As entrepreneurs and marketers our responsibility is to pay attention to the ROR in our businesses. ROR is becoming one of the most important key elements in running any business. You might be familiar with the term ROI which means Return On Investment. Return on Investment is a term used in business a lot; however ROR is becoming way more valuable these days for businesses. Ted Rubin, who is known in the social media world as a marketing wiz and who has over 50K Twitter followers coined the term ROR (Return on Relationships) which means investing your time and energy in developing and nurturing relationships. Ted states that the marketing paradigm is shifting with much greater focus on “power to the people” facilitated by social media. Just think about all the people that you are connected with via Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Tumblr and any other social media platform that you use. On social media alone the people that you have developed relationships with are the people that are your fans, supporters and greatest customers! It’s not about advertising anymore, but it’s all about building relationships with others!

As business owners we need to pay special attention to the relationships that are created between our products/services and our customers/consumers. Building relationships is key to having a successful business. So how can you create more ROR in your business?

Be of Service – It is not all about you or your customers. A huge part of running a successful business is finding out how you can help and be of service to other entrepreneurs and other business owners. Make time in your schedule even if it is 5 minutes a day to help promote someone else’s blog, services, website or product. This is key to building strong relationships and bonds with other entrepreneurs both within and outside your industry. You never know when your clients might need a product or service that you do not provide and instead of having them try to find someone that does provide that product or service you may have the connection that they need. Being of service not only benefits your client but also benefits other entrepreneurs. Another way to be of service is to sign up for HARO which stands for help a reporter out, and provide valuable content to reporters who are looking for content for a specific story that they are writing.

Meet in Person – While you can develop great relationships online and meet people from all over the country which the internet allows you to do; another key element in developing strong relationships is meeting people in person. When you meet someone in person there is a certain level of trust and quicker bond that is formed as opposed to developing a relationship online. Getting away from the computer and attending networking meetings or even different social events that align with your business or personal brand is a highly effective way to build strong ROR.

Personal Touch – People want to feel valued, respected and appreciated. People also want to feel heard and understood. Find creative ways to reach out and follow up with clients, fans and supporters whether it be a personal email to see how they are doing or sending them an article that you know that they would like. Another idea is to send them a thank you card in the mail to say thanks for all of their support. Whatever way that you can make people feel special, take the time to do it and invest in the relationship.

So go out there and create a strong ROR in your business!