The owner of my local beauty salon works really hard to make people feel special once they are through the door. She’s made improvements to the business in all sorts of ways since she took it over a year ago. This week I got an email from her, along with all the other people on her database….the first in a very long time.

It went something like this. Times are hard for small business and we are struggling a little. We need to fill just a few extra appointments a week to keep going. Why not book an appointment? I’m not sure how the email was meant to make me feel, but my immediate reaction wasn’t to reach for the phone.

Two marketing takeaways for you:

1. Don’t wait until you’re desperate to build connections with your clients.
A list of names and emails is just that.
It’s what you do with it that builds a sense of loyalty and belonging. It’s a lot easier to get bums on seats, when more bums on seats ‘this minute’ isn’t your only option.

2. Begin with the end in mind.
By that I don’t mean your end, which might be ‘more’…customers, revenue or appointments booked. Start by asking yourself these three questions.
“How do I want Sarah Jane to feel when she opens this email?”
“How does she want to feel?”
“How will I get her there?”

The ability to stand in your customer’s shoes is seriously underrated.

Image by David Martin.