Help customers make you a habit
e all know customers
are “creatures of habit.” That’s why we
seldom look to make changes! We frequent the same barber,
beautician, restaurant, bank, gas station, etc. Even when they
do something wrong, increase their prices, or change their
hours, we tend to accept and sometimes not even notice the
change.
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I’m always a amazed that, despite
numerous notices in writing and signs everywhere saying clearly
“We will be closed Mondays during July and August”
that customers still arrive with clothes to drop off or to
pick-up an order! It’s obviously a habit, that is hard to
break.
How can you get that customer habit going
and keep it strongly imbedded and entrenched?
It starts with convenience. Wasn’t
that the main reason you chose your location? The market and
its prospective customers that you hope to serve are there and
they would be obliged to come to you.
Location, location, location! Didn’t
some wise man once tell you those are the three main reasons
for a successful business?
But one day some other reasons forced you
to be a little more aggressive and take a longer look at your
bottom line. It could be an unfair increase in rent, new
competition, a change in the traffic pattern, or a parking
restriction. This brought an increase in the cost of doing
business and your prices had to change. And that steady
customer base you established — where did all your loyal
patrons go?
More important, if you got them back or
found new ones, how can you lock them in forever and never have
to keep searching for replacements, regardless of EPA, OSHA or
anything else that could be lurking on the horizon?
How do other businesses with similar
problems manage? It was more years ago than I care to remember,
but there was the local movie theater house in our neighborhood
and I recall how my sister or my mom were obligated to attend
the movies on that particular night. Whether they had
previously seen the picture or would like to see that film
again.
Why? Because that night was “dish
night.” That was the hook! To accumulate a complete set
of dishes, you had to keep attending. Some nights it was only a
saucer or a tea cup, and never a platter. But you had to keep
coming! It was the gimmick that made a captive audience, every
week, week after week. I don’t believe anyone ever
completed an entire set!
This was the first marketing idea that I
recall that got a customer to come back again and again and get
the “habit formed.” You now see it in force in most
airlines and lately even competitive airlines are exchanging
mileage points that are redeemable. Travel agencies, cruise
ships, hotels, and many credit card companies offer the
inducements of exchanging points.
What they are all looking for is that
human phenomena, that unexplainable “creature of
habit.”
Does it work? Of course, it’s
not for everyone but supermarkets strongly advocate it and
spend fortunes seeking ways to get the habit started. Just
observe a customer looking at her check-out list and
questioning “Did you add my points?” (After all,
you get a free turkey!)
So it goes. Coupons in the mail, the
Birthday Club at a restaurant chain, and on and on. Are
airlines’ Frequent Flyer programs smarter than
drycleaners?
Fortunately our industry has entered the
Age of Computers and tracking a customer’s activity is
now automatic. (If not, it should be.) It would take very
little to set up a simple contact card or letter announcing
your latest service, such as evening pick-up and delivery route
service, with a discount for their first order, or giving
recognition with a picture of your smiling “Employee of
the Month.” Praise and acknowledgment go a long ways with
employees, too, and since they are your most important asset,
shouldn’t they be compensated accordingly? Aren’t
they the eyes and ears of your business?
The Golomb Group has a host of proven
customer participation programs that keep the customers coming
back and not lost to a more clever competitor. Stan Golomb is
no longer with us, but he left a legacy for all to follow. One
of his books “How to Find, Capture and Keep
Customers” is timely in this day when increases in volume
seem nearly impossible. Stan was on target then and from the
great beyond his words ring out to guide us through this
difficult time.
Thanks Stan you’ll always be
remembered.
Ray Colucci, a consultant to the fabric
care industry, has revised and made available three timely
pamphlets: “Up Front Is Where It Counts” for
counter training; “Pressed for Perfection” for
finishing techniques; the popular “Route to Success To
the Home of Office” for complete route training. The
pamphlets are $20 each or all three for $50. Immediate delivery
with all postage paid is promised. Send requests and payment to
to R. Colucci, 410 Warren Ave., Mamaroneck, NY 10543.
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