Most Internet marketers will tell you that a targeted contact list of roughly 10,000 people can realistically yield up to $2 a month per contact, simply by sending them regular offers for products and services.  In dollars that can mean up to 20 grand in monthly revenue for you.  With numbers like that, you’d be crazy to NOT be capturing contact information somehow.

Now those numbers are geared for Internet marketing.  Most people don’t realize that a targeted contact list of prospects, or even better current paying customers can be worth just as much to a brick and mortar, if not MORE.  It doesn’t matter whether it’s a list of email addresses or physical mailing addresses, the point is having that contact information at all, so that you can build valuable relationships and make them valuable offers that equal profits for you.

Offline businesses usually already have a good amount of foot traffic coming in and out of their business due to other advertising efforts.  Plus, they have people on-site to handle customer enquiries, demonstrate products, and provide support. This is great, and means they can provide great service to their customers.  But the bulk of offline businesses have absolutely no way of capturing the contact details of all that foot traffic.  They don’t even make the attempt.

Sorry, but that is leaving serious money on the table.  Suppose someone comes into your location and doesn’t buy anything that day, just browses?  Then they leave, and you never see or hear from them again.  If you catch their contact info before leaving however, you can keep in touch, and up your chances of them stepping foot in your door again exponentially.

Or, suppose they make a purchase?  But you don’t capture contact info, and so they’re only good for one sale.  Once is good, but isn’t twice or more even better? By getting contact information from them, you are getting permission to keep in touch, and update them on new products or services.  And the more you ‘touch’ them with your messages, the better the relationship and the more likely they are to buy again.  It’s really just crazy for a business NOT to be doing this.  So get a lead capture system set up, right now, TODAY!  Even if it’s just a simple piece of paper and a pen, and asking for their email address.

To your success!

Ron Davies

But let’s assume now that it IS exactly the type of sales generating machine it’s supposed to be.  That means you are now ready to get creative and start promoting that website of yours, and put it to work.  Now of course there are ton’s of ways to do this, and some will be more effective than others.

You can add it to your promotional materials, such as brochures, business cards, and ad space you might purchase.  That is great and can be an option to bring in new clients and customers.  But an even MORE effective way to get people visiting your website is to let your current customers know about it.  We all know it’s much easier to sell to a current customer than converting a lead into a new one, so why wouldn’t you capitalize on that?

Instead of your customer walking through your door, and then back out never to be seen again, why don’t you send them to your website, and then using the lead capture system we’ll talk about another day, capture their information and be able to follow up and market to them over and over again?  One of the easiest, and often most overlooked ways of doing this very thing, is to add your website URL to your sales receipts.

Something along the lines of ‘We appreciate your business. However, if you’d like to become a ‘Preferred Customer’, and be one of the first to hear of specials we offer, please visit www.yoursite.com and sign up using your name and email address.  We’ll keep you posted and in the know so you don’t miss a single deal!”

Viola.  Free advertising of your website, your customers feel special because they can sign up to be ‘Preferred’, and you get their contact information so you can send them offers via email for as long as they stay ‘Preferred’.  And no skin off your nose, outside of adding a bit of extra text to your sales receipts!

To your success!

Ron Davies