Yep! That’s it, if you want to capture the loyalty of your clients, and the attention of your prospects, give them something. With no strings attached. This method has worked forever and still works today! Here are a couple of examples to whet your appetite for giving. And I might also mention that this is one heck of a way to provide over-the-top customer service. As you are reading, use your imagination, there are limitless ways you can give back to your clients!
Marketing Tip: Make their day – give it away!
This week, I received an email from a company I subscribe to, UrbanDaddy.com, and they were offering one of their frequent “perks” to their membership. This one was a discount for printing my digital photos through a new online photo printing company InstaThis.com. Curious as I am and being a lover of photography, I went online to check out the company and their product and decided to take advantage of the offer from UrbanDaddy to save myself about $50 for a nice size print.
Later in the evening when I began the process to order my print online, I ran into trouble. Their dashboard would not upload my image and there were no clear instructions on what else I could do to upload my file. Luckily, they had a pop up service window on the page, so I typed an email (I was very frustrated) and sent out a plea for help. Several minutes later, I received an email from a real person that totally understood what was happening and offered a solution. I did as he suggested and sent him my file so he could analyze what he thought the problem might be. Minutes later he emails me again and explains that the issue was with the size of my file and then proceeds to offer to take care of the entire process for me so I would not have to go back online and upload the image myself. I was delighted to have him take care of it. I gave him the instructions on what I wanted and how I wanted it printed, my discount code, etc, and he agreed and we were off!
Now this is the cool part I wanted to get to – after I thought we had completed the transaction, several minutes later he emails me back and said “since you had to go through all this trouble, if you want, why don’t you attach four more images to this email and I will print you up some coasters (one of their product offerings) as a way of saying thanks for choosing us.” Of course I did, and here I am telling you about it.
This is great marketing. This guy was, #1, empowered to take care of my problem, and #2, a real customer service rep who knew how to handle me and take care of my pain, and #3, was allowed to give me something “for my troubles” while they tended to their technical issues. Do you think I will use them again? You bet I will.
Another story I will relate has to do with one of my marketing mentors, Ali Brown of AliBrown.com. I started following her at the advice of a client of mine who knew her. The first thing I noticed about Ali’s manner in marketing her services was that she was not afraid to share information. She gave it freely, but there was always more to learn and more to do, and that’s where her services came in. Over the years I have compiled notebooks of free information that has helped me grow my business and attract more customers. I have also spent a good amount of money purchasing her programs and other items that have been crucial for my business success. It has been a win-win. But I will tell you this, had Ali Brown not given her information freely in the beginning, I never would have developed into a customer, and this case, a raving fan. It is about giving.
Now, what I am saying here in this weeks tip Make Their Day – Give it Away, is find something in your cache of services that you can give. Information, an ebook of tips, a book of basic information, a free hour of your service, a Starbucks card after a transaction, an additional value-add product to something they are buying, etc. And if you screw up and they get mad at you, try the route that the rep did with me, respond quickly and efficiently and give them something for their troubles. I guarantee you it will go a long way toward establishing your relationships and growing your business!
