Here's an all-too-familiar scenario for a business owner. A
customer or client purchases a product or service from you
and they are excited and motivated by the purchase. But by
the time they get home (or have the product or service delivered
at a later time), they get "cold feet" and develop the
seemingly inevitable buyer's remorse. Whether it's a purchase
of an expensive piece of property, an automobile, or
an inexpensive educational program, buyer's remorse can
happen.
Buyer's remorse is a natural phenomenon. Buyers question
their purchase and wonder, "Is this product or service
really worth all that money?" "Did I really make a good
decision when I decided to purchase from this particular
company?"
One of the most difficult things for business owners to
deal with (financially and psychologically) is when something
is returned for a refund. You worked so hard to sell it
in the first place; now it's returned because the person had
buyer's remorse. OUCH!
The million-dollar question for many business owners is,
"How can I eliminate (or at least greatly minimize) buyer's
remorse and refunds in my business?" The answer is clear
my friend: You need to implement a "Stick Program."
A Stick Program refers to making the sale "stick" ...
meaning the purchaser of your product or service actually
KEEPS it.
A Stick Program can involve a single element (like a
thank-you letter sent right after the sale is made) or it can be
more elaborate and include several steps. Here are 7 steps to
a powerful Stick Program. You can pick and choose from
this list, or for maximum "STICK," you can use them all.
STEP 1: The most effective things to do to make a sale
"stick" is to quickly follow up with a letter to the purchaser
as soon as the order is shipped. I send out a thank-you
letter with a crisp, new ONE DOLLAR BILL attached to the
top of it. The cash in the letter is a great attention "grabber,"
and it forces the recipients to read the letter to find out why
you sent them money. The letter indicates the dollar bill
represents the first dollar the buyers have received in their
relationship with Joe Polish ... and that it's just the first of
MANY more to come as they implement the program they
purchased.
STEP 2: Send a voice broadcast about a week after your
new customers receive the product or service. In the voice
broadcast (which leaves a message on their voice mail),
thank them and reinforce their very good decision to purchase
from you.
STEP 3: Send them another letter a week or two after
the sale, this time with a bunch of testimonials in it. When
they read the testimonials, their decision to purchase the
program is justified in their minds (people are always looking
for a way to justify past purchases), and they become
"re-sold." Keep in mind that the initial sale is NOT the only
sale you need to make. You need to "re-sell" the clients after
they purchase too.
STEP 4: Send them a free bonus gift after they've had
the product for 30 days. The gift is not expensive, but it is
valuable (sometimes it's a calendar, an audio interview on
CD, a book, etc.). Though not expensive, the client REALLY
appreciates the unexpected gift, and it helps the original
sale to STICK ... and opens the door for additional sales and
referrals from the same client as well.
STEP 5: Invite your new clients onto a FREE monthly
teleseminar (that's a seminar by phone). This allows the new
clients to get on the phone with you and other clients from
around the country, to hear some valuable message from you
and your guests, and to be able to ask questions for free.
STEP 6: Send a monthly newsletter to all your new
clients for at least a year. If you don't have a newsletter, create
one based on the information in your industry to further
position you as the expert. This will keep you in their consciousness
and position you to get additional sales and
referrals.
STEP 7: The final step to a successful Stick Program is
to ask your new clients for a testimonial. About two months
after they make a purchase, send a letter asking them for a
testimonial. When clients go through the effort to write or
give you a testimonial, it reinforces the smart decision they
made to purchase your products and/or services and solidifies
their commitment to the past (and future) purchases
from you. One powerful method is to have a "testimonial
contest" in which you award the best testimonial with a
valuable gift, such as an hour of telephone consulting with
you for free (worth thousands of dollars if you have positioned
yourself as an expert).
Your Stick Program can be even more complex than this.
But even if these seven steps seem like too much for you,
then use just the first one of the steps and you'll begin to see
a difference. Your company's rate of complaints, returns,
and refunds will go down, leading to a higher satisfaction
rate of your clients ... more testimonials ... more referrals ...
more business ... and more profit for your business! It is
worth the effort!
Joe Polish and Tim Paulson. are authors of the bestselling
Piranha Marketing. Learn more about Joe and Tim.