A Special Gift to Our Members
Jody Shilan
With the holidays coming up quickly, once again it's time to start thinking about how to thank your clients for their patronage this year. No matter what size your company is this is always a stressful, expensive and time consuming task. Each year you ask yourself the same questions: Do I give all of my clients the same gift? Do maintenance customers get one thing and design/build customers something else? What will those gifts be? How can I truly find something that looks expensive but isn't? Should I give gifts based on the amount of money they spent this year? What if they spent a lot last year but very little this year? Do I demote their gift, essentially telling them that they are only as good as their last project? What if I have a new client who spent a lot this year yet another who spent just as much but has done it over time? Should I have my employees deliver the gifts which costs me a small fortune or have them shipped, which will cost me a small fortune? Maybe I can just send a card signed by everyone at our office - that will be nice? Calendars are great gifts aren't they? Maybe company hats, mugs or pens? Ba-Humbug! What will I do? What if I told you that I have the perfect gift for every client? It doesn't matter if they spent $1000 or $100,000. If they are a new client or someone that has been with you for years. Maintenance or design/build. Yankees or Red Sox. It's something they will enjoy all year long, delivery is free and it includes a personal thank you card. But wait, there's much, much more. (Sorry, I had to say it.) Now what if I told you that secretly this gift is a direct marketing piece too? Something that will entice your clients each month to start thinking about their next design/build project. But instead of looking through the yellow pages (as if anyone even does that anymore) they are just going to call you for their next installation and forgo the whole 3 contractor bid thing. Jody, I can't take it anymore - please tell me what is this great gift idea? OK, here you go. It is a one year gift subscription to Better Homes and Gardens magazine. That's right! Now just hold on there and think about this for a minute. For only $11 (less than 1 dollar an issue) your client will receive a one year (12 month) subscription to one of the most popular magazines in the country that profiles landscape installation projects. Each month they will be reminded of your holiday gift as they flip through the pages and get new ideas about how to beautify their home and property. When they finally are ready to do something outside, guess who they are going to call? That's right, you! Another great business benefit is that since it is more than just a gift expense, you can use some of your advertising budget to cover the cost of it. Also, every year you can just renew their subscription and not go through this tortuous exercise each winter. So click Better Homes and Gardens to go to the website and wrap up your gift giving experience today.
You don't even have to pay until next year - it's brilliant!
| 
About this Site
