Using Gift Certificates to Market Your Clients
By Felicia Brown, LMBT
During the holiday season and other gift giving occasions, most of us think about gift certificates as something we'll purchase for or receive from the special people on our lists. In other words, we usually look at them as consumer-driven purchases going to other consumer end users. But even as vendors who sell goods and services to other businesses, we can use gift certificates to spread some holiday cheer and drive sales all year round. Here are a few ideas to get your wheels turning and sales flowing.
Send a gift certificate from your company to your existing customers. Whether you do this in conjunction with a holiday, as a thank you for referrals or to beef up a typically slow sales season, providing people with a gift, especially one they are not expecting, can spur impulse purchases and warm fuzzy feelings for your business.
Example: Just this week as I was preparing to speak at a conference, I realized my presentation remote needed to be replaced. With no time to shop online for the best deal or have something shipped before my impending departure, I immediately began look at the various discount offers available at local office supply stores. One had a great coupon for $25 off any purchase of $75 or more, but it was only for online purchases. Another had an offer for $20 off any $100 in-store purchase – also a good deal. However, since I just stocked up on supplies with a similar offer a few weeks ago and wasn't planning to spend $100 on a remote, it wasn't a good fit for me this time.
However, I did get an email that included a $5 gift certificate from Staples earlier in the week that was good on anything, required no minimum purchase and could be used in the store. Bingo! Staples made a quick $30 sale because of that emailed gift certificate. As a bonus, they insured my enrollment on their email list just in case more of those certificates are headed my way.
Provide gift certificates for others. Make your clients look good by providing them with certificates to share with their clients, colleagues, staff or other vendors. Depending on your business model, product and/or service, these could be given away at special events held by your clients such as an open house, put in their employee's paychecks, or even sent out as an attachment or enclosure with an introduction to your company in their promotional materials.
Example: I belong to an association that serves the spa industry. As a way to help this organization increase their membership conversions and provide a high value for their membership dues, I provided them with gift certificates worth up to $190 towards my Group Marketing Coaching Program. This is a perk they provide to new members when they join and not only makes them look good but also introduces my business to a huge group of qualified prospects at no up-front cost. Besides that, it assures the new members that this organization truly wants to help them succeed by providing them with access to the tools, services and professionals that they need the most. There is real value in that.
Give away certificates from strategic partners. To use this kind of promotion in your business, look for a business with a complimentary clientele or market that would also be interested in one or more of your offerings. Reach out to the marketing department or other decision makers with your idea and ask how you can be of help to them in turn. It may turn out that you can actually exchange certificates with one another and cross-market to both of your databases. Anything you can do to make the promotion a win-win will help pave the way to future endeavors and collaborations.
Example: As a business and marketing coach, I work with an online scheduling company who provides me with certificates good for two months of their service for free. This is a tool I use and recommend to my coaching clients anyway and is something that I also share with all my Facebook followers, blog readers, newsletter subscribers and others on my mailing list. In turn, this business rewards me with a "thank you/referral" commission if folks decide to try and purchase their service. And as a bonus to thank me for how well this cooperation has worked for them, the scheduling company recently sponsored my trip to speak at another event. That was definitely a win-win and a boom to my bottom line!
In short, there are many ways for product vendors and business-to-business merchants to utilize gift certificates to promote and grow their businesses. Use your creativity and connections to design your own giveaways and gift certificate giving opportunities!
About the Author:
Felicia Brown, LMBT is the owner of Spalutions (www.spalutions.com) and provides business and marketing coaching for massage, spa and wellness professionals and businesses. Contact Felicia at Felicia@spalutions.com or 336.508.0790 to set up a free consultation.
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