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How to Stay in Your Customer's Mind
by Kevin Sinclair
Published on this site: December 22nd, 2006 - See
more articles from this month
Imagine the following scenario: six months ago you paid
someone to come and do your gardening. You'd like to use
them again but you can't remember their name and have lost
their business card. You end up going to another gardener,
which means that the first gardener has probably lost a
customer for life.
How easy would it have been for that gardener to stay in
touch with you by sending you a newsletter with gardening
tips and product recommendations? If you're running your
own business, you can't afford not to have a newsletter. Sure, it seems that every business sends out one nowadays
but that is no reason to avoid using this invaluable
marketing tool. It's an excellent way to build ongoing
customer relationships, establish trust and build
credibility.
The most cost effective way to send out a newsletter is by
email. That way you avoid printing and mailing costs, and
it's so much more immediate.
Here are 5 tips to using email newsletters as a way of
staying in touch with your customer base:
- Use the 80% 20% Rule
One of the biggest mistakes businesses make is talking only
about themselves in their newsletters. Think about the
newsletters that you delete and the ones that you make the
effort to read. Usually the most interesting ones contain
solid information and tips that benefit you in some way.
Think about what would really interest and help your
readers and write articles on those topics accordingly. 80%
of your newsletter content should directly benefit your
reader. Only allow 20% of your content to promote your
business.
- Choose a schedule and stick to it
Consistency is the key when sending out newsletters.
Whether you decide on a monthly or fortnightly newsletter,
make a commitment to yourself to keep to this schedule. If
your newsletter is good, your customers will start to look
forward to hearing from you and you don't want to
disappoint them, do you?
- Pick a quality newsletter provider
A service like Aweber will provide you with the best in
service at a very reasonable price. As part of signing up,
you get free templates to use. Customize these with your
logo and photo to add that personal touch. Aweber also
manages people wanting to unsubscribe from your list automatically, which is a great time saver.
- Plan your content
Instead of inwardly groaning when suddenly it's time to
send out your newsletter again, why not brainstorm and work
on some article ideas in advance? Think of your newsletter
as an ongoing, fun project and it will be.
- Put your sign-up box on
your website
Make it easy for people to sign up for your newsletter by
putting a sign-up box prominently on your website. Also
invite people to sign up by putting a sentence at the end
of your email signature, saying something like 'Sign up for
my newsletter with the latest articles, news, tips and
stories at '
The time and effort that you put into your newsletter will
pay off dividends by increasing repeat business, and
bringing in new business.
Kevin Sinclair - is the publisher and editor of Be
Successful News, a
site that provides information and articles on how to
succeed in your own home or small business. http://BeSuccessfulNews.com/
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