Companies Focus on New Customer Acquisition and Then Encourage Customers to Leave in Two Years My family just completed our biennial cell phone switch. We’ve been doing this like clockwork for two decades. We pick the company that offers the best price and switch to that one. Two years later our rates jump, and no […]
A couple of years ago my preferred office supply store embarked on a creative strategy to sell me more stuff. And it worked—for a while. They started emailing me coupons that offered nice discounts—if I spent about 50% more than what had been my typical historical purchase. Not wanting to pass up a good deal, […]
Use Opt-in Email Marketing With Care Years ago, two companies that I “opted in” to receive messages did it wrong—so I voted with the cancel link and opted out. I had happily bought from both and eagerly accepted their requests to opt-in to receive promotional emails. I don’t know how often they were sending messages, […]
Ten years ago, I have signed up for the “rewards” program at my favorite office supply store. In addition to mailing me coupons and emailing me special offers (which is how I bought a paper shredder for $10), they also keep track of my purchases, which allows me to earn quarterly discounts. Conceptually, this is […]
I was a loyal customer of a national office supply chain (they’ll remain nameless to protect their otherwise good image). I was a preferred customer, which entitles me to special discounts and occasional rewards (on those rare quarters when I buy “enough” product.) They also send me an email, seemingly weekly, of sales and special […]
Several years ago, as I was mowing my lawn, a stranger pulled into my driveway. He approached with the determined look of a salesman. With no way to make myself scarce, I waited as he approached. He was taking a survey. Suspicious that it was really a guise for a sales pitch, I hesitated, contemplating […]
My website FindaCallCenter.com features a directory of call centers. All the information listed has been submitted by the businesses themselves. To ensure the information is current and accurate, I periodically email each call center, asking them to review and confirm their information. The lack of response—and the slowness of response—to my recent verification effort was […]
Several years ago, I set up a Website for a local nonprofit organization that I helped. I registered three domain names for it: the main one, with two alternatives. The first ended with .org (as did one of the alternates). I also registered the .com version of their main domain name in case someone typed […]
What Is Your First Thought? Being the slightly cynical person that I am, my initial reaction is that someone is trying to dupe me with a marketing tactic. I suspect that nothing substantive has been changed, but lacking anything substantial to proclaim, they fall back on trumpeting that their product is “new and improved.” It […]
Don’t Overlook or Dismiss This Proven and Stable Channel Email marketing is a cost-effective and straightforward way to reach out to touch prospects. But just because it’s cheap and easy doesn’t mean it’s always the best idea. When done wrong, email marketing can alienate the audience you’re trying to cultivate. Here are five tips for […]