Form letters, mass mailings, and Dear Sir or Madam—are all out of fashion. Personalizing your marketing and all your contacts with customers, clients and prospects is really the way to build a business and increase sales!
In order to personalize things you send to your target market, you need to know who your customers are! It is important to gather information like names, addresses, e-mails, etc. and make sure that you have all the spelling and pronunciation right. It can really hurt your relationship with a client to mispronounce a name or have the spelling wrong. Your clients and contacts need to feel like you know and respect them and getting the details correct is one of the best ways to convey that to them!
It is worth your while to get yourself familiar with how to use mail merge software programs—databases, contact programs and spread sheets. This way you can merge the personal information into any letters or marketing materials you may send. By choosing when it is appropriate to use first names, salutations and titles, and being able to insert personal, qualifying information into your correspondence (or to have access to this information when you take or make a phone call) you will make a solid, personal connection with the individual instead of making them feel like they are just one of the “masses” of your target market.
When you are chatting with a client or a potential customer, jot down pertinent information and add it to your file. If they mention they have a dog, or two grown children, or like to vacation in the mountains—this information can be added to your notes and database to help you develop a personal relationship. Then, when writing an e-mail or sending a note, you can personalize it with these tidbits of information.
If you do nothing else, vowing to NOT send out any more “Dear Sir” or “Dear Friend” letters is one way to make a commitment to personalizing your business correspondence!