Invite Customers to Your Party by Sending Cards

We see our customers as invited guests to a party, and we are the hosts. It's our job every day to make every important aspect of the customer experience a little bit better. – Jeff Bezos

Many times, you expect our customers to come to your business, without ever asking them. You set up shop, put out a few ads, and sit back waiting for customers. Often, customers won’t even think of you, unless you make the extra effort to ask for their business.

Invite customers to your party, and treat them as welcomed guests. Send out grand opening greeting cards to people within your community, as well as to all of your friends and associates. If you are unsure of whom to send cards to, pick out a few organizations within your community who may be interested in what your business has to offer.

Once you have invited customers to your business, do everything within your power to ensure they have a good experience. Welcome them as they come through the door, and strike up genuine conversation. Strive to learn as much about them as possible. The more you engage your customer, and show sincere interest in their lives, the better they will feel about their experience.

After you have made the party as wonderful as possible for your customer, invite them back again with a card to thank them for their business. Ask for their swift return, and they will respond. If your business holds a great party, in tune with the customer’s needs, you will find success around every corner.

The Service is in the Details

It is not enough
to give the customer excellent service.
You must subtly make him aware
of the great service he is getting.
– Anonymous

Customers naturally have high expectations for the level of service a business should provide. When a business fails to provide good customer service, your customers will notice immediately. However, when a business provides excellent service, customers have a tendency to take it for granted.

When you only meet their expectations, your business will not stand out. It takes special touches to place your business as number one in a customer’s mind. In a competitive marketplace, your customer could go anywhere to meet their needs. Your responsibility is to stand out, and provide over the top customer service.

The best way to improve the quality of your customer service is in the details. The small things are what stand out the most to your customers. Every time you can reach out to them, as one human being to another, your business will shine as the only place that they want to go.

Ask your customers about their day. Take a genuine interest in what matters most to them. Learn about the events going on in their lives, and send them a card to let them know that you were listening, and that you care. Each moment that you spend on highlighting their lives will improve the quality of your service and your business.

Customers do not expect the little touches when they shop at your business. When they receive them, they are thoroughly impressed, and will be sure to tell their friends. Brighten up your customer’s day with a thoughtful card, and watch as your business grows.

It Takes a Community to Build a Business

If you have a good relationship with your customer, the business process flows that much more smoothly. - Richard Pratt

Many business owners begin as sole proprietors. They work long hours, handling every detail of their business. They quickly become overwhelmed, as the weight of providing the best possible service increases on a daily basis.
What these business owners fail to realize is that even if they are their only employee, the business cannot succeed in a vacuum. Your friends, associates, and customers will all play an important part in your success. The more connections you make with these people, the more your business will grow.
One way to make these connections is by sending out cards to everyone in your address book. These cards can celebrate your grand opening, and invite everyone to explore your new business venture. When your business is just beginning, seeing friendly faces that you have known for years will make the process that much smoother.
You need not limit yourself to your own celebrations. Communities have their own special occasions where cards may be appropriate. Fairs, graduations, and back-to-school time are all ideal times to send your congratulatory cards. The successes of the community can become your successes, when you show your customers that you care about what is going on in their lives.
Even if you are unsure of which people celebrate which occasions, you can still send them a card. For example, when it is graduation time, send a card to thank everyone for their support of the local school system. This way, your customers understand that you care about them, and that you are an active part of your community.
Building these kinds of relationships will greatly improve your business. Customers will remember your involvement in their lives for years to come.

Giving Builds Customer Loyalty

The man who will use his skill and constructive imagination to see how much he can give for a dollar, instead of how little he can give for a dollar, is bound to succeed. – Henry Ford

Customers often need more than what you would first expect. They are looking for products, services, and information to fulfill their needs. However, they often do not know what their needs are, until a helpful business owner leads them down the right path.
When running your business, you have to give of yourself, in all aspects of your business. You may be selling greeting cards for a living, and you might suppose that your customers only need greeting cards when they walk into your store. You would be surprised at how often this is not the case.
Your customer may only think they need a greeting card, yet they don’t know the proper greeting card for the occasion. As a business owner, you can give of your knowledge by asking them the right questions, and giving of your knowledge and expertise to help them choose the right product. If you do not make the additional effort, your customers may become frustrated and leave without making a purchase. Your lack of giving made the buying experience unpleasant for your customer and your business.
In addition, your customers may need a sympathetic ear to listen to their situation. Perhaps they are having a rough time at home, and have no one else to talk to. Even if the topic is completely unrelated to your business, giving of your time and resources can make your customers feel welcome. They will feel comfortable doing business with you, because you give of yourself as a trusted friend would.
Consider sending out greeting cards to your customers, as a way to show that you genuinely care about them. Even if it is just a gentle reminder that you value their business, cards show that you are a giving person, who is willing to make their experience the best one it could possibly be. Your customers will not forget the extra effort that you put forth to give, and will be more than happy to return the favor in the future.

The Extra Step: Celebrate The Customer’s Successes

If you want to be creative in your company, your career, your life, all it takes is one easy step… the extra one. When you encounter a familiar plan, you just ask one question: What ELSE could we do? - Dale Dauten

Customers are not just looking for a business that can meet their needs. They are looking for a business that will exceed them. Customers want a warm, caring business that is not just a store, but a part of their family or their community.

One way to ensure that your business will become a treasured part of their life is by celebrating their successes. When life gives them reason to rejoice, a well-timed birthday card, anniversary card, or holiday card is one way to become a welcome friend with your customers.

There are other celebrations as well that business owners can consider. For example, when your customer makes their first purchase with you, you can send a welcome card to congratulate them on becoming a part of your business’ community. Be sure to make a note of this date as well, so you can send customer anniversary cards in the years to come.

When a customer has a problem with your service, you can quickly turn this around into a reason to celebrate. You can fix the problem to the customer’s satisfaction, and then send a card reminding them that you are available to answer any additional questions or concerns they might have. This shows that you really care about them, and are going above and beyond to give them excellent customer service.

Be creative when thinking of new ways to provide the best possible service to your customers. Surprise and delight them, and they will make you a part of their lives. A thoughtful card, sent in the mail, can set you apart from any other business the customer might choose to deal with.

Remind Customers That You Care

Here is a simple but powerful rule - always give people more than what they expect to get. - Nelson Boswell

Sales don’t stop when your customer walks out the door. Your customer may have come in looking for just one item to fulfill their needs on a busy afternoon. However, your job is to keep that customer coming back, time and time again.
Of course, you do everything you can while the customer is in your shop to make it a pleasant and valuable shopping experience for them. Yet a customer may never think of your shop again, unless you gently remind them of your existence.
There is nothing more personal than receiving a card in the mail for special occasions. As a customer, can you imagine getting a birthday card from the shop owner you bought some books from a few months ago? As a business owner, can you imagine any reason why you wouldn’t send these caring thoughts to your valued customers?
One consideration to keep in mind is to find a way to collect this information about your customers. If doing business doesn’t require you to collect their birthdates, then you will have to do a little more detective work.
Leave a notebook by the cash register. As you are ringing up your customers’ purchases, chat with them. Find out if there are any upcoming special occasions, such as birthdays or anniversaries. When they leave the store, write down their name, occasion, and date. If they don’t tell you the specific date, you can write down the general time frame that they give for their upcoming celebrations.
Once you have this information, you can send out the appropriate cards at the right times, to let them know that you and your business genuinely cares for them. This unexpected and heartfelt message will convince them to return to your business for all their future needs.