What have you done for me lately?
Dear Drycleaner,
If you want to see me again, you’ll
have to give me more than just clean clothes.
Sincerely,
Your Customer
We all want to feel that we’re being
rewarded, whether it’s for a job well done or for buying
the “right” brand of toothpaste.
 | ||
The fact is, sometimes we decide we
actually like the brand that we initially purchased because of
the premium. Often we decide to continue shopping at the
supermarket or service station that we originally patronized
for the premium. This can happen when we have no particular
loyalty to another store. It can happen because their
competitors gave us no particular reason to continue doing
business with them. Such as a premium.
Incentives have long been used to reach
measurable business goals. Regardless of the level of
sophistication, premiums can yield incredible results.
Premiums can be used to achieve many
different marketing goals. Such as: maximizing sales, rewarding
loyalty, and adding value to defend against competitive
promotions or pricing.
Premiums range in value from high-end such
as $10,000 cash, travel and cars to low-level merchandise items
such as a 50-cent key chain. The type of premium you should
offer depends on your target audience and objective.
In the high-end category, cash has the
broadest appeal. That is why the Golomb Group recently offered
$10,000 in its highly successful, “Ultimate Drycleaning
Sweepstakes” campaign.
In the middle category, cash is still
important but merchandise usually has more appeal. There is a
tremendous opportunity here, to reinforce your cleaners’
image.
On the low-end, merchandise can also be a
strong motivator, especially since the perceived value of an
item is often much higher than a comparable cash incentive. The
retail value or perceived value of merchandise is often 50
percent higher than the actual cost. Cash rebates and coupons
also fall into this category. While they can generate
substantial sales, over-use may ultimately detract from a
cleaner’s image.
The most important consideration in
selecting a premium for your business is: Does it reinforce
your cleaners’ image? That is, does it reinforce the
position you wish to occupy in the marketplace? Regardless of
the cost of an incentive, it should always reinforce your
identity.
It’s important to determine your
objectives before you begin any marketing program. That is you
have to know exactly what you are trying to achieve.
Consider the answers to the following
questions before you begin.
• How are you going to measure your
achievement?
• Who is you target: current
customers? Light, medium, or heavy users? Your
competitors’ customers?
• Do you have multiple targets and
can you attract all of these targets with a single program or
will it require more then one program?
• When is the best time to run your
program? Is there anything else planned for that time period?
• How is the competition likely to
react to your offer and do you have a plan for that situation?
• Do you have the support within your
company to execute a program?
Finally, the offer and premium should be
the focus of all marketing materials used during the
program’s time frame.
Running a successful drycleaning business
is a full-time job. If you want to succeed, you have to give it
your undivided attention. Sure, we all like to slip away for
brief periods. A little vacation, here and there. But the truth
is, you work hard to keep the show going. Whenever possible,
let other professionals handle some of the work for you. When
you use premiums and promotions supplied by The Golomb Group,
you are assured that the programs are being carried out by
professionals, just like yourself.
Dennis McCrory is president of The Golomb
Group Inc., a firm that designs marketing programs for
drycleaners. Contact him at The Golomb Group Inc., 7664 Plaza
Ct., Willowbrook, IL 60527 Tele: (800) 679-5856
E-mail: dennismccrory@golombgroup.com
