Dormant customers, we all have them. A database filled with past customers who’ve gone missing. It might be proposals you sent out a couple weeks ago and haven’t heard back yet, maybe customers who used to purchase a lot from you and they haven’t been in the store in a while, or (gasp!) you spied them at a competitor’s place of business. Never fear, all may not be lost.
What to do with clients you haven’t heard from in a while.
Just because a client goes AWOL doesn’t mean there’s a solid reason for it. Your ego might be bruised, you might think you did something to drive them away. (Well maybe you did gross them out with that piece of spinach in your teeth the last time you met.) Usually, it’s fairly simple to woo them back. All it takes is a little love.
Okay, I’m not advocating mushy love letters, candy hearts, and dozens of roses for past customers. Though, you may consider those options if your wife is angry with you. You might just need to reach out a little.
Reach out with standard marketing tactics.
- Send a “follow-up” email.
- Include them in direct marketing campaigns.
- Notify them about an upcoming sale on item you know they have purchased in the past.
- Give them a coupon or discount to come back.
It’s okay to admit you miss them, you’re lost without them, sobbing uncontrollably…um, ahem, I mean, in your marketing message it can be as simple as “we haven’t seen you in a while, come on back.” What’s the worst thing that can happen? They don’t come back? Well, then they probably wouldn’t have anyway. Most often they just need a reminder or a little nudge and they’ll come back with open arms, or at least open wallets.
There are lots of reasons why your business may not have marketing staff: you may not have 40 hours of marketing work to be done each week, you may not be able to afford salary and benefits for additional employees, or maybe you just don’t want those goofy marketing people dancing around the office everyday.
Neither is marketing. Alright, I wouldn’t begin to presume marketing is anything close to brain surgery, but the point is why would you do the marketing work yourself when you can work with a marketing expert?
Marketing isn’t about the latest, greatest, coolest, fanciest, funkiest, most award-winning…”campaign”. Yep, all those things are pretty good, but what’s most important is your business. Well, that and getting more of it.