I'm talking about today's business climate. Relationships... people like to work with people they like.
It’s a fast paced world these days, isn’t it? We have all sorts of sites like MySpace, FaceBook, and my personal favorite LinkedIn , plus about a zillion other ways to stay connected.
But what about those special people in your life? Your friends, family and ESPECIALLY your top clients or customers? Are they only worthy of an occasional email to let them know you are thinking of them?
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not knocking email, in fact I don’t know what I’d do without it! It’s a lifeline these days. What I’m talking about is Birthdays, Holidays and Just Thinking of You occasions. There are times when sending an email just isn’t enough! It's times like this when sending a real card through "snail mail" can make all the difference in the world.
But, if you are anything like me you have wonderful intentions… however, finding the time to browse through your local card store just doesn’t fit between conference calls, client visits, picking the kids up from soccer practice and taking the dog to the vet. Actually, my biggest hang up is having enough stamps!
So, a couple of years ago I looked into a service who sends real greeting cards for you. The lady would come to your office, you choose a few cards from her sample book, write a few "generic sentiments", provide her with your contact list and she would hand write the cards for you and mail them. Ok, it sounded alright.. at first. But what happens when you want to change your message to someone (write something personal), or someone moves, or you have new contacts.... (the list can go on and on) what do you do? You call the lady and she charges you to come back and make changes.
I just about laughed when they told me. I thought that there MUST be a way to control your own online database, have an email reminder system, choose from a bunch of cards, create your own cards, have your own handwriting font and signature, and still not have to actually print a card and mail it yourself. Right? Surely somebody has thought of this?!? And, if they have I want to work for them!
That's when I met Kody...
One of my favorite reminders is a quote from Kody Bateman, the founder of SendOutCards, "Appreciation wins out over self-promotion". Kody is a guy who has chosen to put his heart into a thriving online greeting card business. His company motto is "Changing lives... one card at a time."
Because relationship marketing is so important to me, I did some extensive research into SendOutCards and can wholeheartedly endorse the company as a fantastic way to stay connected with the important people in your life.
As my last two cents on the subject, I'll share one of my favorite examples of using real greeting cards as a Relationship Marketing Tool: It would be nice to send a greeting card to Mary Lou congratulating her on a recent promotion / accomplishment / or whatever. But who has the time? Then again, when Mary Lou gets a Congratulations card from your biggest competitor (and she tapes the card to the wall of her office cube) who is she going to think of when she needs financial advice / insurance / a new house / mortgage / or a spa day? Did you send an email that got lost in cyberspace or trapped in her spam folder? Who’s card is that taped to her wall?
Please contact me directly to learn more about the company, using SOC as part of your marketing program or to discuss building your own greeting card business.
It's All About Relationships!
