Nothing's as fast and efficient as email, and now you can use email to bring customers to your site.
So you've built a great team and your systems are all in tip-top shape. That's great. But unfortunately it's not enough to keep your company going. A business needs to hold on tight to existing customers and reach brand new customers in order to survive.
Before the Internet, communicating with potential and existing customers was a little hit and miss, but now it's easier than ever to target individuals and companies that are more likely to turn into buyers.
So how do you find new customers, quickly?
Advertising is one of the most popular ways to capture new customers, but it's not always the most effective solution. The Internet Advertising Bureau reports that online advertising expenditures have grown from US$1.9 billion in 1998 to US$4.6 billion this year. And online retail portal Shop.org (www.shop.org) found that though most e-tailers spend more money on finding new customers than offline companies, only about a quarter of the average Internet retailer's customers are repeat buyers.
If you're sick of paying big money for costly ads, you can do what other online and offline companies are considering and start looking to email for solutions. Whether you want to bring back old customers that have stopped buying from your company or grab new customers that have never heard of you, with email you can take advantage of more targeted and personalised ways of attracting buyers.
How do most companies build their customer numbers? Through traditional methods such as advertising and direct mail-pamphlets in a newspaper, or catalogues in your letterbox. These methods work, but they take time-time to plan the campaign, and to design and create the ad or catalogue. The Net, however, offers your company the ability to snag new business immediately. Sending potential customers email with a direct link to your purchase page, personalising someone's view of your Web site based on his or her past purchases, or just an informative newsletter with special links to special offers-it all helps you create an instant connection with your clientele.
