The only thing you know about your potential customer is a name, an email address and their willingness to give you both in exchange for your free offer.
You are two people separated by unknown distances, unlikely to ever cross paths and are only connected thru an invisible, technological web. Yet, you have put your offer of a product, service or program out there, and they have indicated possibly becoming a customer. This is all very impersonal while you’re trying to foster a trusting customer relationship.
One of the current marketing trends is to create a more personalized customer experience. Big corporations and brick-and-mortar stores have the advantage of large data profiles or face-to-face services. You, the internet marketer have neither, but it doesn’t mean you can’t personalize.
Twelve Simple Ways to Personaliz
(1) Greeting Hi, first name
This is easy, when you send your emails to your list make sure your service provider includes a feature to merge the first name into your email greeting.
(2) First name in title of the email header
Again, the same technique but this time the first name appears in the email header. Marketers recommend this method for increasing open-rates.
(3) Send an email thank you for opting-in
Your thank you email for opting-in should be the same as if you were writing a thank you note for a gift received. Making your potential customer feel they are appreciated early on sets the tone for the rest of your correspondence.
(4) Follow-up with soliciting a response to your free offer
By asking your potential customer for their opinion and questions about your free offer, you not only get feedback but also insight into the type of person you are attracting.
(5) Embed the first name within the text of your emails
This time you’re placing the first name merge into the text of your emails. The reader will see this correspondence more as a personal letter rather than boilerplate content.
(6) A free 15 minute consultation call
An offer of a free 15 minute consulting call gives you a live contact opportunity. You get to hear about their needs and wants as well as being able to respond with your own personalized message.
(7) Respond to their comments
When you respond to comments it shows that you acknowledge them by name and value their time to post a comment.
(8) Engage on your social media sites
Invite potential customers to your social media sites and actively engage and comment on what they post. This gives both of you an opportunity to learn more about each other and build a customer relationship.
(9) Set up a private Facebook page or forum
While you think this would only be for your paying customers, by including your “potentials” they see how others already benefit from your offerings and how they might benefit as well.
(10) Offer scored questionnaires and checklists
Questionnaires and checklists that have scored results drive curiosity. Such personal results can be used to show potential customers what areas your offering can be of benefit.
(11) Ask outright for opinions or preferences
By asking for input, again it says you care about your audience. It could be topics for your next blog series, a choice between book cover images, best time for webinar calls or preferences for using new tools like periscope or blab.
(12) Include a website Chat Box or Question Box on your home page
Having a Chat Box or Questione Box on your home page allows you to schedule yourself or support staff members to be available and respond in a timely fashion. This again builds personal communication ties and trust.
Touch Points
Any of these touch points are pathways to communicate on a more personalized level. Your potential customers get to learn more about you and your offer, and you get to learn more about who they are, what they are looking for and how you can help them. By adding personalization, you gain valuable information that allows you to serve your community better and to create a marketing strategy that is more profitable for you.
Image: Google Images, labeled for reuse, source: what_is_double_opt_in_by_sukitwo-d3538mm
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