How to Create Store Groupies and Become a Retail Rock Star

Everyone likes to be an insider with exclusive access and priviliges. Rock stars have their groupies who get exclusive backstage access, a seat on the band bus, and who knows what else! Groupies, by definition, are ultra-loyal fans. But more importantly, groupies are talkers who unknowingly become a key component in the band’s overall marketing effort. Every time a groupie talks about their exclusive access with the band they generate more and more buzz. More buzz ultimately generates more business for the band in the music stores and at the concert ticket booth.

Retail stores can learn a lot from rock stars by identifying and constantly cultivating their own community of loyal store “groupies”. By giving customers an opportunity to become part of an exclusive club a retail store can increase customer loyalty to a level never before achieved. Furthermore, such customer’s tend to find opportunities to talk about their exclusive access to others which only makes it that much more desirable for non-members to earn the same privileges and access. A savvy retail marketer understands the value of leveraging a customer’s normal desire to be treated as someone special.

Suppose you started a free Preferred Customer Club in your store that would provide members with a free e-mail newsletter, a regular supply of valuable coupons, advance notice of new products that you’re planning to carry, and exclusive invitations to in-store events or seminars. If you were to offer every customer who walked into your store an opportunity to join your Preferred Customer Club how many customers would take you up on this opportunity? Ninety percent? Ninety-five percent? Fact is, most people want to be considered as being preferred and will gladly join once they understand the value proposition (a free opportunity to get special treatment and privileges).

Assuming you don’t sacrifice the value of the proposition to the customer – that is, you don’t start to treat them less special as time passes – your Preferred Club members will find it very hard to purchase the products or services that you sell from anyone else. They will generally become less price sensitive and more willing to recommend your store to others because they don’t want to lose the special “status” and privileges you and your sales staff have assigned to them.

In addition to increasing customer loyalty with a Preferred Customer Club the biggest advantage to the retailer is the amount of information that can be collected from a club member. If a retailer collected only the customer’s name and e-mail address he could actually reduce his print and broadcast advertising expenses significantly in favor of low-cost, e-mail advertising. Instead of paying for “shotgun” radio or newspaper advertising the retailer could easily launch highly targeted e-mail and website advertising that will produce more sales with lower marketing costs. E-mail marketing strategies that include online coupons also give you store “groupies” an easy way create more buzz by forwarding your marketing message and coupons to others.

* * * * * *

MELCOOPER/CGM Technica specializes in Online Marketing Strategies for Retail Stores and Services (OMS-RSS). For more information about how to use online marketing strategies to increase sales and profits for your retail store or service please visit MELCOOPER/CGM Technica at http://melcooper.com . You may contact us via e-mail at info@melcooper.com or by calling toll-free at 1-866-695-8669.

How to Get People to Yak It Up About Your Business

One of the biggest mistakes that retailers often make is failing to notice customers who like to talk when they are in the store. These “talkers” frequently engage salespeople – even other customers – about your products or services. They often seem enthusastic and genuinely interested in knowing more about specific products that are of interest to him or her. Best of all, you and your sales staff notice that these talkers visit your store fairly often and make regular purchases. So, how can you tap this enthusiasm and leverage it to the greatest benefit to your store?

First, find out who these “talkers” are by getting more information about them. What are their names and about how old are they? Are these talkers mostly men or women? What products appeal to them the most on average? How often do they visit your store on average? The more information you can collect the easier it will be to identify your “target talkers”. There are a number of ways to glean this information from talkers – the easiest way of which is to simply notice and acknowledge them when they visit your store. You and your sales staff should be ready to introduce yourselves to target talkers and to thank them personally for shopping at your store. If you make a genuine effort to make a customer feel special they will usually be willing to introduce themselves with their name if you ask. If you feel uncomfortable asking a customer for his or her name – or if you feel this might “spook” the customer – you can always offer the customer an opportunity to join your store’s private “VIP” club.

The special “VIP” club is where a retail store can benefit from OMS-RSS, or “Online Marketing Strategies for Retail Stores and Services”. All you have to do is hand the customer your business card (you do have a business card, right?). On the back of the card is the handwritten URL of your store’s “VIP” website. Note: DO NOT have the URL printed on the card. Handwriting the address adds to the “secrecy” of the site. At this special website the customer can register to join (free, of course), and then be rewarded with a gift certificate good on the next visit to your store. The VIP website will offer “special” customers advance news on new products, special invitations to upcoming sales events, and discount coupons for store merchandise.

The second step in leveraging a talker for maximum marketing benefit is to analyze the information you have collected from them personally and from their VIP registrations at your website. This will tell you and your sales staff who to look for among your in-store customers in the future. More importantly, it will help you better target some of your marketing dollars to reach more customers with the same demographics as your target talkers.

The absolute worst thing you can do is blow off talkers as though they were nuisances. Even if a talker never purchases a thing from you – which is very unlikely – you can still leverage all that “yakking” to your benefit and maybe even convert him into a buying customer. Remember, everyone wants to be treated as though they were special – and they will do almost anything to continue getting that treatment.

Also, never EVER appear to take a talker for granted once you have given him “special” status and collected information from him. Always address the talker by name (people naturally like to hear their name being used). The surest way to turn a talker against your store is if he feels he has been used and then forgotten.

* * * * * *

MELCOOPER/CGM Technica specializes in Online Marketing Strategies for Retail Stores and Services (OMS-RSS). For more information about how to use online marketing strategies to increase sales and profits for your retail store or service please visit MELCOOPER/CGM Technica at http://melcooper.com . You may contact us via e-mail at info@melcooper.com or by calling toll-free at 1-866-695-8669.