Planning Ahead for Intentional Gift Giving

However, no matter when you give your gifts, to be an intentional gift giver, you need to prepare.  Waiting until the last minute can lead to buying the first available thing that remotely fits, and often it is received that way.  In addition, personalized gifts that are either custom-made or specially ordered require ample advance planning to assure an on-time arrival.  This will be even more important this year.  Items may take longer to arrive due to the pandemic.  Instead of a rushed, less personal approach to demonstrating your appreciation for valued clients, partners, vendors and employees, consider taking some concrete actions now to prepare for the Holidays. These same actions can also help you with gifts for family and friends.

Start With a List of Valued Relationships

It may seem obvious that you should have a list of people to whom you want to give gifts this year.  But often, we keep that list in our heads, where it doesn’t get any action.  Instead, write it down.  Go through the valued relationships that you have in your business and write down the people who make that relationship happen.  Next to each person, write a few things that you know about the person.  Jot down hobbies, interests, personal style and other details that can help you come up with a unique gift that will be well received by this valued person.

Do Your Research to Personalize Every Gift

If you find that the information is sparse, then start listening and paying attention to details about this person.  For example, if she’s a woman, then note her jewelry style — gold or silver?  Dainty or statement? In conversation, has this person mentioned a book or DVD that they might enjoy receiving?  How about a favorite sports team or a love of theater?  Does this person prefer beer or wine?  Tuck this sort of information into the back of your mind and add it to the list you’re already developing.  Knowing what your gift recipient likes and dislikes will go a long way towards making sure that the gift you pick will be treasured or never seen again.

Create Gift Options That Reflect Personal Preferences

For each person on the list, write down one or two things you might want to give that person.  Try to tie the gift possibilities to that person’s interests.  Play around with ideas that fit different gifting budgets.  Consider whether there are issues like special orders that make purchasing a little more complex.  Now you have a shopping list, well in advance of the gifting season, and you have the time to buy the perfect, unique gift that will truly demonstrate how much you value the relationship.

How VirtuArte Supports Strategic Holiday Gifting

It’s not enough to have a great list.  You’ve taken some great, concrete steps towards giving memorable gifts.  Now it’s time to start searching out and buying the gifts themselves.  Instead of waiting until the last minute, set aside time to make your purchases so you aren’t rushing just before you want to give the gift.  This year, there may be limited quantities of certain items.  We’ve all seen what has happened with workout equipment.  By being deliberate and intentional in your gift-giving efforts, you will find that this important part of your gift-giving plan takes less time and results in some great successes.

Hand-delivering gifts adds to the gift experience, but if you can’t ship your gifts as early as possible.  Due to the pandemic, UPS, FedEx and especially USPS have been stretched.  We’ve all experienced delays in getting our packages during the year.  Add to this an election year with the increased number of mail-in ballots, and end-of-the-year shipping could experience further delays.

Do you need some help with your Holiday gift plans?  Contact VirtuArte here to set up a free consultation.

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The Statistics That Support Client Appreciation

An oft-repeated refrain, particularly when times are tight, is “I don’t have the money for client appreciation.”  Most businesses focus resources on new client acquisition and not on cultivating the relationships they already have with their current clients.  This allocation of time and money overlooks some critical statistics.

• It costs 5 times more to acquire a new client than to retain a current client.
• 68% of current clients who stop working with a business say they did not feel appreciated
• Experts vary in their estimates, but the gathered wisdom is that it takes anywhere from 7 to 16 contacts with a potential client to close a sale.
• The success rate for selling to a new client varies from 5-20%
• The success rate for selling to a current client varies from 60-70%

The cost in time, money and effort to obtain new clients can be explained by the fact that a new client needs to get to know, like and trust a business before it proceeds with a sale.  You have already crossed these hurdles with current clients, so it takes far less to cultivate current clients and encourage them to make further purchases.  When considering the statistics, it’s important to remember that the competition will be marketing to your clients, and clients who do not feel appreciated will be more receptive to exploring alternatives to your business.

How Current Clients Become a Source of Business Growth

Clients who have a positive experience offer many positive opportunities for your business. Obviously, repeat business is the start.  A client’s loyalty can inspire them to try additional goods or services offered by your business.  In addition, a happy client will offer quality testimonials and reviews, which are increasingly important factors in attracting new clients.  Finally, your current clients serve as your brand ambassadors.  They will make referrals and advocate for your business.

Staying Top of Mind Through Appreciation

A client appreciation program keeps you in touch with your current clients.  Regular contact should include requests for feedback, which provides you with information vital to improving your business.  These conversations are also an opportunity for you to talk to them about how they can help you.  This can be broached by simply inquiring whether they have any other needs you can attend to, requesting a review or asking if they can make a referral.  None of these asks can be made without follow-up and focus on your current clients, and if you do them in the context of appreciation, you will find the client more receptive to helping you out.

Making Client Appreciation Part of Your Overall Marketing Strategy

To continue to develop and expand your relationship with your clients, you want to help them focus on the value that you bring.  A well-conceived client appreciation strategy is an excellent way to stay top of mind.  As part of an overall marketing strategy, it takes some thought to make sure your program is authentic and effective.  VirtuArte offers a variety of client appreciation advice and services that you can use to maintain your most valuable resource.  We would love to connect with you for a complimentary strategy session to make the most of your client appreciation efforts.  Contact us here to set up your session today.

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Are you …

• Always thinking about the next sale?
• Having difficulty creating client loyalty?
• Not getting the repeat business or referrals you want from your current clients?

Well maybe it’s time for you to start thinking about client appreciation.

If done well, client appreciation is an integral part of the sales/marketing strategy of any business.  After all, it costs five times more to land a new client than to maintain the relationship with an existing client.  It’s not enough to interact with the customer only when a sale is happening.  A good client appreciation strategy should include regular check-ins that are not “chasing the sale” but a genuine “Thank you for your business.”  In order to stay top of mind with your client, you can include in person meetings, telephone calls, e-mails, handwritten notes, videos and intentional gift giving.

How the Customer Experience Impacts Loyalty

Think about your experience at a restaurant.  If your food is delivered, your waiter can just sit back and wait to clear the empty dishes or sail by with a perfunctory inquiry about the food.  Or, your waiter can make a real effort to find out how the meal is going, check on water glasses, offer more drinks or bread and otherwise contribute to your experience at the restaurant.  Which kind of service gets the bigger reward?  The answer should be obvious.  The bread and water offered by the waiter may seem simple, but these gestures, free of charge to the customer, make for a memorable, pleasant experience, as well as a big tip!  The extra attention that gets rewarded when dining out is the sort of attention that will keep your clients loyal and invested in your success.

What Is Client Appreciation?

Client appreciation programs have the same impact.  It has been shown that 68% of customers who stop doing business with a company do so because they do not feel appreciated.  An appreciation gesture — that phone call, handwritten note, or gift — at an unexpected interval puts the humanity back into the business relationship.  It creates a connection with the customer that goes beyond the sale, it builds trust and gratitude.  When a client feels appreciated, they want to continue the relationship, resulting in repeat business.  But also, a customer who feels a genuine connection with you and your business can become an advocate for your business — promoting it through referrals and positive reviews.

Why Investing in Existing Clients Pays Off

When thinking about client appreciation programs, some people balk at the time it takes and the cost. However, the success rate of selling to an existing client is 60-70%, while the success rate of selling to a new client is 5-20%.  Don’t be penny-wise and pound-foolish when it comes to your client relationships.  Given the time, energy and expense of landing a new client, investing in the relationships of your existing clients will inevitably be less expensive and more productive.

Be Thoughtful With Every Appreciation Gesture

At VirtuArte, we feel that a customer appreciation program should be intentional.  This means that every appreciation gesture needs to be thoughtful.  Take the time to call your client and find out how they are doing.  If you are going to send a card, handwrite it with a personalized message.  Sending a video?  Again, personalize it.  If you decide to give a gift, make the effort to find a gift that shows you’ve paid attention to the client as a person.  This makes the gift memorable to your client.  Use your periodic check-ins to do more than assess how the client is doing; use them to show your client you really appreciate their business.

Want to know more about how you can show your customers how much you appreciate them?  Contact us here to set up a consultation about customized client appreciation programs to strengthen your client relationships.

The post Client Appreciation Is Key for Building Loyal Business Relationships appeared first on VirtuArte.

If you ask a business owner how they are going to grow their business, most will tell you by attracting new leads and acquiring more clients.  Now, don’t get me wron,g there is a need for businesses to acquire new clients, but this is costly as a growth strategy.  It also ignores one of the business’s most valuable assets, its existing clients.

Why Client Retention Is More Cost-Effective Than Client Acquisition

Research by Invesp shows:

• Acquiring a new client costs five times more than retaining an existing client.
• The success rate of selling to an existing client is 60-70% while the success rate of selling to a new client is 5-20%; and
• Increasing client retention rates by 5% increases profit by 25-95%.

Focusing on client acquisition is a less cost-effective way to grow your business.  You’ve already invested marketing and sales resources in your existing clients and have built the know, like and trust with them.  They’ve purchased your products and/or services and started to develop a relationship with you and your business.  Existing clients are 50% more likely to try new products and spend 31% more.

How Loyal Clients Drive Referrals and New Leads

As these clients get to know your business and make more purchases, they are more likely to share your products and their experience with others.  Thus, you become both loyal clients and advocates for your business.  Existing clients can become a lead generation source for your business as they refer family, friends and colleagues.  Studies show 92% of potential leads trust personal recommendations more than any other kind of marketing.

Using Client Insights to Improve Products and Services

Your existing clients can also be your best source of information on the clients you are targeting, since they have already bought your product or service.  Their shopping habits and purchasing patterns can help you better understand why and how leads become clients, enabling you to refine your marketing and targeting efforts.  At the same time, these clients can provide you with feedback on how to improve your products and services, plus spot opportunities for new products to add to your current offerings.  Cross-selling, which can increase profits up to 40%, is easier with existing clients than with new clients.

The Long-Term Benefits of a Strong Client Retention Strategy

The importance of client retention on your business growth is clear.  It leads to:

• Spending less on marketing and advertising;
• Lower cost of acquiring new clients as your business gets more qualified referrals;
• Sales with higher margins as existing clients are less price conscious and value your business; and
• More repeat purchases because existing clients believe you offer superior products and/or services.

The benefits of client retention not only impact your revenue and profit, it can also impact your employee retention.  Focusing on client retention allows your employees to spend less time trying to acquire new customers, more time developing meaningful relationships with your existing clients leading to higher morale.  Work becomes less about sales and more about people.

How VirtuArte Helps Businesses Improve Client Retention

Client acquisition is important, but don’t make it your business’s sole priority.  Don’t neglect your existing clients.  A satisfied, loyal client is worth more than one who is not.  Don’t have a client retention strategy? Let VirtuArte help.  Contact us here or give us a call at 866.228.3497 to set up a complimentary strategy session to discuss options for your client retention efforts.

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Use Video Chat to Maintain Personal Connection

It seems like overnight, everyone discovered zoom and the many other video conferencing solutions out there. While the reason for the dramatic increase in video communications is that it is the next best thing to an in-person meeting. Video chats allow you to see facial expressions and other nonverbal behaviors. Consider scheduling a check-in with your clients via video chat. This should not be a sales call. Rather, it is an opportunity to find out how they are doing and if there is anything you can do for them. Don’t forget to maintain professionalism in your appearance and decorum during the call. If you truly don’t like video chats, then pick up the phone and call your clients.

The Impact of a Handwritten Note

At VirtuArte, we consistently get the feed-back that handwritten notes are among the most impactful ways to communicate appreciation. The personal touch and the effort that goes into the note are both apparent and welcome. The key right now is to give thanks to you clients for being a valued part of your business. You want to let them know you are thinking about them, and you are there if they need anything. If you don’t have a mailing address, send an e-card, but be sure to include a personal note that shows you have taken the time to truly consider each customer.

Strengthening Relationships With Virtual Gifts

There’s no reason to interrupt your client gifting strategy right now. In fact, you should consider the impact a thoughtful gesture can have during a time of crisis. Some recommendations include:

• An audiobook
• An e-Book
• Online Subscription to a magazine or newspaper
• An online course
• Podcast

Take the information you have been gathering about your clients and use it to personalize each gift. Send something that reflects the client’s interests.

Creating Shared Experiences With Virtual Meals

Friends and families are gathering online to have virtual meals together. You can offer the same opportunity to touch base to your clients. However, take this gesture a step further with a client, and make it a business lunch that’s your treat. How? Buy lunch from a restaurant that is local to your client and have it delivered. Order your own lunch, and then log onto and enjoy a meal together. If you want to meet up for a drink, instead of doing a run of the mill happy hour, consider doing a virtual wine tasting. Again, you can order a delivery to your client and then have a wine steward join online for the experience.

Why Personalized Communication Matters More Than Email Blasts

Just like any other gesture, it is more meaningful if you personalize your email communications. Sending out an email blast to clients will get your communication lost in the noise of the clients’ inbox. Be thoughtful about your Subject line, and make sure to lead with a highly personalized sentence that makes it clear you are making a genuine effort to connect.

If you need assistance in implementing any of these ideas or want to brainstorm further, contact me at dmyers@virtuarte.com or at 202.297.9524

The post How to Stay Connected With Your Clients During Uncertain Times appeared first on VirtuArte.

With the arrival of the new year, many businesses breathe a sigh of relief that they have finished with the year-end rush to get holiday cards and client gifts out the door.  With the big push completed, now may be a great time to consider your client gifting strategy and explore business gifting approaches that increase the impact of each gift and make a lasting impression on your clients.

Unique Gifts Have The Biggest Impact

I think a unique gift will have a greater return on your investment.  A few years ago, a client came to me because he said he wanted to give a gift to a customer who was also somewhat of a mentor.  He presented me with some ideas about the customer’s likes and interests, gave me a price point, and, after some research, I was able to make a few suggestions, including a mask from an area that my client knew his customer was interested in.  The result was even better than expected.  The customer almost became emotional and specifically expressed appreciation for the thoughtfulness of the gift.  The gift had a huge impact on my client because he took the time to make the gift unique and spontaneous.  He gave some thought to the customer’s tastes, and he hand-delivered a gift selected with the intention of being meaningful.  I don’t think a unique gift has to be expensive.  Taking the time and effort to come up with a customized gift for your customer will have an impact that far exceeds the cost.

Put Your Budget Into Spontaneous Gifting

My client’s gift had an additional impact because the client gave it to his customer in February — it wasn’t competing with any other holiday gifts, and it clearly showed that a specific thought went into the gift.  Even the best of client gifts can get lost in the shuffle at the end of the year when packages are arriving from all sorts of partners, vendors, and other business associates.  While there is no reason to forgo the holiday gift altogether, consider a more spontaneous gesture.  This will show that you have the client specifically in mind rather than checking a name off a list.  A gift that doesn’t relate to an event or a holiday conveys the message that you keep your clients top of mind at all times.

A Generic Gift Can Backfire

The problem with a lot of end-of-year gifts is that they are purchased in bulk, and it shows.  A bottle of wine or a food basket won’t be as effective as a personalized, unique gift for several reasons.  First, everyone is doing it.  Going the predictable route with your gifting will result in the gift being added to a pile of gifts from other businesses and possibly getting regifted.  Second, the recipient may perceive that, for all the business they’ve given you, this generic gift doesn’t reflect much in the way of appreciation.  Third, while unintended, a generic gift can convey the impression that you don’t know or care enough about the client to give a gift that you know they will like, particularly if the client doesn’t actually like the gift you gave.

Knowing The Etiquette of Gifting

A promotional gift is different from a “thank you ” or appreciation gift.  For promotional gifts, the intention is to create additional customer awareness, so it is appropriate to increase brand visibility with a logo on the gift.  However, if giving a gift to an existing client to express gratitude or appreciation, then it should not be a promotional item — it should be a gift demonstrating that you put some thought into the client’s interest and needs and came up with something that wasn’t sitting in your storeroom.

Gifts are an important marketing tool.  The investment in a gesture towards a customer or client will help that client feel valued and understood.  To achieve this outcome, approach your client gifting strategy thoughtfully and intentionally.  A unique gift, timed to be noticed and given with care, will have a lasting impact in building customer loyalty.

Want to find that perfect, unique gift for a valued client?  Contact us here for more information about working with VirtuArte.

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I was at a networking event and one of my vendors came up to me and gave me a gift.  It was a box of chocolate covered Oreo cookies with the VirtuArte logo on some of the cookies and her company logo on others.  The gift was not wrapped and it had a pre-printed card.  I thanked her for the gift.  As she walked away I thought to myself this person doesn’t know me.  If she did she would have known I don’t eat desserts or candy very often.  I also figured I was one of many clients to whom she had given the same gift.

Here are a couple of tips for giving a business gift:

Don’t give a gift just to give a gift. If you are going to give a client, colleague or employee a gift, give them something that has meaning to them and will be appreciated.

Get to know the person. Building on point #1.  In my post dated 14 November 2017 I give a list of questions to answer.  If you take the time to answer these questions for each of your gift recipients you will know what kind of gift to give each person.

This is a “thank you” gift, not a promotional gift. Don’t put your logo on the gift.  When was the last time you received a birthday gift with the name of the person who gave it to you engraved on it.  If you must have something on the gift that ties it to your company do something subtle, such as using ribbon in your company colors.

Wrap to “Wow.” In last week’s blog post I wrote about creating a gift giving experience.  Part of that experience is in the presentation of the gift.  Spend time wrapping the gift.  People receive gifts with their eyes.

Hand write a card. The reason for giving a gift is to express your appreciation for the business relationship you have with that person.  A pre-printed card doesn’t have the same effect on the recipient.

What is going to happen to the box of chocolate covered Oreo cookies?  I’m not going to eat these cookies.  Paul, my significant other, doesn’t like chocolate so he won’t eat them either.  I ended up giving the box to Paul to take to the office and his colleagues ate the cookies.

I know this isn’t what my vendor had in mind when she thought about giving me a “thank you” gift for my business.  However the truth is, this is what happens to a lot of “business gifts.”  The item is often put in a drawer or closet, given away or thrown away.  If you are going to spend the money on a gift, give something that will be displayed or used by your client.  Every time they use or look at it you will be thought of.

Copyright : Wavebreak Media Ltd

Before you give your next “thank you” gift, take the time to think about what will be meaningful to your recipient.

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