Loyalty Programs Opelika AL

Nothing increases your bottom line like getting customers and keeping those customers. With the myriad of small businesses offering the same services the trick is to stand above the crowd. Loyalty programs help your customers remember who you are and more importantly keep your business in the forefront of their minds. The great thing about loyalty programs is they cost you very little to no money and the types of programs are limited only to your imagination. Here are a few samplings of loyalty programs you can implement quickly and inexpensively.

One of the biggest things a business owner can do to make customers feel special is V.I.P. pricing. Offering a special discounted price for loyal customers says to the customer that you care about them and value their business, but a discount could cut into your profits as well. That last part need not be a concern because there are things that can be done to recoup those losses. The most common way to keep the profit margin up while offering discounts is to charge a residual fee to be a part of the VIP program. In this sense even new customers can join the program and receive the discounts and you still make up the discounted price on the services you offer. How you work the residual fee is up to you; it can be monthly or annually.

One method of improving business income is to track the spending habits of your customers. This allows you to do two things: 1) you can see what services they require most often and offer them special discounts on those services and 2) it is an ideal way to track those customers that are the most repeat customers. Loyalty cards are the perfect solution for this type of tracking. A business that offers a free rewards club with a membership card offers clients a huge free incentive to become loyal customers. These cards can be printed with bar codes and employees can be equipped with hand scanners to scan the bar codes into a computer. Most loyalty card programs reward the customer with a percentage discount, generally 10%, when they reach a certain spending level.

Another version of the loyalty card system that is even simpler to use is the punch card system. These paper cards are imprinted much like a business card with all of your business information and a row of boxes that can be marked over, stamped, or hole punched. The row of boxes indicates single purchases and usually numbers ten boxes. On the tenth box the service is free or discounted. These are often used by car washes.

Automated birthday card and gifting services are a great way to make clients feel special. These services are inexpensive and prolific on the internet. They monitor your client list and send out a small card and gift in time for the customer’s birthday.

The programs mentioned here are only samples of the loyalty programs that are available. Obviously not all of them will work for every field service business but through a little research and imagination you can find one that is right for you and your business. Keep the customers loyal and you will increase your cash flow.

Small Business Clinic of Alabama

334-284-3640
P. O. Box 231074
Montgomery, AL