For our purposes here, let’s assume that you have a product that your customer/client should replace two to six times a year.  In that case, send out a letter to your customers/clients every month or quarter acknowledging their importance as a preferred or valued client.  Tell them a bit about what’s going on in your business, and then make them a preferential offer – like a special combination package that’s not available to new clients.

By ‘working’ those good clients, and repeatedly communicating with them, you should pull anywhere from 20% to 300% in additional business!  People are silently begging to be acknowledged, informed, given information and led to action.

It doesn’t matter what business you’re in - this concept will work – for you!  If you’re in a profession, and have a handful of expensive clients, give them a call – show them you care.  You can use an audiocassette tape, a card, a CD-ROM, or a gift-bearing offer.  The point is to follow up and test new versions against your ‘control’ approach.

The best way to increase retail traffic is by having something very self-serving for customers/clients to come and get – it can be an offer or it can be information.

Basically understand the following:  People don’t come to you unless you offer them something they want.  The more valuable, immediate or unique that something is, more people come.

So, concentrate on offering what they want most.  Until you fully understand what they want.  Spend some quality time identifying and evaluating what it is they really want – not just things, but also the results or benefits those things will give them.

Also, make constant offers – PROMOTE.

Some friends of ours own a timber & builders merchants that have 310 different promotions a year.  Every day they have a different promotion.  They have different reasons to attract different people.  They make it exciting.  They give incredible value.  They give enjoyment and entertainment.  They give bonuses.  They give benefits.  They give advantages.  They make everyday an exciting buying event at their premises.  Their larger competitors view them with envy.

A restaurant we work with has a different theme every night of the week.  Every night, something new is happening.  You never know what is going on.  They don’t just offer great food but also an incredible and happy experience.  And, I don’t just mean on a particular night of each week and every week the same theme, but different enjoyable dinning and entertainment packages.

We’re frequently bemused when telephoning businesses, often the welcome is nothing more welcoming than a ‘punch in the face’, and frequently its as painful as pulling out one of you own teeth when trying to find out information about their products or services

Our advice to you:  Make it an experience.  Make it enjoyable.  Make it fascinating.  And, above everything else make it welcoming.