Businesses miss a big opportunity by not adding a little something extra to their customer shipment. When working with customers, it’s important to remember that you’re not just doing business. You’re establishing a relationship. And the more effort your company puts into making customers happy, the better chance they have of coming back for another purchase. Adding a note, a coupon, a free sample, even a thank-you sticker are low-cost ways to cement a customer relationship, whether you sell fleece for wintertime wear or daffodil bulbs for spring gardening.

Something extra in a shipment:

• Reinforces your company’s brand.
• Builds customer loyalty.
• Creates interest in other products.
• Helps spread the word about your product.

Here are six ideas to make your customers excited to open their package.

Include a personalized note.

When companies are small, owners often write personal notes to customers and slip them into shipments. It’s a nice idea, but as businesses get bigger, it’s not quite as feasible. However, it is possible to print notes that appear personalized–that include a customer’s name and are written in CEO’s handwriting (with the help of software programs that create personalized fonts). One note may not cover all the bases, so create multiple. These can be distributed based on customer demographics and interactions with your company. For example, a first-time customer may not receive the same message as a loyal customer you’ve had for several years.

Say thank you.

We all like to be thanked for our business. A thank-you in a shipment can take many forms. A preprinted note or card. A sticker placed on the item’s packaging. A few words printed on a business card. A short, sincere message is all that’s needed like, “We appreciate your business. Please call or email us if you have questions, concerns or if you just want to tell us how the new coffeemaker is working for you.” or even shorter, “Thank you for doing business with us! Enjoy!”

Offer an incentive.

You’ve already convinced this customer to buy your product. Encourage another purchase with a coupon or discount, anything from free shipping on the next order to a 20% off discount code. Better still, recognize that this customer could be an influencer and include discount codes for both them and their friends.

Tuck in a targeted sales flyer.

Winter is on the way, and your customers are beginning to shop for the holidays. What else do you sell that they’ll need when holiday shopping? Wrapping paper? Greeting cards? Ribbon and bows? Pull several of these related items together in a flyer or brochure and add it to their shipment. Chances are you’ll see a bump in sales of these products. To know which items are seasonal top sellers, check your sales data from the prior season well in advance. This way you can come up with a sales strategy for the upcoming season that involves a flyer of similar or related products.

Include a freebie or sample.

If your logo is one that people are proud to wear, stick it on a hat or a window decal and send it along with your product. Do you sell products that naturally accompany your top seller? Then send a sample. For example, if you sell a popular canned dog food send along a sample of the delicious dog treats you also carry.

Encourage social media shares.

People love to snap photos of themselves, their families, their pets. So slip in a postcard with a funny photo of someone using your product. Maybe you sell soothing face masks or conditioning hair masks. Ask customers to use a hashtag that you create (tied to your business, of course) to post photos or videos using your beauty products on Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat or other social media sites.

A little bit of extra effort can go a long way in making your customers feel special. If you want to implement these strategies in your own marketing, let us know and we can brainstorm possibilities catered to your business. We can help you come up with extras to add to your shipments and our order fulfillment staff can make sure they end up in your packages.