Keeping in Touch with Your Customers -- Without Annoying Them

When you're trying to build your business, it's easy to get caught up in the thrill of the hunt -- for new customers, that is. However, as studies from the Harvard Business School show, focusing attention on existing customers and increasing retention rates by just 5% will increase your profits by 25% to 95%!

Of course, savvy business owners know there's a fine line between keeping in touch and being a bit... well... annoying, or even worse, stalky.

Put yourself in your customers' shoes: How many e-mails do you want to receive every day? How many phone calls do you want to take? Sure, persistence is important in cultivating your customer base, but overdoing it can prove counterproductive by annoying the very customers you're trying to reach. Here's how to find the right balance.

Make it Personal

Who doesn't like to receive a personalized card or handwritten note in the mail? There's a world of difference between sending out an impersonal flyer or form letter and a customized note printed on attractive cardstock. Which would you be more likely to open and read?

Send personalized updates on the "regular" occasions -- clients' birthdays, anniversaries, major holidays, and the like -- but also consider spicing it up a bit by sending a note or card when they don't expect it. After all, most businesses send appreciation cards and letters during the winter holidays, so that's just par for the course. Stand out by also picking a random date to surprise them.

Loyalty Programs

And speaking of dates, choose a day with significance for your customer -- like their birthday or the anniversary of their first major purchase from your business -- and use that occasion to automatically enroll them in a loyalty program. All you have to do is send an email letting them know you've enrolled them into your "VIP" program, or whatever you choose to call it.

Why automatically? Because a key to successful loyalty programs lies in making it as effortless for your customers as possible, without requiring them to take any extra steps or actions.

Artificial Advancement

The other key to successful loyalty programs lies in creating what's known as "artificial advancement" toward a goal or milestone. A 2006 study in the Journal of Consumer Research found that customers who received punch cards as part of a loyalty program were more likely to become repeat customers if they were given a head start toward reaching a goal. For instance, many coffee shops offer loyalty cards that give a customer a stamp for each coffee drink they buy, then reward them with a free drink once they've accrued 10 stamps.

Researchers found that customers were almost three times more likely to use their punch cards -- and spend money at a business -- if at least two stamps were already present on the card when they first received it. Apparently, customers like to feel that they're already well on their way to receiving awards!

Make Contacts Worth Their While

Whether it's in an e-mail, through a printed newsletter, or on a sales call, providing customers with information they can use adds value to your communications and eliminates the annoyance factor. Offering industry news, community updates, or other data that's relevant and useful to your customers goes a long way toward transforming the way they perceive your marketing efforts. A professionally written and well-designed direct mail piece sent a few times a year that's packed with info they can use is always welcome.

If you keep your communications relevant, concise, respectful, useful, and personalized, you'll never have to worry about being too persistent.

Picking Teams for Sports or Business: The Same Strategies Apply

Pickup games are the basis of many fond childhood memories -- or nightmares, depending on who you ask. Whether the neighborhood children preferred to play games of basketball, baseball, or hockey, standing in line while waiting for the 'captains' to select you could be pure torture. Those with a bit of athletic prowess would eagerly wait to see if they were going to be on the same team as their friends. Those with a bit less skill crossed their fingers that they wouldn't be picked last.

What made picking those teams so stressful

Children understand that the team you choose matters. The team will decide whether you'll emerge victorious or go home to dinner with your tail between your legs. Growing up, being picked first was an honor. It meant the other kids respected your abilities. Being picked last was something to be avoided.

Team captains would fight to fill out their teams with people who could successfully fill each position on the court or field. Even a casual game, like a snowball fight, needed players who had certain skills. No captain worth their salt would pick just anyone.

While those picked at the end might rather repress these memories, they do have to admit that the captains tended to know what they were doing. Those of us in business can learn something from them.

Why the team matters

Whatever the sport, the teams would work together to devise some kind of strategy under the leadership of their captain. Yet, no matter how talented that captain was or how genius their game strategies were, they couldn't win on their own. They still needed the talents and help of everyone else on the team. The same goes for business.

Countless startups get so wrapped into their vision and dreams for the future that they neglect building their own team to help them get there. However, just like a childhood sports team, a business won't succeed if it relies solely on the grand plans or talents of one person. As important as developing the ideas and plan for the company may be, carefully picking the team to get you there is just as (if not more) important.

Picking your team

Captains of sports teams pick players based on where they can play on the field. They work to get a variety of skills on the team. In baseball, it doesn't do much good to have a team of hitters if no one can field. Similarly, in business, it's important to pick members with various talents and strengths to create a complete picture.

Begin by outlining who is needed to help the business grow. Find people who share your vision and can help fill in your own gaps, so you can work on building your company's future. Different people will bring different ideas to the table, which will challenge you to develop and grow as a team.

Success for startups (and even more established companies) often depends heavily on the types of people the company founders surround themselves with. Fresh people bring fresh ideas, and no person can fill every role.

Rather than trying to be everything for your company, focus instead on building a strong team that can work together to take your company to the top. Just like the kids from childhood sports games understood, strategy and big plans will only get you so far. Sometimes who you pick will make the most difference.

When you're ready to build your marketing team, we can help you make smart decisions about your strategy and how your team will work to reach your customers.

Building the Main Street of the Past Into Your Modern Business

For many of us, the idea of the small town is iconic. For some, it embodies the place where they grew up or currently live. For others, it represents more of an ideal than anything based on personal experience. In any case, quintessential small town life presents a business model we all can learn from.

Main Street

Every small town, it seems, has a Main Street -- a place dotted with mom-and-pop shops, each with its own inviting display, encouraging people to stop in and check out their wares. The bakery or candy shop often has samples out front for people to stop by and taste as they walk down the street. The neighborhood grocer knows the patrons by name and has a variety of appealing fruits and vegetables right out front. The local cafe offers places for people to sit outside and engage with others as they pass by.

The 'Main Street' of the Internet

For many people, this real life type of Main Street is just a figment of their imagination or a distant memory of days gone by. Their reality is comprised more of national brands and busy shopping malls. What marketers have increasingly found, however, is that customers find it more appealing to shop on websites that contain many of the popular features of these once commonplace Main Streets than websites that don't. Even though the world has become more interconnected and people are increasingly more accustomed to the hustle of city life, the desire to feel welcomed into a place of business and valued as a customer never goes away.

What businesses can learn from the mom-and-pop shops of the past

The secrets to success for the shops of Main Street continue to work today. The stores of Main Street made every customer feel welcome to stop and check out their place of business right from the street. These welcoming shops would also offer a variety of samples customers could try in order to see if a particular product would work for them.

As you think about your own company, take a close look at your website, physical place of business, and advertising materials. Are each of these designed to encourage customers to see what you have to offer? Do you offer customers incentives such as discounts, free samples, or rewards for using your business?

One of biggest lessons that modern companies can learn from the past, however, is personalization. Main Street business owners took the time to learn the names of their customers and greet them personally when they entered the shop. You should strive to accomplish a similar effect online and off.

Start by keeping careful records of how customers use your website. Responsive sites that can remember what a customer looked at the last time they visited or what they bought in the past tend to encourage more repeat business than those that don't.

Train your in-store representatives to remember what customers say when they enter the shop to provide them with an individualized experience.

Such personalization can even extend to your marketing materials. For example, consider using variable data to personalize your direct mail campaigns and targeted mailings to reach niche buyers who may be interested in the products or services you sell.

While the ultimate Main Street might no longer exist for many people, the desire for finding welcoming shops that remember our names has not gone away. Incorporating as many of these values as possible into your marketing efforts can impress customers and help build relationships around trust and loyalty.

We can help you find ways to express these values in your marketing materials, so reach out to us today!

Add Pinterest to Your Marketing Strategies

As a savvy business owner, you're probably already using multiple marketing channels -- such as printed media, ads, and social media sites like Facebook and Twitter -- to get the word out about all that your company has to offer. But you may be overlooking one of the most popular and fastest-growing social sites of all: Pinterest.

If you think of Pinterest as simply a place to "pin" cute pictures of your dog or the handmade decorations from your kid's latest birthday party, think again. A 2014 consumer trends report from ShareThis shares a few (very) interesting Pinterest trends that should make any business owner who wants to take advantage of all possible marketing channels stand up and take careful notice, such as:

• Pinterest users grew by 58 percent in 2013, making it the fastest-growing sharing site, even beating out Facebook and LinkedIn.


• Pinterest is the third-largest social sharing platform.


• Sharing on Pinterest has outpaced sharing through e-mail, an especially notable development given that the platform has only been around since 2008.

And if that isn't enough to convince you, consider a 2013 study from Piquora that found that:

• Pins are 100 times more likely to go "viral" than tweets.


• The average pin drives $.78 in sales, a number that's on the rise.


• Pins continue to drive sales for 3.5 months, much longer than Facebook posts or tweets.

Piqued your interest yet? Here's how you can incorporate Pinterest into your print and digital marketing strategies and use this up-and-coming platform to drive traffic to your website, enhance your brand's online image, and boost sales.

Get Verified

First step: Verify your business. Not only does Pinterest's simple verification process prove that you are, indeed, who you say you are (i.e., adds to your trustworthiness), but it also allows you to take full advantage of Pinterest's on-site analytics features. Analytics provide an easy way to track what your customers are looking at and repinning, as well as what's getting repinned from your website. These metrics help your marketing team determine what's working and what needs improvement.

Visual Marketing

Using the right images is key to Pinterest success, so choose your pins carefully. Choose visually striking images that grabs viewers' attention and inspire them to repin. And think twice before using images that include faces; studies find that users are almost 25% more likely to repin a brand-related image if it doesn't include a face. Also of note, users tend to prefer images that are:

• Colorful


• Predominantly red, brown, or orange, rather than blue


• Of medium lightness, rather than very dark or mostly black

On a similar note, keep your pins focused on images you know will appeal to your target audience. One way to figure this out? Use analytics!

Targeting the Audience

Speaking of target audiences, another easy way to figure out exactly who's out there is by doing a bit of sleuthing on those who follow your business. What else are they pinning? What types of content are generating comments and conversation? These trends make it easier to pinpoint your ideal audience.

Another great tool: Following other boards with the same images. Pinterest allows you to "follow" other users that pin the same images on their boards -- and prompt them to follow you, too. Remember, the more you pin, the greater the chances of this happening.

User Friendly

Focus pin content on information that's useful to your target audience. Whether this is an industry infographic, a well-done video presentation, or even a great marketing book that you just finished, providing your audience with content that offers a solution or helps your customers will keep them coming back for more.

Finally, provide easy ways for your users to interact with you. Adding questions to your descriptions fields, such as "What could this be?" or "Have you ever used one of these?" opens up a conversation with your potential clients and helps build brand recognition and loyalty.

Honest Abe, A Cherry Tree, and Running a Successful Business

Quick: Name two of the most popular historic U.S. presidents. The first names that come to mind for most people are George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. These two presidents are well known for their leadership during tumultuous times in American history. But they're also known for their place in American folklore. Specifically, they have both gained reputations for being exceptionally honest.

George Washington and the cherry tree

According to the popular story, young George Washington was playing with his new hatchet when he killed his father's favorite cherry tree. When his father confronted the household about who had hurt the tree, young George quickly confessed, telling his father that he could not tell a lie. His father forgave him, reinforcing the importance of his son's honesty. George Washington carried this lesson about the importance of telling the truth with him the rest of his life.

Honest Abe

Before Abraham Lincoln became involved in politics, he was involved in a number of businesses. He bought a small store, was a lawyer, and served in Congress. In each of these positions, he became known as 'Honest Abe.' Stories abound about young Abe returning a few cents of change or tracking down customers to complete their orders if their requests were mis-measured. He carried this reputation as a reputable businessman with him to the White House.

What these two men can teach us today

Many people couldn't tell you the date the American Civil War ended, when Abraham Lincoln was assassinated, or when George Washington died. Despite these gaps of knowledge, most people would be able to tell you that these men were known for their honesty. Why is that? Because people value honesty in their leaders. They want to be able to trust the people they elect.

This also applies to their business leaders. When customers are looking for companies they want to work with or buy products from, they need to be able to trust that the company will provide them with the quality service they're expecting. They want to trust that the advertising they see is accurate and that if they have any kind of problem, they'll be able to get the situation addressed by a quality customer service team.

How you can show your honesty to potential customers

Since we all know customers are looking for honest businesses, it's important to display this characteristic in all our dealings with customers, especially online. Social media and websites make customer service and customer opinions very public, for all potential customers to see. This makes honesty and quality customer service even more critical.

As a business leader, it's important to monitor the web for discussions about your company to see what people are saying. If customers have legitimate complaints about the quality of service they received, make sure you do everything you can to make it right. This may include issuing refunds, providing coupons, and addressing other concerns.

Similarly, when you come across positive reviews, it's a good idea to send notes of appreciation or coupons to encourage repeat business and as a sign of thanks. Above all, you should strive to be above reproach when it comes to honesty.

People like knowing they can trust their leaders, whether presidents or business owners. Stories abound in the collective consciousness about the honesty of some presidents in particular. When you (and your company) gain the same reputation for honesty, you can also live in the public consciousness as someone worth following; and that's how customers are gained.

Social Media: American Idol for Small Businesses?

For thirteen years, American Idol has entertained the country by bringing would-be singers to the center stage and giving them a fair shot at becoming the superstars they believe they can be. Countless people have auditioned before a panel of very strict judges. Out of the masses, one singer rises to the top to win each season. It's from this show that popular stars such as Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood have found their way to fame.

For most of these stars, American Idol really changed the game. Without the nationwide audience and opportunity to get in front of the camera, many would have struggled to find their "big break."

Most businesses can relate to this mentality. In the past, small businesses struggled to get their brands and names known within their community. The idea of finding a nationwide platform remained a pipe dream for the vast majority of companies. But just as American Idol has provided a new avenue for struggling singers, social media has changed the landscape for small businesses, too.

Social Media: A "Star" is Born

Social media offers small businesses the exposure they need to break out and become "stars" in their own right. With the rise of ecommerce, many companies can now do business with people thousands of miles away. Through Facebook pages, Twitter accounts, Google+, and the rest of the common social media channels available to them, these businesses are getting their message out and building relationships with potential customers across the globe.

Learning the Ropes

Unfortunately, not every company that sets out on their journey is going to make it to the top. The singers who audition for American Idol cannot just walk up to the judges and tell them, "Hi, I'm a fantastic singer. All my friends say so. You need to give me a ticket to the next round." Similarly, small businesses cannot just sign up for social media and expect customers to come pouring in to use their services. In both cases, people must sell their talents. The singers must prove to the judges that they have the skills needed to compete on the nationwide scale, and businesses must prove the same to their potential customers.

Rolling With the Punches

One of the factors that made American Idol so popular was the extremely harsh criticism that Simon Cowell famously dished out to nearly every competitor. Many people noted that while his words might even be described as cruel, they were rarely untrue. He said what many people thought but were too kind to say. It was the responsibility of each competitor, especially those who received his critique but remained on the show, to take what he said and learn from it before they sang again.

Many small businesses have quickly discovered that in social media few people feel much inhibition in making their opinions known. And some of those critiques would even make Simon Cowell blush. Learning how to respond to such criticism is an important skill to master. A key part of that response is deciding what feedback to take to heart and then making the changes needed to better serve customers.

Social media has given small businesses across the country the opportunity to reach clients in an unprecedented way. No longer are they confined to their local market, with distant hopes of one day striking it big. Just as American Idol has provided singers with a new way to showcase their talents, social media has done the same for companies looking to grow their customer base. Understanding how to take advantage of this opportunity and learn from it can make all the difference.

Don't Overlook SMS: Why Your Marketing Strategies Should Incorporate Text Messaging

Mobile text messaging, also known as SMS (for short message service), may just represent the next frontier in mobile marketing. Why? More than 4 billion people worldwide -- and 75 percent of Americans -- regularly send and receive text messages. With the recent announcement that social media giant Facebook is acquiring WhatsApp -- an SMS platform that allows users to send free text messages on smart phones of all kinds -- texting's popularity isn't likely to decrease anytime soon.

Here's why you should take advantage of this growing market and add SMS to your marketing strategies.

The Power of the Personal

In Internet years, text messaging is a virtual grandfather; after all, the technology has been around for more than 20 years. In fact, it's been around so long that a (mind-blowing) two-thirds of the Earth's population has access to it. Perhaps due to the well-established nature of SMS, many companies have bypassed it as a marketing strategy, probably in their rush to drive customers to the mobile-optimized versions of their websites.

However, as any marketing guru will tell you, customers respond best when a campaign engages them personally. That's where text message marketing comes in. Stats from Techipedia reveal that:

• 98 percent of all sent text messages are opened


• 83 percent of text messages are opened within three minutes


• SMS marketing campaigns boast response rates of up to 45 percent, as compared to email campaigns, which average a 6 percent response rate

Given these high response rates, using SMS seems like a no-brainer. Just send out a few well-worded messages to leads, and watch the sales grow -- right? Of course, there's a catch.

In order to be successful, text message marketing requires thoughtful implementation.

Effective Implementation of Text Message Marketing

Consider how annoying you (probably) find telemarketing calls, spammy-sounding emails, and all of that other marketing stuff you're constantly bombarded with but didn't sign up for. Same goes for SMS; no one wants to receive random or irrelevant text messages all the time. Add in the fact that some mobile users have to pay for each text message they receive, and the importance of only sending texts to those who've opted in becomes crystal clear. It's all about relevance.

Speaking of relevance, one of the most effective uses of text message marketing is keeping in contact with your existing customers. They've already tried your product or service and decided they like you. SMS offers a cost-effective way to keep in touch. Whether you're announcing a special event, sending a coupon code, or implementing a loyalty program, the judicious use of text messages keeps your company in your customers' consciousness.

SMS can also enhance your customers' experience. Text messages containing reminders, schedules, notices of last-minute availability, and even customer satisfaction surveys provide value to your customers while saving them time and hassles.

Appropriate Uses of SMS Marketing

Here are a few ways to incorporate text messaging into your marketing plan in a way that customers will appreciate.

Promotions and Sales: Send promo codes, coupons, and special event notices. Consider geo-fencing to send offers to opted-in customers when they come near your place of business.

Receipts: Sending receipts makes it easy for customers to keep track of spending.

Surveys: Customers can fill out surveys about their experience, providing you with valuable feedback.

Loyalty Programs: Make it easy for customers to join your loyalty program via text, and get information you need to develop detailed customer profiles that help your marketing strategies.

No matter what you're using SMS for, the key lies in creating an opt-in program and focusing on content that provides value to customers. Text messaging shouldn't be used to generate leads; instead, it should provide relevant information to interested customers.