Jan 11, 2011 Posted in Marketing Ideas

The Gold is in the Follow-up

If you’re doing any kind of sales or marketing at all you know that very few sales are made on first contact.  Instead, it is commonly believed that a customer requires an average of 7 points of contact before making a purchasing decision.  I suspect that number is even higher if you count online communications and if you sell a higher priced product or service.

The good news is that with all of the modern technology keeping in touch with prospective customers has never been easier.  Just as importantly, you’re now able to do so without being annoying or intrusive.

Here are some ways of doing so.

SMS

Over 50% of cell phone users under the age of 35 indicate that text messaging is the most important feature when looking at buying a new phone.  Cell phones are also turned on 24/7 and we keep them with us a good percentage of that time as well.  Finally, 95% of all text messages are opened and they’re opened within an hour of being sent.

All of this would suggest that SMS will be the preferred method of marketing in the very near future.  The way to leverage this media now is to have customers and prospective customers opt-in to receive your messages.  As texting is not free this is often easier said than done.

Social Media

If Facebook were a country it would be bigger than the U.S. in population.  Twitter is almost as big.  Both allow businesses to interact with customers in a way that has never been available before.  These channels are not simply pushing out information but they’re creating conversations.  Smart companies can provide great information in the form of coupons or special promotions for followers and they can gather feedback in real-time.  The other nice thing from a small business owner’s perspective is that all of this communication is free.

Email

Speaking of free, I’m still stupefied to see how few businesses put in the effort to build and maintain an email list of their customers and prospects.  This should be a no-brainer for any company selling products or services with a high life time value.  While the open rate for email continues to diminish, it is still a very cost-effective marketing medium and one that should not be over-looked.

Direct Mail

It may seem strange that a high tech marketing guy like myself advocates the use of direct mail but I go with what works.  As the world gets more ‘connected’ and technology-focused a lot can be said for a simple, hand-written Thank You note.  Nothing will set you apart from your competition faster than a tangible note sent through the mail. I use these all the time and it still makes me smile when someone thanks me for sending them a Thank You note.

High-tech or low tech the gold really is in the follow-up.  How you approach your customers depends on their technology level and buying habits but one or more of the above will work.