The woman who sold my husband his car in 2006 keeps in touch regularly, sending letters and occasionally calling. She is doing a great job reminding us that she’s still around, waiting to sell us our next vehicle. But even though she constantly updates him on things like trade-in deals, discounted vehicles and the like, she dropped the ball on a huge piece of news about the dealership that we really should know: the fact that they’re moving to another town.
Now, it’s not like we’re strangers to the dealership. I bring my own vehicle there for all major maintenance, so I’m there at least twice a year. You’d think that something this major would’ve merited its own marketing initiative. Instead, the first sentence of her most recent letter went something like, “Now, I know you know all about our move, so let’s talk about our latest shipment of 2011 cars!” In fact, it was the first we’d heard about it. When I last took my vehicle in for service, I confirmed with the receptionist that they would be moving sometime in February.
This is not an “across the street” kind of move. They are moving the whole dealership to a different town entirely. And their new location is right off the highway, making it much more convenient to visit than their old location. Boom! I’ve just given them two new ideas to use in their marketing.
It just goes to show that you should never assume that your clients know all about your business. What may seem obvious to you may come as news to your clients when you finally remember to tell them. Keep ’em in the loop so that they don’t show up to your old location and find that you’re gone. How would that be for cementing a years-old customer relationship?