direct mail acquisition
How to Overcome Common Marketing Mistakes
Mistake #1: Not Having An Adequate Follow-Up System.
A Follow-Up System For Customer Acquisition and Retention
There are two big reasons that your business needs a follow-up system:
- Big reason #1 – To get new customers/clients/patients (customers)
- Big reason #2 – To keep your existing customers
Q. What happens without follow-up?
A. Your business falls apart, withers away and dies. That is one of the Universal Laws of business.
If your business makes a sale and never contacts that buyer again, then you don’t have a real business. You have a one-time-sale, constantly-market-to-strangers, never-build-a-relationship, rarely-get-a-referral selling process.
The real value that a business owner builds is in his/her list of satisfied, repeat customers. In order to reach that level of value the astute entrepreneur continually contacts and does repeat business with their “base”.
It has been said many times that “The Fortune is in the Follow Up”. You absolutely MUST keep in touch – regularly – with all of your prospects and with your past and present customers/clients/patients.
You have to spend the necessary focus, time and money on this aspect of your marketing! You can do this in-house or outsource it.
There are the first five steps to take:
- First of all, you have to get customer Contact Information when you first do business with them.
- Then, set up an Automatic Email system to present new and exciting offers and beneficial information to them.
- Create a series of Direct Mail Letters to mail to them.
- Put a few Direct Mail Postcards into the mix of emails and letters.
- Develop a Printed Monthly Newsletter to be mailed to all customers and prospects.
The key to getting new customers and keeping all your customers is to treat them like you would like to be treated:
- Be consistent with them.
- Don’t always be “selling to” them. Give them valuable information, too.
- Remember them. We all liked to be recognized and treated special.
There are many places in St. Louis (or where ever you are) that can help you set up and run your continual customer contact system. Look them up. Get together with them. Pick their brains. Then “Do It”.
(This is the first in a series of articles concerning Overcoming Common Business Mistakes. Look for future articles.)
About the Author: Bill Hebert is an entrepreneur and business owner. He is Co-Director of the St. Louis Chapter of the Glazer-Kennedy Insider’s Circle, an international No B. S. business development and marketing training operation with about 100 Chapters throughout North America.
His website is: http://www.GKIC-StLouis.com
You can reach him at: bill9733@GKIC-StLouis.com
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