First things first, Happy New Year

I hope you had a wonderful festive period and are all hyped and ready for a phenomenal 2010!

One of the biggest challenges that I heard time and time again from business owners during 2009 was the difficulty of finding the time to work ON your business rather than in it…

When you feel like you’re running to catch up, it’s easier said than done to stop and plan what you’re going to do differently to get yourself out of the hole. I get it. I really do. And even if your business is doing well, finding that energy to raise the bar can be just as difficult.

The bottom line is that unless someone does something about it, things will stay the same. New Years resolutions will remain just that, resolutions. Lots of good intentions but very little results.

So with that in mind I came up with Business Breakthrough 2010.

It’s an event that’s been designed specifically for you.

• An event where you can create what you want to have happen in YOUR business in 2010.
• An event where you can get the inspiration and ideas to breakthrough everything that’s been before.
• And an event where you can get the support to get there.

And on that note… I’m incredibly excited to announce tickets are now available!

Get yours now: www.businessbreakthrough.org/priority

And not only that, as a valued client on my newsletter list, you can pick your priority ticket up at 50% off for only £45. Yes. You heard right Only £45.

See you there!

To a phenomenal 2010,
Rebecca

P.S. This is going to be THE conference of the year and I fully expect it to sell out. Make sure to secure your ticket today: www.businessbreakthrough.org/priority

Freshwinds Institute of Integrated Medicine Launch On-Line Training Courses

Freshwinds Institute of Integrated Medicine (FIIM) has just launched an innovative programme of online training and education courses in complementary therapies and integrated medicine. The Institute offers flexible CPD modules and short courses in integrated medicine for medical and complementary therapy professionals and will also be offering a Postgraduate Education in Integrated Medicine next year, all of which will be available to learners through an online learning system.

Dr Rhonda Lee, Director of FIIM, said, “We are very keen to build bridges between medical professionals and complementary therapy practitioners, so that they work in conjunction with one another providing the best outcome for the patient”. Education in Integrated Medicine is one area in which there is much room for improvement and FIIM has decided to “build a 21^st century solution”.

The Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) “Moodle” allows these courses to be offered globally and enables the students to complete the modules at any time to suit themselves and to fit in with their desired learning pace and lifestyles. The VLE supports learning through a varied spectrum of teaching mediums, ranging from simple text to videos and interactive content and is supported by a tutor. Students can submit assignments, take assessments and obtain results and feedback from the tutor online. In addition there are forums and virtual classrooms where students can discuss ideas and course material with each other.

The international availability and flexible nature of the courses makes them an extremely useful tool for maintaining CPD and for increasing the understanding among professionals of each other’s modalities of work so that they may develop closer working relationships for the benefit of patients.

Free taster modules are now available on line at http://learn.freshwinds.org.uk/. For more information please contact Dr Rhonda Lee by email on fiim@freshwinds.org.uk, by post to Freshwinds, Prospect Hall, 12 College Walk, Selly Oak, Birmingham, B29 6LE or by phone on 0121 415 6670.

Retailing is about more than just offering a bit of merchandise and expecting the consumer to jump at the chance to buy your product. No matter how much information you throw at them, the fact remains that most of the time they will take their time choosing which products are right for them – not just what’s cheapest. That said, when a special retailing season approaches like Christmas, all rules are off and your merchandise needs to reflect the best of the appropriate themes in order to sell, sell, sell.

Believe it or not, the most profitable salons make the majority of their retailing and gift voucher profit in the one to two months before Christmas.  To get a massive influx of income during the holiday season, my suggestion would be to watch the big salons and learn!  See what they do, how they do it and copy.  Note - Obviously don’t copy their promotions and adverts word-for-word…! What I mean is copy the techniques you see them using then customize them to work in your business.

For example, one of the strategies you’ll see them using that you can copy is selling gift items or impulse buys.  If your salon is currently only selling traditional beauty treatment products like facial creams or cleansers or shampoos & conditioners, why not move a little outside of that comfort zone and package some of those products with aromatherapy candles or relaxation CDs. Christmas shoppers love the thought of being relaxed and beautiful at the same time.  BUT that does not mean you can smash together two products without rhyme or reason. The products need to match in some way, complement each other, if you will.

On the flip side of that coin is if your business ONLY sells non-traditional beauty products, you could add in something more traditional to grab their attention that they’re not expecting. Yes, holistic therapy products, organic facial exfoliators and chakra recordings might be what your consumer has grown to expect if this is you, but what happens when you offer them MORE than they expect? A hike in how much you sell could be what happens because consumers love to be surprised and offered more than they bargained for especially during the Holiday season.  Maybe your customers would be interesting in home spa kits or luxury soaps?  Take a peak in the window of the big salons and see how they bundle things together and what’s in their gift baskets.

And on that note about gift baskets, it is important to visit the presentation of the products you choose during ANY holiday season. While the other 10 months of the year you can use the manufacturers bottle as your sole means of presentation, during the two months before Christmas that just doesn’t cut the mustard. Consumers want more, more, more AND they want you to show them which products are the best buy for their money. You see, items packaged for Christmas in a nice basket with a beautiful bow and a Christmas tag must be worth the money, right?

Convenience is what a salon is selling when they package products for a quick sale. If you know your facial cream works best with your facial cleanser, package the two together with a “complimentary” relaxation CD and voila, sales will skyrocket.

Now that doesn’t mean you have to discount the items to create something worth the value… How about buying in a few body sponges or fluffy towels and including them in the basket for free then selling the rest at full price?  Your client still gets great value for money, as the basket is a ready-made gift, packaged beautifully with a few freebies.  And you get full profit to maximize your Christmas income.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Rebecca Kepple specializes in helping business owners massively increase their client base and profits.  To get instant access to her free insider secrets report ‘The Top 7 Secrets for Massively Increasing Your Client Base’ visit: http://www.wellbeingbusinesssecrets.com/freebiebook.

© Copyright Rebecca Kepple 2009

Want to use this article on your site or in your newsletter?  This article may be reprinted provided no part thereof is edited in any way and this resource box is included.

When it comes to retailing your products, one of my top two favorite methods for instant results and top profits is Retail Displays. Today we will discuss how to best display your retail items and why yours could be under performing.

Most salons & clinics are familiar with retail displays. They are simply the shelving units or areas in your business that hold whatever products you sell.  This might be traditional hair or beauty retail items like moisturizers or shampoos or they might be holistic or healthcare items like aromatherapy oils, naturopathic remedies or even yoga CDs.  The question is not what to sell  - that’s simply whatever best compliments the treatments and services your salon or clinic offers - but instead HOW to sell it.

Are YOUR displays working for YOU? There is a very good chance that your retail displays are laid out in a manner that is not conducive to shopper and their shopping habits.

Did you know that the majority of customers turn to the right when they enter a store?

The placement of retail display racks is crucial to the sales you earn from those products. The retail displays located closest to whenever your clients spend most of their time while they are with you need to be your specialty items and not your core items that customers consistently buy.

Lets use a hairdressing example. The core items that you stock are the ones your clients consistently purchase the most of.  So that’s normally your most popular shampoos, conditioners & styling products.  No matter where you put these, so long as they are out in plain sight and you mention them to clients while they are there, these will sell.

But what about all the specialty items a hairdresser might sell?  Like home toners for brassy blondes?  Or grey coverage shampoos?  Or masks for the ultimate hair nourishment?  These are items that clients are unlikely to pick up unless they specifically came in looking for them.  But they are the items that they’ll be most intrigued by if they happened upon them.  So put them in their face.  Put them center front on your most prominent shelving unit.  Relegate your popular items to the bottom shelf.  Clients will still buy them but they’ll also browse your specialty items.

The result?  All your usual sales plus lots of odds & ends you wouldn’t normally sell.  This way, your clients must pass by every other display in order to find the product they are searching for. On the way, they may just pick up a few of those diversified products we talked about before.

Taking a closer look at impulse buys, there are several ways to retail those smaller cost items you sell. This does not mean the gross margin is not huge, just that the cost to the customer is not large enough to make them FEEL the difference on their bill even when you’re selling the items at full price.

For instance, a beauty salon may choose to market fingernail polish next to the till. These polishes could have a markup of 50%, which means a fantastic profit for the salon, but the total cost may only be a few dollars or pounds to the consumer. The impulse to the client when they see the latest gorgeous nail colours is to add on the fingernail polish, especially after a great manicure or pedicure, without even thinking about the price because they know it’s just a nail polish and will be cheap. But for you, it’s a 50% profit!

Presentation is another huge factor in the profitability of a retail display. If the customer sees dust and dirt, they will instantly believe these products have been left sitting for a long period of time which means NO ONE wants to buy them. Lighting is also important here. Lighting should be natural and bright enough to showcase the products on the retail display, as well as the cleanliness of the shelves.

Once the retail displays are in the right location, lighted well and sparkling clean, tell the customer more about why they NEED the product. Utilizing small product cards to explain the benefits of the products is a great way to keep the customer in the shop longer. The information card needs to offer meaty information, not a bunch of fluff that the consumer will toss out of their mind in an instant.

So, mission for this week (should you chose to accept it!) is to go into wherever your retail area is and look at it with new eyes.  How is it laid out?  Are the right products in the right places?  Do you have little information cards out?  Is it all clean? How is the lighting?  Putting some thought into your retail displays can vastly alter the sales you get.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Rebecca Kepple specializes in helping business owners massively increase their client base and profits. To get instant access to her free insider secrets report ‘The Top 7 Secrets for Massively Increasing Your Client Base’ visit: http://www.wellbeingbusinesssecrets.com/freebiebook.

© Copyright Rebecca Kepple 2009

Want to use this article on your site or in your newsletter? This article may be reprinted provided no part thereof is edited in any way and this resource box is included.

It’s been a really busy and exciting few weeks since we got back from Honeymoon. Not only have I spent lots of time planning all kinds of new ideas and benefits for all our VIP members, but I’ve also discovered a new favourite hobby to fill my spare time… quilting!

If you’ve been following the new series “Kirsty’s Homemade Home” on Channel 4, you’ll have seen her trying all kinds of new crafts. The other week she gave quilting a go and it really intrigued me so suddenly I’ve found myself making a very cute white and duck-egg blue quilt for our bedroom. I’m not convinced I should give up my day job (!) but its a fun way to fill an evening

Hope you’re having a fabulous week. If you’ve discovered any new ideas for building your business (or decorating your home!) do make a comment below so everyone else can benefit too…

Best wishes,

Rebecca

Giving something away for free on your website, is a fantastic way of attracting potential new clients.  Even better is if you require them to give you their contact details in order to get the free thing.  Then you can keep in touch, build a relationship with them and convert them into a long-term, paying client!

You can give anything away, from a free consultation to a free appointment, but the one I suggest is a ‘free report/e-book’ that the potential can just download…

Firstly unlike lots of other things you could use as a carrot to attract them, a report or e-book doesn’t cost you anything at all.  Plus if they are able to enter their name & email onto your site, and then immediately download the report/book, you don’t have to do anything - its all automated.

What type of report or e-book you offer depends on what type of services and treatments you offer.  Something like the following would work really well:
-    If you deal with relieving stress ‘7 top tips for reducing stress’
-    If you do beauty treatments ‘Learn how to look 10 years younger’

You get the idea.

So how does it work?

• You write a free report (or just create one by collating information you’ve already got on the benefits of your services!)
• Advertise the fact you are giving this away for free
• Potential clients go to your site & sign up
• They get the report/book online immediately and automatically
• They get added to your database
• You then you keep in touch via your newsletter and build a relationship with them!

If you don’t have a website or don’t know how to create a box for people to enter their name and email into, there is another way of doing this.  You could just have your email address on your marketing and tell them to email you with ‘free report’ in the subject line.  Then you can email them back the report & add them to your database.

Doing it this way isn’t ideal because you’ll end up spending hours email people, but at least it gives you a way to get started, and build your client list!  Then when you’ve got a larger client list and more income, you could just pay someone to automate the process for you

Benefits of a free e-report or e-book;

• Free.  Doesn’t cost you anything except your time to write the report
• Can be completely automated.  You just send out the marketing advertising it and people will flock to your site to sign up.
• Cause its free, you’ll get lots more sign ups
• You’ll get people from all over the country (or even globe) sign up.  You never know when they might be in the area and want an appointment.  Or what friends they might end up forwarding the emails you send them to.  Or whether they might even mail/internet order your products from you cause you’ve taken the time to build that relationship with them and their local practitioner, therapist, stylist hasn’t.
• Plus since everyone who signs up is being added to your database, your email newsletters will slowly work on converting the prospect to a client so you’ll get a future drip feed of new clients from it.

You may have already thought of this but there is one drawback I must mention… Unlike some other promotion ideas, you aren’t physically seeing the person so you don’t have that critical face-to-face time to convert them to a client.

However this is tempered by the fact that it doesn’t cost you anything in time and your email newsletters will slowly work on converting the prospect to a client so you’ll get a future drip feed of new clients from it!

So what are you waiting for?  Give it a shot and see if it helps you build your client list.  And if you’ve got any ideas that work for you, make a comment below to share them with others!

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Rebecca Kepple specializes in helping business owners massively increase their client base and profits.  To get instant access to her free insider secrets report ‘The Top 7 Secrets for Massively Increasing Your Client Base’ visit: http://www.wellbeingbusinesssecrets.com/freebiebook.

© Copyright Rebecca Kepple 2009

Want to use this article on your site or in your newsletter?  This article may be reprinted provided no part thereof is edited in any way and this resource box is included.

The Internet and websites really are the hot topics of the moment.  But remember that all of it just boils down to different ideas and ways of promoting yourself and your business.  Which means lots of those ideas for promoting yourself online, will also work in-store or in-salon.

Don’t have a website?  Flummoxed by internet-guru-gobbledegook?

Never fear.  Just take whatever the online marketing idea is and instead of using it on your website, adapt it to use on paper in your salon, clinic, spa or practice.

For example, one of THE most popular ideas for getting new clients from your website is the one we discussed in our most recent VIP class… a free report.  The idea is you create a written report about something interesting your clients would be interested in knowing about then give it away on your website and in exchange get lots of new clients.

The way it works is you require visitors to your site to input their email & name to get access to your free report.  Then once they’ve entered their details they get an email, which tells them the link to download the free report.  Their name & email immediately and automatically goes on your database list for next email newsletter.  You carry on sending out your email newsletters as you usually would with lots more names on your database list.  And ultimately by doing this, you build a relationship with all these new people, then eventually they book in and become a loyal, long term clients!

So how do you use this free report idea offline?  How do you use it over the counter in your business?

Well, sticking with the free report example, you can print it out and physically give it away to clients or new enquiries when they come in.

You can either just print it out on your home computer, or you could pop down the local photocopy store.  You can then just staple the top right corner and hey presto, you’ve got yourself a free report to give away.

By the way, to make it really have the wow impact, you can spiral bind them.  Getting this done in bulk at the photocopy store can cost a bit but buying a spiral binding machine yourself is fairly inexpensive and actually doing the binding is really quick & easy once you get the hang of it!

Then once you’ve got yourself a whole bunch of your reports printed out and bound/stapled together, all that remains is to tell people about it.  You could give one away with every appointment booked?  Or perhaps as a gift with purchase with every product bought?  Or even non-strings-attached simply in return for them filling in a customer survey?

The sky is the limit.  It’s totally up to you how you promote it and how you give it away.  The point is that you can use one of the most popular ways of getting new clients online even if you don’t have a website!

Converting online marketing methods to work for you in your salon, spa, clinic or practice works especially well if a section of your market is people who don’t really use computers.  The vast majority of people have access to a computer now days but there are some specific markets that are unlikely to… like those in rest homes, housewives who haven’t gone back to work, those in very small villages without internet access etc.  If this is a section of your clientele, you’ll know!  Just talk to them and find out.

But do be careful not to assume… my Grandma is well into her 80s, lives in a rest home and doesn’t just send the odd email and potter about, she has actually computerised the entire rest home library and is now properly into texting and all sorts of other stuff you might otherwise think only the young generations do.

So have a nosey at what the successful websites are doing.  Could you adapt their ideas to work on your website?  And could you even adapt the ideas to work in store?

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Rebecca Kepple specializes in helping business owners massively increase their client base and profits.  To get instant access to her free insider secrets report ‘The Top 7 Secrets for Massively Increasing Your Client Base’ visit: http://www.wellbeingbusinesssecrets.com/freebiebook.

© Copyright Rebecca Kepple 2009

Want to use this article on your site or in your newsletter?  This article may be reprinted provided no part thereof is edited in any way and this resource box is included.

While doing marketing for all the big events is an absolute must, to REALLY grow your business, you need to do more than just a few promotions on Christmas or on Valentine’s Day. This is where smart marketing can make the difference between struggling to keep old clients and constantly attracting people in your salon, spa or clinic.

Running regular promotions or highlighting a new treatment, product or service each month is an excellent start for keeping a fresh flow of clients all year long, by establishing special promotions and discounts according to current events.

Plus on top of that, you’ve got all the other events throughout the year.  In fact, there is at least one major holiday most months of the year.  Very soon its Mother’s Day.  Then there’s Fathers Day.  What about Grandparents Day, Pancake Day and National Secretary Day…

Making every day special is definitely a creative marketing approach, no doubt about it. Let’s face it: you might have the power to attract new customers each and every day. The question is: are you ready?

For example,

• During either local or national election periods, nail salons or manicurists can make related nail designs, with stars and stripes or the union jack.
• Students’ spring break could be another great opportunity to promote anything new or fresh (spring = fresh start).
• Another idea would be have a special happy hour, maybe from 6 pm to 7 pm, when people could have a relaxing (insert whatever treatment you like here!) after long working hours.

Setting clear marketing goals and objectives with concrete time periods is the best way to start off a business on a positive note. This could be a determining factor is predicting sales, forecasting the cash flow and for keeping effective track of the business progress.

Your marketing strategies should focus on keeping the activity running during the busy season and the slow season in equal proportions. It is not enough to use random specials and promotions without conducting any research or setting clear marketing goals. This usually leads to high investments in advertising and marketing materials and poor return of investment. Imagine if you knew in November what promotions you’ll be doing in February – it puts you a mile ahead of your competitors that don’t have a clue. You’ll not only be ready for the holidays, but also for the slow period, with a special promotion on winter services and products.

Yes the year has already started, but its never too late.  Create yourself a full annual calendar of attractive monthly promotions, focusing on the client and community as well. You can target a major theme or a new group of prospect customers every month, and promote it once or more times a month. Remember to keep everyone involved and keep close to your clientele. This way, every day will be special for your business and clients alike!

So what about you?  What are you doing to take advantage of current affairs and holiday dates to grow your business?  Make a comment and share your ideas below…!

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Rebecca Kepple specializes in helping business owners massively increase their client base and profits.  To get instant access to her free insider secrets report ‘The Top 7 Secrets for Massively Increasing Your Client Base’ visit: http://www.wellbeingbusinesssecrets.com/freebiebook.

© Copyright Rebecca Kepple 2009

Want to use this article on your site or in your newsletter?  This article may be reprinted provided no part thereof is edited in any way and this resource box is included.

Everyone is taking about the economical crisis that has shaken from the ground many businesses, and beauty salons, spa’s or hair salons were among the first to be affected. You may wonder why? In such times, people tend to focus on the main necessities, and some clients are ready to give up taking care of their skin or hair for paying their house mortgage. The true dilemma is: how do we gain them back, considering the fact that we as business owners are also going through tough financial times?

Advertising a hair salon, clinic or spa is essential, just as working with top professionals or having the best prices. Your allocated marketing budget should ideally be at least 10% from your total budget.  And it should on both maintaining loyal customers and attracting new ones on a regular basis. Now if you think you don’t need to spend money to advertise your salon, spa or clinic, you’re completely wrong. It doesn’t matter the fact that you have the best people working in the salon, or the products you use, it’s all about letting people know what you can offer.

Especially if you are new in the business, setting the budget for advertising your hair salon, health business or beauty clinic, can be quite difficult. It’s hard to decide how much money will be used for the equipment, rent, retail products, professional products and many business owners leave the marketing plan at last.

However, your marketing plan is one of the most decisive factor in your future business success, one that cannot be ignored. This is why I thought that a basic guide on how to spend wisely on marketing your salon, spa or clinic would be useful for many of you.

1.    Make a list with your marketing goals and the existing budget. For example, let’s say your first goals would be to introduce your new hair salon to the local community. For small budgets, the most convenient method to advertise the new hair salon could include a newspaper advertisement or flyers that you can make at home.

2.    Decide on a balanced approach to your marketing and remember to keep track of the return of investment (ROI). Small budgets don’t allow mistakes, so make sure you analyze everything before spending. Choose the best media to advertise your business, keeping the message fresh, attractive and on-target.

3.    Be creative! Even if you don’t have a allocate salon budget, this doesn’t mean you can’t be creative in order to obtain the same impact. Traditional, low-cost ads can always become hot stuff is you manage to keep them live and fresh, think about the features that make you salon unique on the market. Feature something NEW or FREE in the marketing material (whether we are talking about a newspaper ad, flyer or brochure) and you can get the attention of prospect clients.

4.    Free stuff - Established hair & beauty salons or clinics used to attract customers with gifts or services. However, when you have a low budget and you don’t want to make any compromises regarding the quality of the gifts, is there any solution? Of course, it is: free consultations won’t cost you a penny or free gifts with the purchase of in-house products or services just require a small investment. The gifts don’t have to be expensive; they just have to reflect the perceived value to the customer.

5.    Internet advertising is in the trends and costs ten times less than traditional advertising media! The Internet is still the best way to advertise a salon with a small marketing budget. While generally you get what you pay for, something is better than nothing - a budget website can be created for about $100, and you can write your own email newsletter. It is a great way to promote your products, services and special offers without spending a fortune.

For many business owners, setting a marketing budget can be a true challenge. However a good plan and wise choices can help you establish a solid position on the market and underline your unique vision without spending loads of money.

So what are your experiences with marketing budgets?  Post a comment below and share your top tips!

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Rebecca Kepple specializes in helping business owners massively increase their client base and profits.  To get instant access to her free insider secrets report ‘The Top 7 Secrets for Massively Increasing Your Client Base’ visit: http://www.wellbeingbusinesssecrets.com/freebiebook.

© Copyright Rebecca Kepple 2009

Want to use this article on your site or in your newsletter?  This article may be reprinted provided no part thereof is edited in any way and this resource box is included.

1. Sending out newsletters is one of THE best ways of building relationships with clients.  Email is quickest and cheapest so it’s the one I personally prefer most of the time.  That said, email is a funny thing – you need to make sure your email newsletters aren’t too heavily sales based.  Make sure to include lots of free tips and tricks for clients (as well as your latest offers) so that they look forward to them arriving and open them with anticipation of picking up some new bit of info.
2. Your weekly newsletters are doing lots of your work for you.  They are relationship building between you and your clients.  If you’re sending them via email, try to make sure to send them each and every week.  Even if you’ve run out of time, and it’s just a short tip for the week and nothing else, never skip a week if at all possible.  Keep that relationship up and over time you’ll find more and more of them book in regularly.
3. Are you adding all your new clients to your email list?  Every single new client or enquiry should be added onto your list.  That way you’ll get the best coverage and the most responses.
4. Statistics show that most people only read about one in every 4 emails they receive properly.  So if you are sending them a weekly newsletter, they are probably only reading one of them fully once a month.  This doesn’t mean you should drop your frequency down to once a month though!  If you do this, that means they would only be reading one email from you once every 4 months… which really is not very often!  So keep it at once a week and know that you’re getting at least one quality bit of contact with your clients per month.
5. There’s been lots of research and most statistics show that it takes between 5 and 7 contacts with a new client before they want to book or buy.  So if you add a new client on your mailing list, it might be several weeks before they then book in to see you.  But remember if you don’t put them on your mailing list, you won’t have any contact with them and they may never book.  So add all new clients on asap.
6. Getting some clients unsubscribe from your newsletter?  Not a problem.  It’s very common with email marketing that clients will unsubscribe when they are too busy to read your emails.  HOWEVER, it’s also very common for clients to wish to re-subscribe later when they’ve got more time or energy to devote to whatever it is you are offering them.  So always be polite and never take an unsubscription personally.  If you’re highly professional and always welcoming they may well be back in the future.
7. If someone asks to unsubscribe from your newsletter but you can’t see their email address on your list, ask them if they have an alias or another email address.  Many people now days have 3 or 4 different email accounts and if they’ve subscribed to your newsletter under a different email address, you’ll need to know what that is to remove it.
8. Are your friends and family on your mailing list?  Do make sure to add them if they aren’t.  They’ll be your best promoters and your worst critics.  Which means if there’s ever anything wrong, they’ll be the ones to let you know asap so you can fix it.  And when its fantastic, they’ll forward it on to their friends straight away.
9. Do encourage your clients to forward your e-newsletters on to their friends.  The more people you have finding out about you and your services, the quicker and better your business will grow.
10. A great idea is to have a feature in your email newsletter about once every 4-6 weeks on referrals.  Offer clients a voucher or free gift for referring a friend.  If you don’t ask, you don’t get.  So ask for referrals and you may well be pleasantly surprised with the results.
11. Bonus tip - Competitions are another brilliant way to get referrals.  People love to tell their friends about great prizes they might win.  So once every 3-4 months have a big competition.  Give away a gift basket or package and feature it in all your newsletters and marketing materials.  Then actively encourage clients to forward on your newsletters to friends so they can enter too.  How?  Just ask.  EG “we are having an amazing competition this month.  See the details below.  Do make sure to forward this email onto all your friends, colleagues and loved ones so they can be in to win as well!”

So what are your tips?  Post a comment below and share with everyone else what your favourite strategies are for staying in touch with your clients…!