[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]By Michael Janowski
July 15, 2015 – Your wireless marketing presence should be the heartbeat of your business. It brings customers to the door who put money in the drawer. We all sell wireless products and services. It’s imperative that your wireless store differentiates itself from the competition.
That said, the wireless business can be all too willing to cut back on marketing to cut costs (signage, digital creativity, etc.). But this doesn’t have to be the case. Marketing doesn’t have to be detrimental to the bottom line.
We talk frequently about maintaining a focus on customer experience. The truth is that being customer-focused is more than an approach; it’s our primary cultural value. It should come as second nature. It should be a set of assumptions that informs everyday business. Customer focus is communicating the value (post-revenue) that the customer brings to your business. Customer appreciation marketing is a way of giving thanks to the customer for making our daily work lives that much more fulfilling. Here are a few fun customer appreciation ideas that you can do anytime:
- Create a loyalty program. A customer loyalty program not only increases repeat business, but can create a sense of community. You can set up rewards for referrals, accessory purchases, birthdays, or frequent/timely bill pay customers. Doing so can create another perception of value in the relationship between your customers and store.
- Crowd-sourcing: turn your customers into your marketing department. The ethics of transparency, participation, and DIY media production (like that of personal branding) are a huge part of the social economy we now occupy. They are also a huge part of the wireless and mobile market. Encourage your customers to use social media and market your wireless store by providing a rewards structure. Have a photo contest on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram with a gift certificate grand prize. Give them the ability to create sales conversions themselves with purchase links to your sites! Lastly, hashtag everything!
- Redefine your store as a “place”. Your customers expect to do one thing in your store: spend money. So why not shake up that expectation by using the space for other things as well? Have spaces for demos, gaming and picture-taking activities. Try having hourly texting or photo taking contests for coupons or deals. Bring in guest speakers to talk about the latest wireless technologies. There is value in the space that your store provides. Channel that value and translate it to your bottom line!
Customer appreciation doesn’t have to be assigned a special week or month promotion. As an integral part of your company culture, customer appreciation marketing can (and should) be done 24/7/365. Successful marketing (digital, display, or other) is predicated on a consistently exceptional customer experience. Let this pledge be what informs every marketing effort in your wireless store![/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]