If you’re anything like me, the holidays are a special time for you.  They can bring so much joy and togetherness and create memories you’ll remember for a long time.  Family, friends, new experiences and old traditions seem to blend seamlessly.  The last quarter of the year can be both magical and hectic, but it is a time of year many, many people look forward to.

The end of the year is also a fantastic time to take a beat and do something nice for your clients – and, in turn, for your business.

There are three things I highly suggest you do to keep clients motivated, to keep them interested in your brand and services, and to broaden your circle of influence as you move into the next year. (NOTE: I’m speaking of the calendar year, running from January to December; not necessarily a fiscal year, as defined by you or your accounting practices.)

Say Thank You

It might be strange to say that, but those two little words, ‘Thank You’, are extremely impactful.  How many times have you done something for someone (perhaps you held a door open or let someone into traffic) and they didn’t say thank you?

That kind of thing irritates me.

Saying thank you to clients can show you’re respectful of their decision to rely on you for your products and/or services.  And it says that you appreciate them spending their hard-earned money with you.  It speaks volumes toward your character.  And when you say thank you out of the blue, like on a year-end mailing letting them know you appreciate them and their business, it goes a long way toward something called the 3/7/21 principle we’ll talk about in a later post.

Stay Top of Mind

When you’re looking for a product or service, or even just a place to go to dinner with your spouse or significant other, the most powerful tool you rely upon is: Recall.  Familiar names and familiar experiences (whether positive or negative), are going to help you instantly create a list of potentials.  Make sure your name is on that list.

Beginning even before Thanksgiving these days, mailboxes are deluged with the hoard of cards from friends and family, the endless advertisements offering crazy sales, and the flurry of people you’ve never heard of offering you a fantastic ‘first-time’ offer on something you might not need, and don’t yet know you can trust.

They’ve used you before, and they had a fantastic result.  Remind them of that.  Help them by bolstering their own powers of recall.  The next time they need what you’re selling, your name will already be on their mental list.

And that’s one more step toward repeat business.

Ask for Their Referrals, Not for Their Business

I don’t know who coined the phrase, “Remember to ask for the business.”  I think it has its place in a lot of areas.  But sometimes I think it’s better to ask for something else.

Stick with me on this one.

I’ve already said thank you for your business in my mailing.  And I’m hoping that a great mailing is going to help you keep me on the tip of your tongue for future business.  But what I also want is for you to tell other people about me.  It’s not a request you’re making of them, but more of a friendly call to action.

“If you know anyone who could benefit from the same kind of wonderful relationship you have with [insert company name], make sure they tell me you sent them over.  We’ll take great care of them, too.”

Recap:

• You’ve said thanks;
• And by doing so you’ve potentially vaulted your company onto their Memory Wall for their next project;
• You’ve committed to ‘especially’ remembering your client, and you’ve given their friends/peers permission to name drop when they reach out for their own needs.

The subliminal messaging is that of doing a favor both for yourself (client referring business to you), and for the client (I’ll remember and potentially reward you for the referral), while never having directly expressed any of that.

Ready to say thank you? We have two ways to help you say thank you this holiday season.

ProspectsPLUS! online platform at www.prospectsplus.com/pei, where you’ll find easy-to-use tools to design and print your postcard and target new prospects too.

Or, if your current reality is “not time for that,” then give Opportunity Knocks a call at 1 (866) 319-7109, and turn it over to us. We’ve helped tens of thousands of small businesses in nearly every industry to get great results. Tell us what you need; we can help.