Well, here we are. Black Friday – one of the biggest shopping days of the year – has come and gone. While the retailers around you enjoyed door busting crowds, your place was a little emptier. A lot emptier, maybe. So empty that your own employees bought something just to make you feel better…ouch.
A bleak Black Friday doesn’t mean your holiday season is destined to be a bust. It does however mean that you’ve got some serious hustling to do. With less than 30 shopping days remaining in the season, you have to be smart and move fast if you want to connect with your customers. Here are three rapid-results techniques you can use to get that cash register ringing:
Send a Great Email
Email marketing may sound like yesterday’s news, but the truth is that emails can and do get read – especially if they’re personal, relevant, and promise great savings. Think through an offer that your customers will have a hard time resisting, and send it in an email that will arrive either early in the morning, at the start of the workday, or during the noon hour. If possible, give your customers three ways to buy – instantly online is easiest for them, buy online pick up in store is also extremely popular, and of course they can always come to the store.
Text Messages Work
[Tweet “Text messages enjoy an almost 100% open rate.”]
Reach out to your best customers with targeted offers. Include pictures if you can, and make sure to keep the messaging very personal. Phrasing like “We got these in, thought they’d be just perfect for your granddaughter! Would you like us to hold one so you can check it out for yourself?” is surprisingly effective and is viewed as high touch customer service by most shoppers.
Pick Up the Phone and Call Your Customers
99% of the people reading this won’t try this idea, but the 1% who do will see increased sales as a result. Your sales team has customers they work with on a regular basis. Have them make a phone call, preferably at a time when it’s likely the call will go to voice mail, informing the customer about a sales event, a great deal on merchandise that would be relevant to that customer, or even an upcoming deadline for special orders. The call can be very brief and to the point, as long as your staffer sounds friendly and upbeat. Retail experts have been recommending this strategy for decades because it works!