Here at the start of a new year I wanted to give you a quick tactic to rapidly increase your sales–a formal reactivation system.
Every business has customers and clients who used to buy but stopped for one reason or another. Many of these customers would buy again if you reached out and asked them to come back.
So here at the start of the year, formally plan in (I’d suggest on a quarterly or semi-annual basis) a “reactivation offer”.
For example, one dental practice we coach used this tactic to call through past patients who hadn’t been in for a cleaning and exam in over 9 months. They pulled the list each month, and during low times in the office, one of their team started making dials.
The script went something like, “Hi Mrs. Jones, this is Sarah with Cottage Dental, how are you today? Dr. Kim asked me to reach out to you because it’s been over 9 months since your last exam and cleaning. You may not be aware of this but a recent study published by the AMA lists low grade oral inflammation as one of the major contributors to heart disease. She wanted me to get you scheduled right away for your next exam and cleaning. Is this week or next week better for your schedule?”
They get an immediate 25% conversion rate, with another 15% asking for them to call back to schedule in the next few weeks. It’s one of the things that fueled their double digit growth.
My company, Maui Mastermind, used this tactic of a “reactivation offer” and generated more than $15,000 of immediate sales with one email, not to mention tens of thousands of additional sales because we reestablished relationships with these quality clients. Our past clients not only got a great offer, but those who said yes felt great about being invited back to actively participate in the Maui community of business owners.
Too many businesses don’t reach out to past clients because they’re afraid of what they might discover. I believe that not only will most of your past clients feel grateful that you reached out, but the ones who don’t will have valuable feedback you can use to improve your business.
Oh and remember, you can use this reactivation idea to reach out to former employees too. Another of our business coaching clients, Peregrine Mobile Bottling, used this technique to help them fill a key hire they needed to make. In their case, an employee (Mario) who left them over a year prior was the perfect candidate for a key position.
So start brainstorming on ways you can reach out to past customers (even employees) and make them a compelling offer to come back into the fold. Then assuming the offer works, formalize it so you repeat it 3, 6, or 12 months later to your then culled “reactivation list”.
For more ideas on growing your business, including a free tool kit with 21 in-depth video trainings to help you scale your business and get your life back, click here.