What we have here is a failure to communicate

In the same movie, Luke said, "Sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand." Maybe that's true in poker, but not when you're talking about communicating with your customers. Communication is the key to building profitable customer relationships. And with email marketing, you have a royal flush. Email marketing is the easiest, most cost effective and immediate way to reach out to your customers on a regular basis.

I have received a bunch of email from readers lamenting the lack of ideas for types of email communications. My advice? Think about what you would say to your customers if they were standing right in front of you in your office, at the register, or if a customer called you on the phone and asked "what's new?"

There is no better time than the present for you to show your hand. This issue of hints and tips 'ups the ante' with suggestions to get you started.

Email Newsletters

Use an email newsletter to keep in touch with your customers on a regular and scheduled basis. Your newsletter can include articles on topics of interest to your readers, relevant news, case studies, your own commentary on the issues of your industry, useful information about your products or services, or - my personal favorite - hints and tips.

 

A newsletter can help you:

 

• Build relationships with your customers and prospects
• Position yourself and/or your company as a valuable resource
• Obtain and retain the mind share of your customers
• Educate and inform
• Illustrate the advantages of your offering
• Widen your audience through word-of-mouth referrals

A newsletter serves as a subtle reminder to return to your website, buy your product, use your service or visit your retail store.

Promotions

Send promotions to your in-house list, a rented opt-in list or both. Promotions are undeniably most popular around holidays and gift-giving occasions including the two months before the November and December holidays, Valentines Day, Easter, Mother's Day, Memorial Day, Father's Day, Fourth of July and Labor Day. But don't let holidays restrict you. You can send promotions any time. The ones you send off-season may be even more successful simply because fewer promotions arrive in those off-peak intervals. So, let your objectives determine the timing.

 

Promotions can help you:

 

• Ensure that you get your share of holiday business
• Boost sales, appointments or traffic in otherwise slow months
• Promote your brand
• Clear space for new stock
• Move excess inventory
• Get your name in front of a new or existing customer

Also, keep in mind that a customer may or may not take advantage of a given promotion, but they will be more likely to think of you when they are ready to buy. And better yet, they may forward your promotion to a friend, or friends, who may be interested.

 

Event-Driven Communications

An event-driven communication is informative like a newsletter, but is shorter and timely vs. regularly scheduled. If you are a tax attorney, you may want to notify your clients about recent changes in tax law. A realtor could send a notification when interest rates drop to an all time low. A restaurant's new take-out menu, a retailer's open house or a drycleaner's extended business hours are also good examples.

 

Event-driven communications can help you:

 

• Build relationships with your customers and prospects
• Position yourself and/or your company as a valuable resource
• Obtain and retain the mind share of your customers
• Educate and inform

Company Announcements

Every business has news to share whether it is a press release, job openings, an addition to your management team, new partnerships or a funding announcement. When sent to the right audience, company announcements can help you:

 

• Generate leads
• Show business momentum
• Entice investors
• Attract new partnerships
• Get press

Communication is the name of the game. You can bet the farm that regardless of type, all of your communications have the power to begin a very profitable dialog and long-term relationship between you and your customers and prospects. Play your cards right, and you could win the shirt right off your competitor's back!

In the upcoming weeks, I will explore some of these categories in depth and include actual case studies illustrating how others have put the power of communication to work for their businesses