Has your business felt the tremors of the marketing earthquake that shook the way goods and services are sold? I am talking about the move away from sales at brick and mortar stores to the world of Amazon online sales. It is often referred to in marketing as the zero moment of truth – when a consumer does all of their own research and does not need a salesperson. It is no-touch selling. But just how effective are you in gaining brand loyalty when you sell in this manner?

People simply cannot live without touch. In a Psychology Today piece that was published just after the COVID shutdown had ended, Dr. Nicole McNichols talked about the vital role touch plays in our well-being. "The research demonstrating the need for human touch is vast. From a developmental standpoint, infants literally cannot survive without human touch. Skin-to-skin contact even in the first hour after birth has been shown to help regulate newborns’ temperature, heart rate, and breathing, and decreases crying.” But what about selling your products and services? Can it be done using a no-touch method? If you want to sell beyond just having the lowest price, then no! Human interaction is not just for newborn babies, it is for all of us. And it impacts the way we think about brands and the people who sell them.

I am not suggesting that we all give up selling our brands online. The world is not going to stop shopping on the internet. However, I am suggesting that you will have to find new ways to connect with people on a personal level or risk just being a commodity – sold to the lowest bidder. Your marketing has to lead the way in finding new ways to touch your customers.

How can this be done? Look for a resurgence of some old, tried-and-true methods that worked before the COVID lockdown: tradeshows, golf outings, industry association meetings, after-hours entertainment, etc. Also, look for new, innovative ways of getting in the same space as your customers. That may include joining them in a charitable cause or taking lunch to them on a special day designated as customer appreciation for their business.

However, touching your customers goes beyond just warming them up for a sale. Exceptional customer service is one of the main reasons consumers remain brand loyal. Make sure you are doing your best to contact customers with a real person after the sale. A phone call, personal email or text, or a personal visit to find out how they feel about purchasing your brand will go a long way in keeping customers happy. The truth is, marketing is responsible for taking the lead on all of this.

The real marketing earthquake is not the shift away from physical stores with traditional salespeople, it is finding new ways to touch people. Your marketing is key to this seismic shift.

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The Vital Importance of Human Touch,by Nicole K. McNichols, Ph.D., Psychology Today, August 3, 2021