Happy customers are often raving fans of your business. They refer their friends and family. They share on their social media about you and your products. In return, you have an obligation to take care of them and show them how much you appreciate their business. Here are 12 easy ways to thank customers and help you retain your MVPs.
Customer sentiment should be at the top of every business owner’s mind. In the world of social media, one bad experience in a business can crush its reputation, making it harder for the company to bounce back. Having a proactive approach to customer appreciation, a solid process to deal with customer issues, and consistency all contribute to a compelling customer experience plan. Even the smallest gesture can have a lasting impact on how a customer feels about you and your business.
Ways to Say Thank You
Send a handwritten thank you note
Nothing stands out more than a handwritten thank you note. If you’re a cardmaker, this is right up your alley! Once you know your customer has received their order, pop a note of thanks in the mail. This shows your customer you’re willing to invest time in building a meaningful relationship with them and that they aren’t just a number. Envelopes with handwriting on them are more likely to get opened and will stand out from the typical junk mail. Make sure you have a way to keep track of your customer’s information so you can send them mail regularly.
Feature customers on your social media
Since consumers are mostly tied to their phones and social media, another way to thank customers is to feature them on your social media. Ask your customers to tag you in their posts so it’s easy to find and reshare their content to your channels. Think of this like a reverse influencer; you’re sharing their posts to add credibility to your business. Just remember, this is their story and you’re along for the ride. Don’t add spammy comments to their posts, instead add supportive comments to highlight your customer and their love for your product. Perhaps you can learn a new use for the product you sell!
Send happy mail
Customers LOVE getting something extra in the mail. Even if it’s a sample of a new product, a sticker, or other small tokens of your appreciation, a little bit goes a long way. Plus, you never know when they might like what you sent, and then BOOM, a sale! You can get ideas for happy mail from social listening, conversation threads in your group or other groups, comments in posts, and following your customers on social media. Chances are your customers will be surprised and delighted when something they have been eyeing shows up!
Launch a referral or loyalty program
Not only are referral or loyalty programs popular, but they are a great way to encourage repeat sales and business. Raving fans send referrals and referrals build your sales pipeline. Loyalty programs encourage repeat sales by rewarding customers for a series of purchases, either by dollar amount or item count. These two programs combined are one of the best ways to thank customers without even really trying. Keep in mind, balance the rewards to be enough to bring customers back but not so much that they dip too far into your profits. Also, don’t make your program so hard to understand that people don’t use it. You don’t want to overwhelm your customers.
Ask for feedback
Large companies and organizations ask for customer feedback and small businesses should be no different. Solicit feedback from your customers easily using a simple Google form, review the responses regularly, then implement actionable suggestions. Customers will notice and you can even ask them to beta test what they recommended. Maybe it’s a smoother process or a new system and asking them to test what you’ve put together tells them you value their feedback and are interested in what they think.
Host a customer appreciation day or event
A customer appreciation day or event is a great way to thank your customers and can be a way to generate new prospects. Asking your customers to bring a friend to the event to enjoy snacks, drinks, discounts, shopping, and giveaways can help you sell more as well as build your email list and pipeline of customers. Whether it’s online or in person, a customer appreciation day can really show your customers how much they mean to you and your business.
Segmented rewards program
Companies like Ulta and Sephora have tiered rewards systems based on purchase segments. One of the other ways to thank customers is to create a rewards program with points based on the purchase amount. The more a customer spends with you over time, the higher the perceived reward. In this program, your most valued customers see the most appreciation, incentivizing them to keep coming back to you.
Milestone emails
These are simple but highly effective when it comes to thanking customers. Celebrating things like their first purchase or their anniversary of becoming one of your customers, goes a long way in the game of customer loyalty. Credit card companies do this by putting the year you opened your account on the front of your card. You can create the same impact by sending emails recognizing the date they joined you as a customer. You can even send small milestone gifts at 5-year intervals, continually encouraging customers to come back and shop with you.
Offer free shipping
In a world where Amazon is the king of the “prime” shipping discount, it can be hard for small businesses to compete. Use free shipping as a way to incentivize your customers when they purchase. If you can’t provide free shipping, look at comparable products you can send that would equal a shipping discount. Also, consider doing a bulk order and covering the cost of shipping to the customer if your company allows it.
As you can see, there are many ways to thank customers and they don’t have to break the bank. You may already be doing some of these things so adding another gesture to your process will only make customers keep coming back to you! What do you use now to show appreciation to your customers? Let us know in the comments and we’ll add it to our list!
