Posts Tagged ‘birthday cards’

THIS IS PART OF A SERIES OF POSTS ON WHAT YOU CAN DO TO BE MORE SUCCESSFUL IN YOUR BUSINESS THIS YEAR. TO GET A FREE REPORT FULL OF SUCCESS TIPS FOR YOUR BUSINESS, CLICK HERE.

When I was a kid, my mom would always have me send out thank you notes for birthday cards and presents. She thought it was important to acknowledge when someone did something nice for you. She was right. And even though you don’t have a mom telling you to do it now, you should be sending out thank you notes to people who give you business, your customers.

Lizzy Shaw, of Lizzy Shaw Public Relations, suggests just that in our free report, The Number One Thing to Make Your Business More Successful. She says this:

Follow up with clients and customers right away and make sure they are happy with the service they received. This also includes thanking them for their business. If it is possible, a HANDWRITTEN note can be a clincher. I think that most people forget to say thank you, and certainly almost no one sends physical mail anymore, so a handwritten note makes an impression.

Relationships, Not Sales

As I write this, I have a stack of thank you notes that I need to write. This is an important part of the process, but since it is after the sale, sometimes we forget about it or put it off. What you need to do is stop thinking of customers in terms of sales and start thinking of them in terms of relationships. Do things to build and keep the customer relationship happy. Thank you notes are an important part of this.

A First Step

Even though a thank you may come at the end of the sale, you can think of it as a first step. Here is what I mean. The thank you note comes on the tail end of the first experience with the customer. Now that the transaction is over, you have reached that uncomfortable stage of the relationship. You can do nothing, and let things fizzle. Or, you could work on establishing a long term relationship, a friendship with your customer. A thank you note is only the first step in this. You’ll want to keep the conversation going with emails, phone calls, conferences, and more.

Make it Policy

Even if you don’t do any of that, sending a thank you note is just a nice touch. People like to be appreciated. So make it a policy and make it stick. Send a thank you out to all of your customers. If you are in retail, you probably can’t collect everyone’s address. But you can still have a thank you policy. Maybe you can collect as many email addresses as possible and send out a personal thank you email. Perhaps you can recognize your regulars and give them a thank you gift.

Make an Impression

As Lizzy Shaw says, a hand-written note makes an impression. Anything you do to personally thank your customers will have a lasting effect. The benefit comes in increased loyalty, increased likelihood that the customer will refer you, and just overall good will. There is another benefit as well. This comes to you, as you think about each customer and take a moment out of the day to appreciate them. This will lead you to valuing your customers more. In fact, as you see your own appreciation grow, you will probably want to build a thank you policy into your business so that each employee has a chance to personally thank customers and appreciate them.

So take the advice of moms everywhere, say thank you. Its not hard, and it is very rewarding. I’m going to write a few thank you notes today, how about you?

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Bradford Shimp helps small businesses build their online presence at BroadRiverCreative.com

photo credit: laurenatclemson

How many businesses do you hear from after you make a purchase? All to few, I would bet. And the ones you do hear from are usually larger businesses and all you get from them after a sale are catalogs and advertisements.

The moments during and after a sale are when you are closest to your customer. He or she has decided to trust you enough to buy from you. You are having a meaningful interaction, one that could and should lead to a growing relationship. And then you never call until you want another sale? How rude is that?

Keep the Conversation Going

You did a lot of work to get your customer to the point of making a purchase. It took a building of trust, among other things. So why would you want to waste all of that effort by ignoring the customer after the sale?

This is the best time to start a deeper relationship with the customer. By this I mean that you can become a more important part of your customer’s life, not just a company that he or she bought something from once. This all starts right around the time that you make that sale.

You should have some kind of plan for staying in contact with your customers on a regular basis. One of the easiest and cheapest ways to do this is with an email newsletter. Invite each customer to subscribe to the newsletter at the point of sale. That way, you have an outlet to keep in touch with them regularly.

Remember to Be Personal

While email newsletters are a great way to stay in touch with a large audience, don’t ever forget that the decision of a customer to purchase from you is a personal one. Keep that connection alive. Plan on several personal connections throughout the year. This could be anything from hand-written birthday cards, to phone calls just to say hi, to regular face to face meetings (perhaps at a nearby restaurant).

By being personal, you are showing the customer that you remember them and are grateful for their business. Don’t be pushy on getting new sales on these contacts. Just be friendly. Throughout the conversations you have, you will learn the customers needs and can lead them gently to new sales.

Reap the Rewards

No customer is a one time customer. Whether or not they ever buy from you again, each customer is an extremely valuable resource for your business. There are three things that I talk about your being able to tap past customers for. They are repeat sales, testimonials, and referrals. But there is also a fourth thing that shouldn’t be ignored. That is, feedback. Each customer can help you get a better picture on how you are doing and how well you are meeting customer needs.

By staying in contact after the sale, you are giving yourself a much better shot at bringing in new business as a result of a customer.

Provide good information, consistently, and the customer will be more likely to remember to refer you to the a friend. By the way, that referral is most likely to happen when that friend is in need, which is exactly what you want. If you just ask for out of the blue referrals at sale closing, all you will get are cold leads. Stay in contact, and you are bound to get some very hot leads via referral.

Staying in contact also helps to keep your business in front of the customer, so if they are going to buy again, they are much more likely to buy from you. You already have the trust factor since you closed one sale. Now, you just need to maintain awareness. But please note, just sending postcards doesn’t cut it anymore. Provide your customers with valuable information on a regular basis.

Having the relationship also makes it possible to get honest answers from customers regarding your business. It makes asking for things like video testimonials easier, as well.

There are great depths to plumb with any old customer, and you are letting a lot of potential go to waste if you just disappear after a sale (only to reappear when you want another sale). Find ways to stay in contact. You can provide great value to your past customers. At the same time, you can gain great value from them.

photo credit: Lucy Boynton

Recommended Reading

I am constantly on the prowl for good business books. Right now, I am reading Crush It, by Gary Vaynerchuk. I love Gary’s take on passion and business. This book will give you a kick in the butt to get up and get moving as you pursue your passions and your business.

If you are interested in Crush It, you can get it through Amazon by clicking here or by visiting your local bookstore.

Have a Small Business Question? Ask me and I will answer it here – email me with your question now.

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Bradford Shimp is the publisher of All Biz Answers. He is also the co-creator of Idea Anglers, a place to see your ideas come to life through collaboration. Follow on Twitter @bradfordshimp. Let Bradford help you with your business – visit BroadRiverCreative.com