Here are 7 tips on how YOU can begin harnessing the tremendous power of business thank you cards to rapidly build your own business.

1.Send Business Thank You Cards to Your Past Customers…

“Write customers personal, handwritten cards frequently. If you run into an old customer anywhere, follow up with a handwritten card. In this electronic communication age of email, the handwritten card with a postage stamp gets more immediate attention than ever.” -Danielle Kennedy- master seller and trainer in Real Estate

2. Send Business Thank You Cards to Your Existing Clients…
The fastest and easiest way to capitalize on your existing customer is by following up and staying in contact with them using cards.
Building a relationship is key to your success. The best way to do this is to keep your message in front of them consistently but in a non-pushy way.

3. Send Business Thank You Cards to Potential Clients…

Whenever you meet someone one of the best ways to warm up a potential client before you even offer them your services is to send them a friendly card. You shouldn’t try and sell them at all in the card. Simply focus on introducing yourself and opening the door for them to request more information. Send a simple card saying you enjoyed meeting them and commenting on something about your conversation.

A business thank you card reminds them about you in a friendly, non-pushy way. In today’s busy world, people will often forget or lose interest in your message, even IF they were interested, simply because “life gets in the way”.

4. Appreciate Your Staff and Employees on a Regular Basis…
Losing a trusted personal assistant can be like losing your

right arm. A staff member can literally be worth their weight in gold.
Smart business owners  understand that human capital is the most valuable asset a company has and treats them as such.

A perfect example is Jack Welch who  made it a regular habit to send handwritten cards to anyone in the company he felt deserved personal communication from top managers right down the ranks.
People become more motivated (and productive) when they KNOW they are appreciated and valued for the work they do. It’s the glue that keeps organizations operating smoothly.

So just like your clients, you can find unlimited ways to show your staff you genuinely care about them. Sending cards of appreciation (and gifts) can help create a work atmosphere that makes it a pleasure for your employees to be a part of your team and keeps company morale running at a steady hum.

5. Generate Referrals Using Business Thank You Cards…
For many, many professionals and business owners referrals are the lifeblood of their business. As business owners we shouldn’t neglect the amazing, business building power that generating referrals can have.

The problem with most traditional referral methods is that you have to continually keep asking. For many people this is not an easy or comfortable thing to do. Asking in person or over the phone for referrals often feels awkward or pushy (for both the person asking and the person being asked.) By sending out business thank you cards you can begin to naturally and effortlessly generate referrals.

6. Show Appreciation to Your Top Customers…

Did you know that for every month you are not in contact with your clients you lose 10% of your influence?

Simply apply the Pareto Principle and focus your attention on the 20% of current customers, business partners and suppliers that bring in 80% of your business.

Doesn’t it just make sense to give them special attention? A great way to do that is by sending business thank you card showing your appreciation AND throwing in a little gift for added good measure. (In another post, I’d like to tell you about an automated system that’s even got the gift giving covered for you as well. No extra runs to the store).

Doing this not only helps you stand out as someone who isn’t taking them for granted but  they are far more likely to refer you on to others simply because of the genuine concern you show for them.

7. Multiply Your Effectiveness…

Once you experience the power and effectiveness of using business thank you cards with your own clients, you’ll naturally want to make sure every person in your business is following your example and sending out cards on a regular basis. Teach your staff and associates to do the same.

“Thank you cards are one of the most powerful tools in building a huge network, both professionally and socially. People with the most impressive networks are typically avid card writers. It’s one of the best techniques for long-term winning without intimidation. I suggest getting into the habit of immediately sending out cards.”
- Bob Burg -author of Endless Referrals

So if you really want to use business thank you cards effectively, follow these tips to  keep your loyal clients and generate endless referrals. Please your current customers, employees and business partners with a business thank you card today!

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For the best results you want your business thank you cards to feel personal. There are 3 very effective ways to achieve this:

1. Effective business thank you cards are personalized.

When you send a card, use the recipient’s first name in the salutation. This one thing alone will separate you from those mass-produced, generic messages.

In Dale Carnegie’s classic How to Win Friends and Influence People he says:

“Remember that a person’s name is to that person the sweetest and most important sound in any language.”

2. Your cards should be in your own handwriting. 

The main message in your cards should be handwritten. Think about it. What feels more personal when you receive a store bought card? The generic message printed on the inside or the hand written note jotted underneath?

3. Effective cards are personally signed.

If you are trying to build a personal relationship with the reader of your card you need to sign the card with your own signature. After all personal messages are signed with a personal signature.

To add emphasis to the importance of consistently following up with personalized thank you cards let me relate a story:

A guy named Joe Girard made it into the Guinness Book of World Records because he sold more cars and trucks than all the other salespeople together. He did this every month for 12 years in a row from 1966 to 1977 and landed himself in the record books in 1973 when he sold 1,425 vehicles. All told he sold 13,001 vehicles at retail.

Now how did he achieve this amazing accomplishment?
 
Joe Girard’s secret was that he followed up. He followed up more than anyone else on a more consistent basis. He did it by …

drumroll….

…sending handwritten business thank you cards.

He sent a personalized, handwritten and signed greeting card to EVERYONE he met or spoke with or sold a car to. He did not stop with just one card.Every month they would get a friendly card – personalized, handwritten and signed. He sent cards for every holiday. No strings attached. No pushy sales message.
 
He made sure that each and every card he sent was:
 
   1. Personalized.
   2. Handwritten.
   3. Hand Signed.

Sometimes timing isn’t right for people. It’s not that they aren’t interested. If their circumstances change and the timing is right they will think of you. They will remember that you had their best interests at heart and didn’t try to sell them. Your business thank you card sitting on their counter or pinned on a bulletin board will keep you forefront in their mind.

(Don’t worry if this sounds like too much “work” or too expensive. I’ll show you the way I do this in my own business that takes me almost no time, and surprisingly little money to send hundreds of cards with a few clicks of my mouse!)


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