5 Ways to Get—and Keep—New Customers

For businesses, promotions can be a powerful way to capture customers’ attention, create excitement and encourage more sales.

“Offering promotions gives a small business a lot of opportunities to attract new customers,” says Ashley Lucas, Business Product Manager at Associated Bank. “It’s also a great way to boost sales and get the word out about some of the products and services a small business has available.

Here are a few common promotion ideas from Clover® to help you get new customers and increase customer loyalty.

Goal: Get New Customers

New customer acquisition is one of the most important activities a business can undertake. Increasing the number of people who interact with your business grows your base of potential customers and makes it easier to hit your sales goals. Offering new customers deals on their first purchase can be a tactic well worth its weight for their potential lifetime value.

Consider these promotions to help you get new customers:

1. Friends and family deal:

Word-of-mouth promotion is a key influencer for many consumers. The opinions of trusted family members and friends are even more effective in persuading customers to purchase products. Consider a promotion that rewards your current customers, and even your staff, for bringing a friend through your doors. For Clover customers, apps like Digital Word of Mouth let customers share information with family and friends easily and can help automate word-of-mouth marketing.

2. Offer a loss leader:

If you have an in-demand item, or too much stock of a particular item, consider offering it at a deep discount—one per customer or new customers only—to get them in the door. “If you offer a deep discount on one product, often customers will buy another product,” says Lucas.

Retail stores do this all the time, and typically make up the difference in “lost” profit by cross-selling customers other impulse buys or getting their contact information to market to them later. The Clover Customer Relationship Management app lets businesses easily identify customers by segments, including new versus returning customers, if you want to be selective about who receives offers.

3. Partner with another company:

Find a business that complements yours and help promote each other. For example, hair salons and nail salons can be a good match, because clients for one business are likely to be interested in the services provided by the other. Cross-promotion can be as simple as leaving business cards or flyers in their waiting area, posting signs, or offering a deal where the customer gets a discount for purchasing from both businesses.

“You can also team together and put two of your products together to offer discounts at both businesses,” says Lucas. “Partnering with other businesses is also a great way to support your community and get to know other small business owners in your area.”

Goal: Increase Customer Loyalty

Even businesses with limited budgets can increase sales by promoting customer loyalty. Personalizing products and services is one way to generate loyal customers, especially with Generation K (those born between 1995 and 2002) and Millennials. Making shopping fun is another way to create loyal customers: consider that more than 50% of Generation K and Millennial consumers are loyal to products and services that they believe to be fun.

Consider these promotions to help you increase customer loyalty:

1. Hold an exclusive event:

Member-only or “customer appreciation” events are a great way to bring in your best customers without cutting prices. They incorporate both the idea of personalized, exclusive offers and add in the fun factor.

Restaurants and cafes could offer a candle-lit “date night” with good music; retail stores could offer seasonal product demonstrations along with coffee or other refreshments; food trucks might offer an exclusive, invitation-only meetup at an undisclosed location. Consider what your customers would appreciate and make it appealing.

2. Offer exclusive sale previews:

If you’re going to offer a sale, invite your loyal customers the day before and honor the sale prices. They’ll get first dibs on sale items and can help you spread the sale traffic over more than one day. Plus, they’ll feel like they’re a part of an exclusive group, which is what customer loyalty is all about.

Visit blog.clover.com or clover.com for more helpful tips for your business.