Permission Marketing

Selling a product or service is a prime objective for many websites. If selling is your thing, this topic is for you.

There are other valid objectives: directories and resources, promote enthusiasms, company advertising, customer support, part of the product, prestige advertising.

>> more on Objectives

But for selling we should take this page seriously. In order to capture new prospects, and turn them into customers and then into a repeat customers requires you to do more than just advertise.

A response form arrives. You now have permission to respond. You must immediately send a reply with the gift and can ask them a couple more things, perhaps phone number and line of business, and you can take the opportunity to teach them more about the products on offer, referencing the specific pages on the website. Offer them another gift if they will please reply.

The third Email from them gives more permission, and triggers the gift appropriate to their line of business. You can tell them more about the product as applied to their specific line of business. You could give them the option of phoning you with an 0800 number. This could lead to having a consultant/salesman come and visit.

And then keep in touch; building the relationship, telling them more each time and highlighting new or improved products.

Softly softly catchee monkey. Establish a dialogue with a Prospect. Sell to a Customer. Make a Friend and establish a long term Relationship to sell associated products every month from now on.

It may well be that you do not handle a full range of goodies that the customer may want. So a network of affiliates would be useful, so you can pass orders to a friendly, quality, organisation to deliver whatever it is that the customer wants.

A lot of work. Maybe some of it can be automated. But to start up it has to be manual from pre-written Email responses. Someone ought to be doing this for your company.

• Your Emails must be anticipated; the customer looks forward to hearing from you.
• They must be personal; messages directly related to the individual.
• It must be relevant; the marketing pitch is something in which the customer is interested.

• must be overt, obvious, prompt, and clearly delivered
• information
• entertainment
• free gifts
• money
• fine tuned for each individual prospect

Examples: Airmiles, discounts, free software, baseball cap, sweatshirt, spring flower bulbs, bottle of wine, chocolates.

1. Intravenous
   The ultimate where the customer trusts you completely - like a doctor or a hospital - and covers Just In Time deliveries to factories and supermarkets, no day to day decisions are necessary, just deliver perfect quality so I never run out.
   Also subscriptions to magazines and record clubs, pay once a year in advance and get a monthly delivery.
   Or discount clubs where you pay in advance for the privilege, and then get discounts whenever you buy. Like extended warranties on domestic appliances.
   Buying peace of mind.

2. Loyalty Cards
   Build up points, or green stamps, or airmiles every time you buy
   Lottery entry, maybe with huge prizes.
   Self Liquidating Offers, send £3 to cover postage and packing. (but in fact this covers the total cost).
   Coupons off your next purchase.
   Note that straight discount offers are crude and have problems; the customer may have been willing to pay the full price for quality and service, but if he hears of someone else getting a discount and he hasn't, he will be very upset.

3. Personal Relationships
   Excellent. The customer trusts you as a person. Dentists, gardeners, plumbers and all such trades and professions. Depend on the particular person, and not saleable as a business.

4. Brand Trust
   Becoming less relevant while people increasingly buy on price, availability, quality, and service. But it worked for a long time and companies like Guinness depend on it.

5. Situation
   The shopping experience. May I help you? Will you have chips with that Sir?

6. Spam
   Advertising by junk mail, Email, cold calls at the door, phone calls while you are having dinner. Comes lowest in the set, and may be counter-productive. At least people have learned to live with newspaper and TV advertising, and appreciate it as the price you have to pay to see the media free or at low cost.

What we are after is to get an increasing share of the total spending of each individual customer. A growing share of market will follow from continuing business with many individuals.

When you receive an Email message or response form then it must be acknowledged immediately, and if this is an auto-response then there must be a human response the same day or sooner. Many websites fail on this and they probably, and well deserve to, lose the business.

Best is a product that can be delivered over the Internet. It costs nothing to duplicate, and nothing to deliver, and there is not much lost except for your reputation if it screws up.

Service products require time, and no one has any time. And there is a lot of spinning of wheels before you can ask the customer to pay. You may have to make a house call, and an earlier date is better than one next month. In this case the immediate objective is to get the appointment. Then it is down to you, eyeball to eyeball, to clinch the sale.

Solid products have to be delivered. If goods are to be delivered then the target is 48 hours. If you promise 'within 28 days' again the customer may well go to a rival Internet website, or walk down to the shops. Instant-fulfillment means that you will have to sort out your supply chain. What is the fastest way to get the product to the customer. Maybe the manufacturer or wholesaler, way up the supply chain should dispatch the goods direct. In which case the manufacturer or wholesaler must be ready to handle orders sent to them electronically. A team, sharing costs, risks, and profits, and serving the customer.

I have a list of about 70 delivery companies you can use, some in the UK, some worldwide. Best is your own van if you can, but failing that choose one that can leave the parcel in a convenient location if the customer is not in to receive it. One organisation is able to divert to the local sub-postoffice and this sounds good from all points of view.

And send progress Emails all the time, and then a follow-up asking whether he was satisfied; and selling follow-up products.