Cultivating Hot Leads, Increasing
Business and New Foot Traffic

My father ran the retail side of his business with a few simple principles in mind everyday.

1. Make every customer that walks through the door happy
2. Never assume what a customer can or can not afford
3. Customers puts food on his family’s table
4. Keep the business as visible as possible

This made for great word of mouth business that expanded his customer base over years of service. Jeff Believes greatly in networking. He was and still is an active Rotarian. He was very active with the local Boys and Girls Club, and he coached a lot of my little league teams. People use to call him “The Mayor of Shelton.”

One of the extremely successful portion of his business was his consumables business. (Cleaning products, deoderizers, vacuum bags, filters,ETC) He knew the importance of getting customers “hooked” on his consumable products. He made sure as many people as possible were cleaning their carpets with DUO powder by SEBO. He also made sure as many customers as possible were cleaning their home with one cleaning product or another of Fred’s Fine Cleaning Center.

He knew that every customer that got hooked on these consumables would be back in his store two to six times a year! And every time they came in was another chance, he had to sell them a vacuum, appliance or grill. With that in mind, every customer that bought a stainless-steel kitchen appliance from us got a free Fred’s Fine Cleaning Center Stainless Steel Polish. Chances are they love the polish and wanted to try other Fred’s products. Every customer that purchased a SEBO vacuum received two free DUO machine rentals per year for the life of the machine. They just had to buy DUO powder for the cleaning.

Over the past few years, some of our independent retailers have noted a decline in foot traffic. They say they have done all the right things and do not understand it. That is rough but, it is not time to focus on who has strayed. It’s time to revitalize the flock. It is time to invest in your business and in new potential customers!

OK… Imagine

A young couple goes to a shelter to rescue an animal. The rescue then hands them a 5x7 card that says, “Obtain your free Pet stain removal package from our friends over at (Enter your store’s name here)” That young couple never heard of your store but don’t want to miss out on their gift, so they drive to your store.

Question: How much is it worth to you to have a young, new, pet owning family walk through your doors for the first time? How likely do they need a good pet vacuum?

A lady just finished having her home remodeled. The flooring store thanks her for her flooring purchase with a coupon for a free “floor cleaning starter kit only valid at (Enter your store’s name here)” Once again she never heard of your store but still goes to get her gift.

Question: How much is it worth to you to have a someone walk through your doors who just ripped out their carpet and got new hard floors put into their home? How likely do they need a different vacuum than the one they were using?

Say they don’t purchase a new vacuum from you when they come in for their gift. How likely is it that they will be back again for more product? How much do you believe in the consumables you sell? What is your success rate off of “Be backs”?

How It Works

Print out 5x7 flyers and bring them to local business you wish to "partner" with such as remodel designers, flooring stores, appliance stores, animal shelters, animal rescues and pet stores. Ask them to hand out these 5x7s to applicable customers. Their business looks generous because they are helping their customer receive a free gift and your business betters by gaining a new prospective customer / hot lead. A true win, win, win!

(I especially like the spot removal kit and "partnering" with local shelters and rescues. You'd technically be donating those products to customers of foundations. That could be a good tax right off. Worth looking into what your CPA says!)

The Questions To Ask Yourself

• What is your cost of new customer acquisition?
• What is the hardest part of getting a customer to try an unheard of product for the first time?
• Will customers be back for the consumables you represent after they run out?
• Are the products you sell protected and exclusive?
• Are new customers finding your store at a rate you're happy with?
• Can your store grow with the customer base you've already cultivated?
• Will your store benefit from cross marketing different products, brands and services?

Here Are Some Example 5x7