If you’ve chosen to turn a hobby into a business by setting up an online store, affiliating with an Internet marketplace like Etsy or Amazon, or otherwise doing business electronically, the biggest challenge is getting and keeping customers. Fortunately, the unique aspects of doing business on the Web allow for steps and tactics that can turn customers into loyal friends. With a little finesse, branding, and the occasional lagniappe, you can build and keep your client base. Here’s a list of extra things that impress e-commerce customers.
Make Packages Memorable
Not every business can afford custom-printed mailing packages and the like, but with a little effort and creativity, you can decorate packages so that clients enjoy receiving them as much as your products. Print up clever and memorable address labels that provide your name, address, website, and perhaps even a motto or slogan. Colorful tape in your brand colors or that simply provides an eye-catching and pleasing break from brown paper packages is another tiny thing that can provide a big promotional push.
Get Personal
One of the extra things that impress e-commerce customers is the sense that they’re more than just customers to you. When you make a sale, take the time to include a handwritten personal note thanking them for their purchase and letting them know that you’re available and always interested in hearing from and helping them. If you have more customers than time to jot down individual notes, a nicely printed thank you card with the same sentiments mentioned above will do. But take time to thank your bigger customers with a handwritten note. They’ll remember it!
Reward Loyalty
When a customer’s orders become a regular event, reward them for their loyalty. If they order in bulk, offer a discount. If they regularly order the same thing, create a deal where they pay slightly less for standing orders or earn points toward receiving a future order for free. If they refer other customers to you, find a way to provide points or discounts for every lead that turns into another faithful client. Satisfied customers are like unpaid marketers and salespeople. Reward them when they help you out!
Socialize!
Social media has created an amazing way to communicate and interact with customers even if you’re a world away from one another. Note, share, and respond to any positive feedback or comments from customers and clients through their Twitter and Facebook feeds, and use those like buttons! Praise any posts, videos, and the like that spread the word about you, no matter how small, and make yourself available for interviews and as a resource for podcasts, webcasts, and similar productions. Going viral means getting the word out. Don’t stay silent online!