Driving Retail Sales tomers sorted by sales volume . Look at them . Picture them . What is important to them ? What type of lifestyle do they lead ? What do they buy from you ?
Start a list . Force yourself to write down at least 25 entries . You will see commonalities . What could you gift them with that would make a meaningful impact ?
For a toy store , it could be sending a great age appropriate gift to the customer ’ s child on their birthday . The difference that makes is that you are recognizing the importance of their kids in their life — and you know that your customer will be impressed . For a store with many moms on the go , your reward can be some sort of travel item that makes their life easier .
For any store , the reward could be tracking their purchases and giving them a percentage of that total back as a discount off of future purchase . This is certainly the most common way to reward them and is referred to as a frequent buyers / loyalty program .
Many of those programs give away more cash than they need to . Use an index card for each customer and write down each purchase ( not including sales tax ). After seven purchases , total up how much they spent and multiply it by 5 %. That is then the value of the gift certificate that they have to use for their next purchase — which should be made within 30 days .
Take a new card and paperclip it to the old one so that you can easily determine who has an open gift certificate to use . On the front of the card , you can keep the client ’ s contact info . As it gets close to the end of the 30 days , you have the wonderful job of reminding them that they have a gift certificate to use at your store ! You call and tell them that expiration date is approaching and ask them if they will be able to come in by then . If not , simply extend it for them . You look like a hero ! And they love getting your gift of “ free ” money .
Another trick is to put a paperclip on the card when they have one more purchase left . That easily identifies the raving fans that can be called to be reminded about only needing one more purchase in order to get their gift certificate .
A side note to those who think this should be automated : Do not do it . Keep all these cards in a box . There is amazing social proof for other raving fans to see how many people shop with you .
Don ’ t think that a successful loyalty program has to only be about giving inventory away . Never underestimate the value of specialized knowledge to someone who is pressed for time . Use your resources to pull together that information for them . They will be in awe of the fact that you are genuinely passing on knowledge that they care about — not just about items you have in your store .
Think outside of the box in delivering the loyalty gift . In a wine store , the owner could put together a report about a new vineyard or area of the world that is producing wines . Then she could record the report and make a podcast or send the customer a link to an mp3 recording . Think about what knowledge you have that you could share with your customer and how to share it .
Focus on the customer and their wants
That is the secret . Your loyalty program must be selflessly focused on your best customers . That is what will shock , surprise and awe them . No one does that .
You will find that your customers are begging to award you their loyalty because it saves them time . They know where to go to get their need fulfilled — to your store . They already know , like and trust you . They want to shop with you . If you reward them by making a difference and providing shock and awe , they will reward you with their continued loyalty and business .
Don ’ t miss the opportunity to wish your raving fans a “ Happy Birthday ” with a no strings attached gift certificate to use the month of their birthday . Determine what your average sale for a year by taking your total sales volume and dividing it by the number of sales in the year . When you get that amount , multiply it by 20 % and offer them that amount as a fun birthday gift . Again , you can always call to remind them .
The title of this article is that you SHOULD NOT start a loyalty program . You should have the program – but you should not call it that . People want to belong . Use the program as an excuse to start a club that your raving fans can join . As you list out the benefits of the club , include the gift certificate after 7 purchases . Also include all the other services you provide such as free gift wrapping , style consultations , perfect present consultations and on and on . Put the list in a frame at the counter . Then when you are ringing up a purchase , you can ask if they would like to join your club ! That is how you effortlessly get their contact information and then start to work on growing their loyalty . n
CATHY WAGNER is the Founder and President , RETAILMavens , a consulting firm that helps independent retailers develop action plans that increase sales , improve cash flow and create success . With over 30 years of experience in retail as both an owner and a consultant , she has seen firsthand the tremendous benefits that paying attention to your numbers makes .
Join Cathy Wagner April 26 at 2 pm EST for an EDmarket webinar entitled “ Retail Revenue Reboot ”, and learn easy changes that will impact your bottom line right away .
To register , visit : www . edmarket . org / webinars /
12 essentials | spring 2017