James....why not offer a "THANK YOU CARD CLUB"?

Very few (in fact in the last 25 yrs as a consumer I think I've rec'd 3 "Thank You Cards" from anyone. One was a motel, one was a carpet store and one was a carpet cleaner)

Program #1;
Offer local businesses a service of mailing "Thank You" Cards to their customers, clients or patients. Each card would sincerely thank them and offer an "incentive to revisit" AND the end of the Card can be perforated so as to be given to a friend or relative as a "Referral tool".
And...you could spice it up by mentioning in the Thank You note that the business will pay a "Bird Dog Fee of $25" if the Card is brought in by a New Customer, Client, Patient.
Long time ago I did a "BEE BACK CLUB" the same way for Car Dealers. (The Car Dealer paid $25 if the holder of the Card bought a car. Nowadays they could give $50 per referral)
Charge for each Thank You Card. Forget the "software thingee". Just a NICE Colorful THANK YOU Card will build Good Will for your clients. Add in the "referral thing" later.

#2) EVERY Hotel & Motel REQUIRES that guests fill in a Card whenever they register for a room.
This Card contains Name, Address, Phone, Car Type and License Number.
Offer to mail Cards for Hotels/Motels offering a "Thank You" AND an incentive to their previous guests of "Stay an Extra Night On Us!"
Not one Hotel or Motel that I know of has even considered doing ANY kind of promoting during the "off season". All they do is sit around and bitch about how "9-11" has killed their business.

I took one of these "complainers" a year ago October...set up a Mailing Program sending a combination Thank You and Incentive of an extra night on the house....charged him a nice chunk o change for the service....put 2 stay at home moms to work addressing and mailing cards and the guy was SWAMPED with business.

We even had a Christmas and New Years Special where he was booked SOLID...and he's usually lucky if he get 15% occupancy during that time.

He did it again this year (on his own, the dirty dog) and AGAIN was BOOKED SOLID.

So...put together a "Program". Make up some Samples and go out and see some businesses, Accountants, Dentists, Chiropractors, Car Dealers or motel owners. This thing WORKS! And nobody is doing it!

Don Alm


Make money Restoring Wood Decks