Introducing my very old fashioned (using e-mail technology) “thank & recommend” strategy for building customer loyalty, customer visit frequency and improving retail or restaurant sales.

This system will help you lock in customers for life and earn business in the short term.

Before we get much further, please know that I get that life is busy and that there are lots of technical system (called trigger e-mail marketing) that do this in a more systematic way. But I want to encourage you that if things are at all sluggish in your business that you dedicate to working this system until things get better. Then, once they are better, set the calendar on autopilot naming days or weeks on a regular basis when you do it again for a short period to keep things flowing and extend your attitude of gratitude back to your customers (for example, once things are great again, pick the slowest night of the week for your restaurant or retail store – or choose to do this on the 2nd week of every month for five days, etc.). Customer loyalty, visit frequency and sales volume will improve.

Here’s the three step “thank and recommend” customer loyalty builder system:

1. Post lots of current products or menu items in an online photo album that is public. Post them on blog posts on your blog, Facebook photo albums, Flickr, or even Picasa.

2. Dedicate that every day for one week employees are required to take note (either using the technology tools of the point of sale system or old fashioned note-taking) of each customers e-mail address and what they bought.

3. At the end of each day, you, your employee or wait staff, should pen a short customized e-mail based on a standard system that will make it quick and easy… Here’s a template that you can follow to make the e-mails quick and easy to write.

Dear (insert first name of customer or Mr/Mrs/Ms Last name) -

I wanted to personally thank you for visiting us today at (insert name of business). Your support of our locally owned business really means a lot to us.

As I recall, you (choose purchased/enjoyed/ordered/took home) the (insert name of what they purchased).

Since you left, I’ve been thinking that you might also really like (insert name of three other potential products that are linked to their photo online). I included links to them here, but you can also check them out the next time you come in – which I hope is soon!

If you see something you’d like immediately, just hit reply, and I can answer any questions you might have or take care of your order over the phone tomorrow.

But don’t be a stranger – we always enjoy seeing you!

Thanks again for your business,

(insert your name)

P.S. In case you haven’t already, you can connect with us on Facebook at (insert direct link) and follow us on Twitter (insert direct link) for more ideas just like these. Thanks again!

Now – go get some sales and share your feedback in our comments below!

Photo Credit: a.drian

Use the “fishbowl” method to collect an e-mail address from every single customer or prospect that you encounter in your local business this week. This simple method is something you can implement in your brick-and-mortar business by the end of the day today, and it will lead to the collection of pure gold (aka e-mail addresses) for your business – gold that can be leveraged to move the needle again and again for your small business! Here’s how it works:

1. Procure a large bowl that will fit in a prominent location either to the right (as one exits) of the front door of your store at eye level and/or at each your point of sale/cash-wrap stations.

2. Create a sign to affix to the bowl that has a big, bold headline that says something like “Join Our E-Mail List for a Chance to Win!”

3. Add subtext under the sign’s headline, create an irresistible offer that fits your business that follows this basic idea: “Once a month, one entry from that month will be awarded a $250 gift certificate to our store!”

4. Watch the e-mail addresses pile up.

5. Enter the e-mail addresses into your e-mail system at least monthly BEFORE the award notification is made.

6. On a monthly basis, choose an e-mail address and make the award. E-mail them the award notification with an inquiry for their mailing address, so that they’ll come into the store. Also include in that e-mail a suggestion such as the following: “We value you as a customer, and we’re thrilled that you’ve won this prize. You are definitely deserving! We’d love it if you’d share some ideas of what you’ll be buying with your gift certificate with your friends on Facebook and Twitter. You can connect with us there at facebook.com/business name and on Twitter @businessname. I hope you won’t mind that we’ll be letting everyone know who won this month in our e-mail newsletter and through our social media channels as a way to encourage folks to enter this month’s new contest! Thanks again for being such a fantastic customer! We really appreciate your business!”

7. Post who won and what they won and how folks can enter the next contest on Facebook. Tag the person who won if possible.

8. Post who won and what they won on Twitter and @ reply the winner, if possible.

9. Include the winner’s name and a call for new entries in your next e-mail newsletter.

Happy fishbowling! You’re going to love the results you get from this great marketing tip!

Chatting with my BFF the other day about how best to convince small business owners and restaurateurs that online marketing was worth paying money for. The conversation went something like this:

Me: Well, I dunno… perhaps that over a year ago 63% of all American consumers across every demographic looked online first before making a brick and mortar buying decision. Most of the folks we’re talking to are targeting a higher end demographic, and it’s a year later, so that number has to be much higher………

BFF: I didn’t ask you why they should be online. I’m talking about how to convince them within their existing worldview why this is worth spending money on.

Me: The money is online.

BFF: But are they going to see value in spending money online?

Me: (insert scream of frustration)

It’s seriously this bad. In small businesses and restaurants and boutique hotels across America, folks have their heads stuck in the proverbial sand.

I hear things like the following:

“I know we’ve got to do it, but I just don’t have time.”

“I just don’t see the value in it.”

“Well, I just spent $90,000 on new merchandise, so that website upgrade to allow me to make my own frequent updates to my website…that sounds good, but it will have to wait until next year… I just don’t have the money for that right now.”

“Well, I’m in a contract with the local lifestyle magazine, and I’m running some cable advertisements and sales have been really down lately, so I just don’t have the money to invest in online. I know it would work, but I just can’t afford it right now.”

How about this, Mr. small business owner? What if you could spend half per month what you spend for an ad in the local lifestyle magazine, and you could track feedback, gain market intelligence – and oh yeah, sell more stuff and know that it was a direct result of this marketing effort? Would you do it?

Would you spend the same amount if you could get that kind of measurable results?

If you wouldn’t – then why are you in business? Because it seems like you’re only there to support the dinosaurs. As for me, I’m going to stay in business by selling more stuff. Online.

Photo Credit: blakeimeson

The “letter” is probably the oldest form of written communication. But when it comes to e-mail marketing, most of us regularly use HTML based e-mail marketing formats full of photos and image graphics. We’ve also discussed why subject lines mean so much to the effectiveness of your e-mail campaigns. But do you ever get in a rut and just have some things you want to say to your customers without a bunch of fluff and graphic fireworks? If so, maybe it’s a good time for you to go back to basics and just write a letter.

Recently, I got just such a letter from the Editor-in-Chief at a marketing e-zine to which I subscribe, and I actually opened it and read it – something I honestly, rarely do with their mailings.

What do I mean by letter format?

Just how it sounds. A letter format when it comes to e-mail marketing for your small business is just that – a letter written in normal e-mail typing text with a greeting, body, and salutation. A P.S. is also a great bonus because statistics say that those get read the most of any element of a direct marketing letter.

Why does the letter format work so well for e-mail marketing?

I think it boils down to being a real human every now and then. We humans of the earth like to connect with other humans – not mechanical, fancy looking businesses. As a locally owned small business owner, you have an edge on this marketing opportunity – and you should use it. Don’t overuse it, or you’ll lose your authenticity, but maybe once a month, this method would work phenomenally well for your small business. Insert your personality, your passion and your knowledge. Connect with your customers and share something valuable with them. Maybe it’s an event or maybe it’s just knowledge about your business niche that you thought would help them out. Maybe it’s a thank you for their loyalty. But at the end of the day, the letter format inserts another human element into your customer relationships, builds authenticity and leads to increased trust… And these elements lead to higher lifetime value of the customer, increased customer loyalty and stronger referral values.

With that in mind, what are the elements of a letter format, e-mail marketing communication?

Here are some common elements I would probably include in your small business e-mail marketing letter:

1. Greeting with real name. As in “Hi there, Marianna…” or “Hello, Marianna.”

2. A personal, authentic and thoughtful first paragraph.

3. A link to the relevant information.

4. Supporting information in subsequent paragraphs, maintaining the chatty, authentic, personal tone of the human sending the e-mail.

5. Bullet lists of relevant information

6. Close by repeating the main details in summary list format. For example, if you’re sharing an event with them, re-state the details as follows:

Webinar entitled: Seven Marketing Strategies that Work in Any Economy

Thursday, July 22, 2010 at 9 a.m.

Register here: insert bit.ly link

7. Friendly closing that says something like “I hope you can join me…”

8. Your first name

9. P.S. This is the place to restate your offer or add a bonus to the existing call to action offer, if there is one.

10. Skip two lines then insert your “signature file” with links to your web site and social media, general business and contact information, etc.

Please let me know if you’ve ever used this format and what the results were. If you’re considering this idea, what stood out to you or what ideas would you add to this post? Post in the comments below! Happy letter writing!

Photo Credit: a.drien (the letter)

Tomorrow, we’ll learn from the e-mail marketing master of our local market – Jeff Good. As I’m prepping for our visit tomorrow, I am reminded that all great marketing campaigns start with DOING SOMETHING. I can promise you that 11 years ago when I started HALO, I had NO IDEA that I would get to this place where we are creating a completely FREE marketing and shop local resource for small, independently owned businesses.

Often, when we START something, we have NO idea where it will lead. We can’t fathom the end results – but we can envision something greater than where we are today. I can’t say for certain, but I bet Jeff Good could never have imagined the impact that collecting e-mail addresses would ultimately have on his business as it is today. It’s HUGE for his three amazing restaurants and catering company. Jeff can move the needle by sending an e-mail.

But what if he’d waited to collect e-mails until he had a purpose for them? You can probably imagine a purpose for a great e-mail list – but what if you only have 50? Or less?

DO SOMETHING. Everything great started somewhere. Nothing good ever happened from waiting.

Start today. Collect e-mail addresses from every customer, prospect, vendor, and friend that you have. Have your employees do the same. Find creative ways to collect the e-mails. The time is now. Waiting until you have an important message to send is TOO LATE.

If you’re already collecting e-mail addresses, find ways to do it more efficiently and more consistently. Like anything else, there is always room for improvement, and it is a rare case where every single possible e-mail address is collected.

E-mail is still a very powerful and effective marketing tool for small, locally owned businesses. Do not let even a single opportunity to communicate so affordably and directly pass you by. Make e-mail address collection a bold, priority initiative for your business starting today. It’s the first step in getting ready to do REALLY big things (and getting really big results for your marketing).