PromoCard's Retail Marketing Strategies Help Retailers “Catch More Customers”
Over the past few years we have worked with hundreds of businesses, helping them to implement some simple cost effective marketing strategies.
Often the question is what is the right amount of marketing to do and to what extent? This very much depends on the type of outlet, its resources and ambitions.
Here are three simple cost effective strategies that we have helped implemented in several outlets.
Most businesses agree that they are in the fishing business, constantly looking for new customers. They would also agree that the best hook for those new customers is the existing happy client/customers that they already have.
What is often missed is that the amount of recommendation a business gets does not just depend on how good a product or service they can provide it also depends –on how good and effective those clients are at recommending.
Several hundred businesses have found the PromoCard to be a very useful piece of bait that can go on the end of the hook.
Many of our retailers hand out their carefully constructed PromoCard to customers with the receipts. Being a credit card sized mini brochure it is convenient for the clients to keep. This will help repeat sales and new referrals – and generally helping to spread the word.
Another simple – very effective and inexpensive way to attract more customers, that we suggest to our clients, is to cross-promote with other outlets that do not compete with them and have the same customer base – often referred to as a strategic alliance.
For example kitchens shop with a bath room shop – or a hair salon with a beauty salon or a restaurant with a hotel. They actually don’t need to so closely in alignment for it to work. It could be a customer or friend that might just like to help promote your business in their outlet – you have to ask and even incentivise them.
A simple way to do that is to agree to display each other’s marketing material in each other’s outlet. PromoCards can be a useful devise to use being a useful credit card sized mini- brochure that can be displayed as part of the POS. See examples.
I want to show you one other simple strategy that I heard about many years ago that we have implemented in many smaller independent outlets of various types.
Many years ago a large American retailer called in some marketing people to come in and look at their operation and see how they can improve their operation.
They looked at and noticed how people that came into the outlet were greeted. There were several different styles like; “Hi How can I help” “Hi Please let me know if I can help” - some people not being greeted at all.
They took one of the outlets and trained all the staff to greet the walk-ins the same way; namely “Hi Good morning/afternoon how can I help you?”
For six weeks they carefully monitored the takings and made a note of them. For the following six weeks, they changed just one thing; they changed what they said to browsers that walked in.
After six weeks they found sales had increased by 15% - just by changing what they say when browsers walked in.
They had found that the worst thing to say was “How can I help you” and the second was to say nothing at all.
Here is what they said to browsers as they came in the second 6 weeks which increase sales by 15%; “Hi good morning/afternoon, is this your first visit?”
This is the “ice breaker” that allows the staff to engage in conversation with a browser without pushing them away.
We now also suggest to our clients that the assistant goes a step further if they can with a browser.
After asking that question many are happy to engage in conversation. This is more likely to lead to sales as it can easily lead to developing an instant mini relationship. People are more likely to buy from someone they know and trust.
I recently went into a PC world out let to buy a printer I had already decided on which to buy on the internet- I just wanted to check it out. There was a guy there promoting another brand – I got in conversation with him – he seemed personable and honest – so I ended up buying his brand not the one that I had intended to originally buy.
We also suggest to retailers that if they have managed to break to ice and start a conversation then before the browser leaves they should offer the company’s business card – which could be a PromoCard. If they are really getting on well with the potential client they could even ask for their email so they can be update of new products or offers.
So we have turned browser into lead generator – especially if they have your PromoCard – and added new people onto the database
Obviously it depends on the circumstances of each outlet how far this can be taken. However by offering the PromoCard it can be very useful being a credit card size mini brochure it is more likely to be kept and will act as a reference, reminder and a hook to a website. It is also an example of what you do which they can show to family and friends.
At least it is very useful to hand out a Promocard with the receipts to actual customers which will have the same effect of helping to spread the word.
We have helped several hundred businesses with our Marketing Strategies you are welcome to download the main seven FYI.
7 Simple Restaurant Marketing Strategies
