonade stands with her three budding entrepreneurs at home.

Reviews

[W. Whalin · Rating 4 out of 5]

The customer is the heart and soul of any small business. If your business needs more customers (and what business does not want more customers) then you need the insights in CUSTOMER, LLC from Hillary Bergman.

The well-written book is broken into four sections: customer-centric mindset, communications and engagement, getting beyond your list and so, now what? Making it all happen. The entire book is focused on small businesses and loaded with practical inspiration and anecdotes. Whether your business is just starting or you have been in business for years, you will gain valuable information from CUSTOMER,LLC. As Bergman writes in the foreword, "This book offers ideas for small tweaks to your marketing and mindset that offer big returns."

Throughout the book, key sections are called out and the book is broken into small important subheads (well-designed). The final section of each chapter is called The Bottom-line and readers are given a summary and action points to apply to their business. I read CUSTOMER, LLC from cover to cover and recommend it.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

Running a business is hard. No question about it. But in her book, Customer LLC, Hillary Berman points out that small business owners can convince themselves that they have unique challenges and regular marketing just doesn’t work.

With humor, and a little tough love, Berman addresses these excuses with a practical guide to marketing.

With a focus on customer love, the book walks readers through challenges such as how to describe your products, pricing and the power of networking. Berman preaches that good service and quality products must be the foundation of your business, but if you can “be awesome” you have an opportunity to create relationships with your customers that will bring you more business.

When you “shower customers with love, you get people talking. You create a referable moment.”

Berman provides examples of what she calls the “customer-centric mindset” that many businesses have adopted. These are not case studies featuring million-dollar campaigns and celebrity endorsements. Rather these are real-life examples that any small business owner can use, regardless of their budget.

For small business owners, Customer LLC is a step-by-step guide to creating and marketing a small business.

For marketers, this book serves as a reminder that the details of a campaign can make all the difference.

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book for any small business owner (or potential small business owner thinking about launching their product/service!) because it offers straight-up, no-nonsense advice. Berman tells it like it is, and gives examples to back up her ideas about what true customer-centric marketing and small business operations look like. For example, I definitely identified with the story about the whale watch tour operator on Cape Cod that did not put its customers first -- it charged customers a $25 parking fee and didn't tell customers when they booked their very expensive tickets that this parking fee would greet them when they arrived. I've been on that same whale watch myself, and I think we all know how it feels to be wronged by a business you're just trying to support and be a patron of. I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking to improve their marketing strategies and reach their business goals by learning how to exceeding customer expectations, communicate like a pro, and making lifelong customer relationships.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Customer, LLC delivers clear, practical advice for small business owners on how to develop a sensible product proposition and market it successfully. Ms Berman clearly knows whereof she writes! As a businessman who writes novels about business, I find it refreshing to see this topic covered readably, enjoyably and without jargon.

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you're looking for a guide that helps you to better figure out all the small and large decisions of growing and marketing your small business, look no further. This book is not just full of great ideas, but actionable advice that is shared in a frank, clear and honest way by the author. There are so many times when, as a business owner, I just want someone to "tell me what to do!" This book does that, getting into details and specifics, as well as sharing wonderful sidebar stories of other successful small businesses. I highly recommend this book!

[Allie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is not only a great guide for those who work in business (small or big), it is also a valuable resource for anyone who engages with other people at all. Unlike similar books which often read more like textbooks, Customer, LLC speaks directly to the reader in an engaging and friendly manner. The personal stories and real-life small business examples can be applied to various personal situations and work experiences alike. The author is truly an expert in this field and her passion for small businesses radiates throughout the book!

[Aviva Goldfarb · Rating 5 out of 5]

No one I've met knows more about how to delight and retain customers than Hillary Berman. Her book is a must read for businesses that struggle with getting and keeping enough customers. It's very readable and actionable with some easy to follow case studies and advice. Highly recommend!