Follow Up Marketing Experts Blog

How to Turn New Customers Into Repeat Customers (the secret is this one experiment)

 

The other day I walked into one of the local spas by my place…

…and I realized how clueless people are when it comes to using the web to market their businesses.

They thanked me, and they also said they hoped I'd  come back again soon.

And that’s it.

They didn’t ask for my email address.

They didn’t offer a loyalty program

Nothing.

Now take a guess what I said…

 

“You guys are crazy! You’ve got customers who come in for massages, and you’re not building an email list?”

“Let me ask you a question: Do you find that most of your customers are regulars or one-offs?”

And they said “We have a lot of regulars, but we also have a lot of one-off customers.”

I went on to say “how awesome would it be if you converted more of those one-off customers into regulars?”

Naturally, they were interested.

How to Convert One-Off Customers Into Regular Customers

So, I went on to tell them the perfect email marketing strategy for a spa.

I told them to get the email address of every single customer that enters their doors.

Then, I told them here’s what they should do:

1. The day after the massage, send a helpful reminder email reminding them that it’s important to drink water after a massage. And that’s it.
2. 1 week later, I told them to send an email where they just check in with the customer. No sales pitch. Nothing. Just a simple email asking them how they’re doing, and then share some data / research about the importance of getting a massage regularly.
3. 2 weeks after that second email, I told them to send one more email where they offer a loyalty program…

…but not just ANY loyalty program!

Here’s How To Create Loyalty Programs That Work…

I told the spa to structure their loyalty program like this:

If the prospect scheduled an appointment today, they’ll gain access to a special loyalty card that would work like this:

For every 10 massages, get one free.

But here’s the kicker!

To entice them to schedule the appointment right away, I told the spa to tell them this:

Get the appointment now, and we’ll punch your card for this session, the session you already did, and we’ll give you a free punch too.

That way, if people come in for a massage during that week, they get 3 massage sessions of credit…

…and they only need another 7 massages to get a free one.

Why is this KEY?

I’ll tell you why.

How One Car Wash Implemented A Loyalty Program

I wrote about the car wash loyalty experiment a while ago, but here’s a quick refresher.

Two researchers, Joseph Nunes and Xavier Drèze, conducted a customer loyalty experiment with a car wash…

…and they found that “artificial advancement” increases customer loyalty 82%.

What’s artificial advancement?

I’ll explain.

On two consecutive Saturdays, they gave out loyalty cards to car wash patrons. Half of the cards required 8 car washes to earn a free car wash. The other half required 10… but instead of requiring the full 10, the car wash gave a 2 car wash head-start as a free bonus.

In both scenarios, the patron needed to buy 8 car washes total to get a free car wash.

However, in the second example, people received a 2 car wash head-start, which is deemed “artificial advancement.”

But here’s what happened:

During the next 9 months, 28 out of 150 people earned a free car wash when they didn’t receive artificial advancement. However, 51 out of 150 people earned a free car wash when they did receive artificial advancement.

The same 8 car washes… one slight tweak… customer loyalty went up by 82%.

Insane!

But why? Why did artificial advancement increase customer loyalty?

People are more likely to complete tasks when they’re closer to the finish line.

When you start with a loyalty card, and you only have 1 car wash punched, that means you’re 12.5% complete.

But when you start with a loyalty card that has 3 car washes to start, you’re 30% complete.

Even though the patrons need the same 8 car washes, in one instance they’re 70% away from the finish line… whereas in the other case they’re 87.5% away.

A nifty little behavior trick, right?

Right!

But there’s one caveat:

The artificial advancement only had that drastic of an effect when there was a clear reason why people were receiving the artificial advancement.

In other words, you couldn’t just give it to people for no reason.

Instead, you’ve got to give them the artificial advancement for a real reason… like a sale… or new customer appreciation… or anything like that.

Now let’s take this back to the spa

Do you see what I did there?

Based on the car wash research, the data says that they’d be 82% more likely to complete the loyalty card when they have the advancement.

So, when you offer the new customer a loyalty card with the opportunity to have 3 massages, you’re giving that customer 30% completion, meaning they’d be 82% more likely to complete the card.

But it gets better…

If these one-off customers didn’t have a massage habit, after getting that many massages, you can bet they’ll develop one.

And all this spa has to do is send out 3 emails after a new customer uses their services.

God I love marketing.

Let’s take this back to you and your business…

How do you follow-up with new customers?

What do you do to try and turn new customers into repeat customers?

Smart email follow-up is the KEY.

So, if you’re not putting your customers on an email list, start doing that.

And if you’re not following up with new customers, start doing that too.

And in those follow-ups, you should approach them as a friend who’s trying to help.

Show them data, give them research, and explain why they made a smart decision. This shows your new customer that you have their best interests in mind, while simultaneously alleviating what’s known as buyer’s remorse.

Then, to get customers to continue buying, using loyalty programs, like the car wash experiment, or the massage card, is just the beginning.

But the reality is…

Running a business is TOUGH.

You’ve got to:

create something people want to buy

… and then get them to buy it.

Fine-tune the thing you created

…and then get more people to buy it.

Now the creation part is on you.

If your product and service sucks, human behavior tricks on a customer loyalty program won’t work.

But when it comes to getting people to buy..

You know, marketing your business… that’s something you should invest in (both time and money).

I’ll explain.

The Secret to Selling More Of Your Stuff…

When you’re running a business, your job is to make sure your products and services are the best they can be.

And that’s a full-time job.

But if you want to sell more, you’ve got to learn how to market your business, and that’s ALSO a full-time job.

And as you just saw, there are little hacks—just like that customer loyalty hack—that makes marketing your business that much easier.

The Art and Skill of Follow-Up - Get Clients Now! E-Letter

If I had to name one thing that causes more independent professionals to fail at marketing than any other, it would be lack of follow-up. Every day, I see entrepreneurs do a fabulous job at filling their marketing pipeline with prospective clients, and then fail miserably at following up with them.

Effective follow-up is both an art and a skill. The skill of follow-up consists of the mechanics -- how to make contact, how often to do it, what to say when you follow up, and keeping track of it all.

The art of follow-up lies in the way you go about it -- or don't. You can avoid follow-up completely, do it only reluctantly, follow up in an insincere way... or you can follow up consistently, with respect for the buyer, and with an honest desire to build a relationship with your prospective clients.

Let's examine first some essential follow-up skills:

• Who to follow up with -- Everyone who appears to match your target market description and with whom you have had some prior contact (whether you initiated the contact or they did). And, everyone who you have reason to believe could consistently refer people in your target market.
• When to follow up -- On a regular basis: more often for hot prospects, less often for warm or cool ones. You might contact a hot prospect weekly, a warm prospect every 2-4 weeks, and a cool prospect every 2-3 months. Don't let hot and warm prospects languish! Always follow up your initial contact promptly.
• How to make contact -- Depends on the nature of your prior contact and the path you typically follow to a sale. Might be by phone, email, postal mail, social media, text message, or all of the above. Some communications may be generic (e.g., your ezine or a public social media post), but at least some contacts should be personally directed to each prospect.
• What to say -- With a hot or warm prospect, it can be perfectly okay to simply call or email, and ask if they are ready to act on your offer. When following up multiple times over a longer period, add value to your contacts by periodically providing helpful information or advice instead of just pitching business.
• When to stop following up -- Consider the value of the eventual sale. If your prospect is likely to spend only a small amount, only a few personal contacts may be appropriate. But when the possible sale is large, keep following up indefinitely.
• Tracking your follow-up -- Capture every prospect and potential referral source in some type of automated or manual contact management system, where you can record when and how you make each contact. That's the only way you'll know when it's time to follow up again.

Working on developing your follow-up skills and tools will be time well spent, but it's not the whole picture. You also need to pay attention to the art of follow-up in order for it to succeed.

Here's how to make your follow-up more artful:

• Find the right mindset -- Before you pick up the phone or sit at the keyboard, get your head into a positive space. Gritting your teeth, envisioning failure, or stressing about your need to make a sale are not frames of mind that lead to success. Instead, think about how you can best be of service to the person you are about to contact.
• Notice your attitude -- When you notice you are avoiding or delaying follow-up activities, use this as a clue that you haven't yet found the right mindset. Don't make the mistake of just thinking you are "too busy" to get it done. Procrastination is a signal that fear, anxiety, or resentment is at work.
• Focus on your prospects -- The first goal of following up is to build a relationship with your prospective client. Closing the sale is a secondary goal that will follow much more easily once you've achieve the first one. Keep asking yourself not what you need, but what the prospect needs.
• Show respect but not awe -- Treat your prospects as peers, not as either lords or peons. Respect their time and concerns, and they will do the same for you.
• Demonstrate consistency -- Consistent, timely follow-up is professional, not pushy. Your prospects are expecting to hear from you; don't disappoint them. Your performance as a potential service provider may be judged by how well you perform your follow-up... or don't.

Pay attention to both the art and the skill of follow-up, and you'll master this essential marketing capacity. And that will bring you the rewards due to such a multi-talented entrepreneur.

Copyright © 2013, C.J. Hayden

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Do You Follow Up?

 

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Follow up is all about giving people the valuable information they need and want; showing them you understand their problems and concerns; creating opportunities for them to get to know and trust you; and proving your credibility and the value of your products and services.

Many of us think that a follow-up strategy is to email or call someone a week or two after the initial contact and then maybe touch base occasionally over the next couple of months.

Also, many small business owners think that follow-up is only centered around sales - that you contact someone to see if they're ready to buy something.

Follow up encompasses so much more than this and is so much more vital than most people think.

I believe that marketing is all about fostering a relationship with people and one of the key ways to do this is by having consistent and relevant follow-up as part of your marketing strategy.

A relationship isn't based on one date and a marketing relationship isn't built on one contact between you and your prospect. It also works at the other end of the spectrum: a relationship won't be sustained without any contact and a business relationship will fall by the wayside if a client is ignored.

Try to think of follow-up as keeping the lines of communication open between you and your prospective and current customers.

Below are 9 reasons why follow up is such an important part of your marketing strategy.

1. Build relationships

Marketing is all about fostering a relationship with people and one of the key ways to do this is by having consistent and relevant follow-up as part of your marketing strategy.

2. Build credibility and expert status

A big part of attracting and keeping clients is building trust and credibility. People need to know that you do know what you are talking about. By following up with valuable, needed information you demonstrate your expertise and the value of your services and products.

3. Educate people

Another reason to follow up is so that you can educate your prospects and clients on how you can help them - via yourself, your company, your website, your products and services, your blog, your podcasts, your ezine, your programs and so on.

 

4. Stay top of mind

People buy when they are ready, not when you're ready to make a sale! It's important to constantly keep in front of people so that when they're ready to buy you'll be there. In other words, you have to follow up with them regularly.

5. Keep your clients happy

I've heard the statistic that 68% of customers stop buying because of indifference. In other words, a company has failed to show their clients that they are important and valued. Follow up allows you to keep your relationships with customers fresh, valuable and appreciated.

6. Opportunity to up-sell and cross-sell

When you follow up consistently it keeps you top of mind in your current customers' minds and also allows you the chance to up-sell and cross-sell them with products and services you think they might benefit from.

7. Make the necessary number of contacts

Although we worry about contacting people too much, studies show that most people need several contacts (that are useful and relevant to them) before they'll say yes to being your client.

Follow-up marketing strategies will help you make ongoing, consistent contact with prospective customers, partners and so on.

8. Stop the "feast or famine" cycle

Most of us are familiar with having either too few clients or having so many that we can't handle it all. Consistent follow-up helps creates a steady stream of prospects and customers and helps you to avoid the stress of bouncing back and forth between feast and famine.

9. Break through all the clutter and get noticed

In this crazy fast-paced world we are inundated with thousands of messages each and every day. This means as small business owners, you need to repeat your message over and over if you're going to break through all the noise.

As you can see, there are lots of valuable reasons why follow-up is important. Start implementing follow-up marketing strategies in your business immediately so that you can start reaping the rewards immediately!

 

A Follow Up System for $20 Dollars! | Jimmy Ezzell - Online Marketing Leader & Global Home Business Entrepreneur

Click on the link below to read the article.

via jimmyezzell.com

44 Ways to Follow Up with Your Prospects - Get Clients Now! E-Letter

Click on the link below to read the article.

via www.getclientsnow.com

You know you need to follow up with prospective clients, but you often find yourself putting it off. "I already called them three times," you think. Or, "They never answer the phone anyway." Or, "I hate hearing no." Or, "I don't want to bug them." Or, "What do I say that's new?"

Follow-Up: the Marketing Step Lawyers Miss

Click on the link below to view the article.

via lawyerist.com

 

Three Ways to Follow-up Your Email Marketing

Click on the link below to view this article.

via lab.agencyaccess.com

via lab.agencyaccess.com

Follow-Up Marketing: How to Win More Sales with Less Effort

Obviously the hardest type of person to follow up with is a suspect because they haven’t shown any interest yet in a pool or hot tub and you usually don’t have their contact information. But that’s not true with prospects and customers. You not only know who they are, but you should already have their contact information. And if you follow up with your customers with consistency you’ll find that they will help you turn your suspects into prospects and prospects into customers for you through referrals.

 

Click on the link below to view the article.

via www.businessknowhow.com

2013 avvo the power of follow up marketing ben glass march 2013

via www.slideshare.net

How To Design A Follow Up Marketing Campaign

via www.slideshare.net