Three Reasons Why Your Customer Loyalty Programs And The Holidays Go Hand In Hand!Part Two
As you previously discovered in part one about ‘how” and “why” low cost, high impact customer loyalty programs and the last quarter holiday shopping season, simply go hand in hand!
Entrepreneur, whether you realize it or not! Your annual last quarter holiday season, is absolutely loaded with potential long term profits! But only if you strategically tap into them! This post will scratch the surface and hopefully stimulate your hidden creative marketing juices!
How To Turn Your Customer Loyalty Programs And Your Annual Holiday Shopping Season Into A Perpetual Money Making Goldmine!
As you recall from part one, unfortunately a staggering $217 billion (with a B!) dollars in merchandise is going to be returned! Roughly, about ten percent of the total holiday purchases will be returned each year!(That’s according to the National Retail Federation – (NRF.)
So being the extremely savvy entrepreneur that you are, you recognize that rather than simply allowing your extremely valuable customers to come in, return your merchandise and simply head off into the proverbial retail sunset!
Instead, you’re going to strategically turn this annual-temporary negative- occurrence into a long term money making process! Because you’re going to start leveraging all of the positive customer goodwill that you’ve built up to that point.
In two very simple (yet oh so profitable) ways:
First.) Entrepreneur, whether your small business is strategically located inside a popular mini strip mall or not, but especially if you are located inside a popular mini strip mall, make sure all of the other non competing small business owners and or service providers (or as many) as you can get to participate, all agree to be included on a special (extremely) limited -two sided- time sensitive “universal discount card” that you hand to each customer that returns a purchase of any kind!
It might basically start from “Black Friday” the day after Thanksgiving, through new years first. Here’s the way the “universal discount card” works. The holder of the card signs their name and then they can shop at every store’s name that’s on the back side of the card and save X% off every purchase until the temporary card expires!
And there’s no minimum purchase required! This will offer them an incentive to shop (try out) the other vendors! And each store will -of course- pass out the cards to their very own customer (or clients) that return merchandise as well.
(Of course, good luck trying to get them to to agree on one universal discount percentage!) But just for the sake of example; let’s say it’s 20% off every purchase under $100 dollars and 30% off every purchase over $100 dollars.
Second.) Here’s where you put this potential long term money making strategy on steroids! Offer each customer that returns something during the holiday shopping season, a free gift certificate to your store-valued at X-, as long as they provide you with a brief two minute or less- video testimonial.
Leverage The Fact That Your Best Customers And Clients Love Being Loved!
(Just set up a separate quiet room with your video equipment and have them do a couple of practice runs and then let her rip!)
And you’ll also gladly throw in an additional free gift certificate valued at X, from any of the other participating stores! That they’re free and highly encouraged to give to friends or family etc! In exchange for their video testimonials only!
(If they’re extremely on screen camera shy! Simply record an audio testimonial, but make it clear that your free bribe offer is not as good!)
In any event-entrepreneur- while your other main competitors are constantly losing sleep, because of the mounting return percentages, each last quarter holiday shopping season!
You on the other hand, recognize the little known potential hidden profit center, because you were savvy enough to take advantage of one of the many long term profit producing customer loyalty programs! Any questions?
Please list at least two simple spin off concepts (in the comments section below) that you can apply to your business, product or service in the next 30 days or less!
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