Retention and Reactivation Tips

Looking for fresh ways to get existing customers to buy again sooner or dormant customers to come back? Consider the following tips from Gina Valentino, president of Hemisphere Marketing, a Kansas City, Mo.-based catalog consultancy.

Immediately follow up with new customers. Thank customers and keep your company at the top of their minds by sending a short e-mail thanking them for their orders, Valentino says. Or try what The Territory Ahead catalog does: The apparel mailer sends postcards containing coupons to new customers. Valentino cautions that coupons shouldn’t be channel-specific, i.e., they should be usable on all channels (Web, phone or at retail).