Have You Hugged a Customer Today?

With simple expressions of appreciation, you can convert a one-time customer to a long-term loyal shopper.

Forget the data mining, number crunching, high technology tools for a moment and personally thank some of your valued customers. With simple expressions of appreciation, you can convert a one-time customer to a long-term loyal shopper.

Post a sign in your workspace with the statement, "It costs more to acquire a customer than it does to retain a customer" and make it a goal to do something every day to inspire a return visit. Here are some tokens of gratitude you can bestow upon your customers without depleting your assets:

• Free shipping - the delivery cost can often be the deciding factor in whether a particular item is purchased online or offline.
• Discounted merchandise - offer a reduced price on gardening gloves to all customers who purchased tulip bulbs.
• Gift Certificates - Reward a customer's tenth order with a gift certificate.
• Free Samples and Demos - the best way to get a customer to buy a new brand of cologne or computer game is to let them try it first.
• Private Sales - offer exclusive pricing to some of your best customers.

Notify the recipients of your generosity via personalized e-mail or even a phone call. If you do something unexpectedly nice for a customer, they will come back and also tell their friends and associates about your business.

Reprinted from ECommerce Guide.