A mass-marketing approach designed to increase a client base by advertising products to the greatest number of people has been a longtime tradition for advertisers. We have all been the recipient of this mass marketing approach. All we have to do is look to our mailbox to find advertisers soliciting us but who really do not know us from Adam or Eve. We seem to be inundated with mass marketing flyers, letters, postcards, emails, and the ubiquitous phone calls.Quite often, these marketing tactics are quickly discarded in the circular file and ignored. This type of advertising is often called the shotgun approach to marketing. You load the shotgun and hope that some of the shot lands on a prospective client. Hoping and wishing for new clients with this approach seems costly, time consuming, and ineffective.
Sharon Lagina
For many small businesses who try to keep the bottom line in sight, a more concentrated approach to marketing seems to fit the bill. This concentrated approach called one-to-one marketing (hitting the target) is an individualized marketing method that seeks to provide the customer with a tailored fit to the product as opposed to the product fitting all clients. The end result for the business owner is reducing costs by retaining the customer and enhancing customer loyalty through a personal touch.
Several factors suggest that personalized communications and product customization will continue to expand as more and more companies understand why and how their customers make and execute purchase decisions. In today’s market, businesses must stand out from the crowd.
One-to-one marketers look for opportunities to communicate with each individual customer.
Anya Hindmarch, one of Britain’s leading handbag and accessory designers, invites her customers to participate in the creation of their handbags by providing a personal photograph that she then expertly transposes onto one of her beautifully designed bags (Arussy).
I would like to offer you this concept in the form of a personal communication for you and your business. I invite you to send me a personal photograph that I can then use to create a customized greeting card for your business. You may want to send a picture of your storefront, your latest product, or even of yourself. The sky is the limit here to personalizing your card. You may participate in the design process to create a unique, one-of-a kind, customer relationship management tool.Let’s start the one-to-one marketing approach with a customized card that speaks to each client.
- Here is the opportunity to communicate with each individual customer in a timely, personal, and effective approach
Email your photographs to [email protected]. Please enclose your contact information.
About the author:
Sharon Lagina comes equipped for the business world with a Bachelors degree and Masters degree in education. She is a certified ISO QS 9000 quality auditor. With those experiences, Sharon is focusing on appreciation marketing. Sharon was the 2010 Ambassador of the year for the Dearborn Chamber of Commerce, co-founder of Dearborn Chamber Connect and a manager for SendOutCards. You can contact Sharon by email: [email protected] or by phone: (734) 676-2614