Part 2 Communicating with your customers

Follow-Up

Remember that most sales are made after several calls, rather than on the first one, so follow up inquiries and leads numerous times before abandoning them.

Use a simulated “carbon copy” of your original letter for a follow-up mailing.

Use telephone follow-ups to supplement your direct mail campaign.

How often are you saying “Thank you” to your customers and clients?

Send a special “thank you” letter to new customers as soon as you receive their first order.

Thank your customers for every order.

Send a letter every now and then — when no immediate purchase is involved — to thank customers for previous purchases, invite them to order again soon and enclose some promotional material to supplement the invitation.

Cultivating customers with regular mailings containing special offers for customers only and saying “Thanks” for their previous business is one of your best investments.

Send purchasers of big-ticket items a follow-up letter reassuring them that they made a good buy to offset possible “post-purchase depression or dubiousness.”

Keep your customer sold on your products or service after he buys.

Send him follow-up mailings to ask how he likes the product… whether he would like any further information about it… and, if appropriate, suggest ways to use it that he may not have thought about or may have forgotten.

Increase your customers’ goodwill and purchases by sending them advance notices of sales or other special events.

The New Year Season is an especially good time to invite former customers to become active again.

One realtor builds goodwill by introducing newcomers to the neighborhood by mail.

If you make a mistake in your printed material, follow up promptly with a letter of correction that also does some additional selling.

If special circumstances delay or threaten to delay mail delivery, use an insert postscript, simulated rubber stamp imprint or follow-up mailing to notify the recipient that the cutoff date specified in the original mailing material has been extended to a specific date or for a specified number of days after the mailing arrives.

If follow-up mailings to a prospect or customer are not generating any response, try sending a mailing to his wife explaining the importance of hearing from him. ?

Follow Up On Clients

Professionals often fail to convey to their clients that they are important, or that the clients’ views and opinions are important.

To overcome this, professionals should have an initial consultation form that solicits the names of the client’s spouse and children, his or her interests, etc.

This lets you know something about the client so you can make him or her feel important.

After the visit, you or your assistant should telephone to inquire how he or she is doing.

Did the technique or medicine work well?

Indicate that you are always available if they have any questions.

Sending Christmas and birthday cards or notes with a personal touch makes people feel important.

It is vital not to drop patients once their problem is resolved.

Doctors and dentists especially need to pay attention to their waiting areas.

Often the magazines are worn and out of date.

Professionals should maintain a high tone by making new publications available on a rack or table.

It would be even nicer if the receptionist kept some magazines at the desk, handing them to the patient when she or he signed in.

The receptionist should be warm, inviting and friendly.

He or she should know something about the patient and be able to converse in a meaningful way.

If the doctor is running late, the receptionist should announce,

“The doctor is running a little late.

Do you have an errand you need to run, or do you need to use the phone to call anyone?”

Do anything you can to make that patient feel important.

Have current magazines, a television, warm and cold beverages, possibly a bookshelf with books on a variety of topics.

These are great ways to make the individual feel important.

Perhaps you could have a selection of good G-rated or PG-rated movies.

What’s a $400 investment?

Nothing.

If you are a pediatrician, have a little play area.

Hire high school or college girls to come in and play with the children.

A professional can also acknowledge personal events like birthdays and holidays.

And it pays to acknowledge these events for family members as well, not just for the patient.

Cards are nice.

What’s even nicer is if the receptionist calls on the morning of your birthday to wish you a happy birthday.?

Or if the patient has a little girl and the receptionist calls and says,

“Dr. Luden couldn’t call this morning, but he asked me to wish your daughter, Julie, a happy birthday.

He is sending some McDonald’s certificates so she can take some of her friends to McDonald’s.”

What is this worth in terms of goodwill?

Give something meaningful that reminds them of you, something that will ingratiate them to you for rendering noble service.

If you can’t allocate your staff’s time, it’s worth hiring a part-timer for a few hours or at Christmas time.

Instead of sending Christmas cards, he or she will call your clients and say: “I’m calling for Dr. Wu, who is too busy to come to the phone.?

He wanted me to call and tell you that he wishes you and your family the happiest of Christmases (or Hanukkahs) and the very, very best New Year.

He hopes it will be a good year for you.”

What is that worth?

Say it will cost you $10 an hour — $200 to call your clients or patients. ?