Keeping a customer database up to date is often an arduous task but it pays dividends in ensuring that your efforts are always targeted in the right direction. In this article Michael McCann talks about a method he uses to not only stay in touch with his customers but also keep his customer database clean, growing and up to date. While Michael is based in the US the principles hold true for Cape and South African based businesses too...
Spreading Good Cheer and Pruning Your Customer Database!
By Michael McCann
Leverage your presence with customers and prospects by sending them periodic communiques. Professional and unique holiday greetings help build a bond between you and your business acquaintances. What I am about to reveal to you is a powerful and proven method of standing out from your competition. The success or failure of implementing my program lies in the details.
Let us assume you already have a contact database that is "clean" and ready to merge with an effective marketing program to keep in touch with your audience. Numerous studies indicate you should contact business people important to you in intervals from three weeks (time it takes to form/uniform habits) to every three months ("about to forget you" stage). My suggestion is to send communiques tied to every major holiday where your customers and prospects reside.
The beauty of this approach is your ability to execute the "holiday message" program anywhere in the world. Business people in Singapore can tie communiques to Singapore's holidays. Expatriates in Mexico can coordinate their messages with Mexican holidays. United States of America business people can merge with America's major holidays. Let's use USA holidays as an example that you can copy with whatever country holidays relates in your situation.
Taking a look at my planning calendar, I see the major USA holidays (not including religious holidays such as Christmas) in the year 2009 are:
New Year's Day January 1
Valentine's Day February 14
St. Patrick's Day March 17
Memorial Day May 25
Independence Day July 4
Labor Day September 7
Halloween October 31
Thanksgiving November 26
Your name will be in front of customers and prospects at least eight times in 2009, following the dates above. The fact there is an uneven spread of two weeks to two months between each of these holidays is OK. There are fifty-two weeks in the year, divided by eight messages, equaling contact an average of every 6.5 weeks.
Picture what your customers and prospects will think when you present them with a New Year For New Business card or Thanksgiving card. When I receive a well thought out holiday message from a business acquaintance, I think this person is unique and professional. A simple message on a major holiday indicates you have more depth and more to offer than just your company's product or service.
This is the logistics of sending a holiday message to my contact database:
o Purchase materials and develop your message for each holiday at least two weeks in advance.
o Print materials and write personal messages one to two weeks in advance.
o Personally deliver or send the greetings 7 days before the holiday.
For my Thanksgiving communique, I researched the origins of this holiday and laser-printed the summary story on one parchment looking 8 1/2 x 11 sheet. The story was then inserted in a deep red 9 x 12 envelope with the recipients' name typed on a holiday label.
The week before Thanksgiving, I hand-delivered as many of my "stories" as possible. Organizing the recipients by zip code, I delivered 30+ per day. This delivery episode turned into an exhausting and invigorating exercise. The exhaustive angle does not need explanation. The invigorating side came from seeing customers, prospects and staffs in their offices. I made the extra step to come to the other person's office for no reason than to show a "human" touch.
Many recipients did not know what to say when a businessperson came to their office without asking for anything in return. Office staff displayed expressions of relief. Customers and prospects out-of-town received their packages the week before Thanksgiving and were equally surprised that there were no strings attached.
They were wrong! There were strings attached to sending my Thanksgiving story. I need to concentrate my time and investments on only my strongest customers and prospects. By visiting many customers and prospects' offices and calling the out-of-towners after they received their Thanksgiving stories, I pared my contact database to concentrate on only the most promising.
Look at each holiday greeting as a "contact database cleanser." Being a good businessperson, I want to spread the holiday joy with my best prospects and socialize with everybody else. During each 6.5 week period in our example here, I may add 20-50+ prospects and delete half this number through discovering half of your contact database is not worth your efforts for business.
Can't ask for a better deal than this. Spread good cheer and prune your customer database!
Make more money faster by easily connecting with hard-to-reach decision makers who can buy your products and services...NOW! Get started free by getting Michael McCann's new Special Report excerpted from his newest edition of his popular business development book, Connecting with Key Decision Makers (How to Reach Hard-to-Reach Businesspeople Who Can Say "Yes")...just for asking at http:/www.GlobalBusinessCafe.com/
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Michael McCann is a 25-year veteran of developing unique and professional business development programs that create tangible results for individuals and companies. Let him help you instantly...free!
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