When it comes to operating a successful business, nothing’s more important than communicating effectively with your customers. Adopting the wrong tone in your marketing or sales messages, neglecting to reach out in formats where customers generally “live” and failing to reply to inquiries in a timely way can damage your brand now and into the future.

Fortunately, there are many ways to connect with your customer base (and to address prospective customers as well). When it comes to operating a successful business, nothing’s more important than communicating effectively with your customers. Here are five tips on improving your efforts at customer communications and reaping the benefits of a stronger relationship. But is this marketing or Customer Service?