Because people are hungry for relationships, brands should give them that, first and foremost. Tony Hsieh, CEO of the online shoe and clothing giant Zappos, helped build a billion dollar company around this premise. His call center staff spends a longer than-average amount of time on the phone with customers with the goal of not making a sale, but building a relationship. He also has a no automation and no-overseas-call-center rule in place.

The result? A 75 percent repurchase rate through Zappos’ call centers, alone. “It’s important to identify all the vehicles that can drive you toward your goals,” Pachter says. “Test them in a way that allows you to have the perspective to make smart data-driven choices.”

If you’re looking for the ultimate definition of the importance of continued grassroots marketing, Stutts offers this thought: “Every business owner should design a strategy around this question, ‘What would happen if the only way we got new business was from our current client base?’ Build a strategy around that question, and you’ll never go out of business.”

This article appears in the new November/December 2018 issue of Connect magazine published by NextPage, which can be found online here. If you would like a free print subscription to Connect, please click here.