Tired of sending out Christmas cards to your farm and wondering if they just
got tossed in the trashbin? Would you like to send a holiday greeting that
your clients will treasure instead? For the same cost as cards, you can send
out a valuable letter that will not showcase your thoughtfulness but introduce
you to a world of new referrals.
The holidays and other special occasions are a great time
to both profit and provide value added services to your current
clients, circles of influence, and database of contacts. Here's how:
Visit a local merchant you know and make arrangements to
secure a significant discount for any client you recommend to use or
purchase their products or services. For example, your local
jeweler, nursery, home furnishings store or decorative center might be willing
to a 20, 30, even 40% discount to your clients during a limited time frame.
Show the merchant how many people you have in your "farm."
Draft a brief holiday greetings letter to express your gratitude for the
recipient's patronage, support, and referrals throughout the year. In
appreciation, you have made arrangements with Mr. Merchant to offer them a 30%
discount on anything in the store during the holidays upon being presented with
this letter.
Ask your clients to "discreetly pass the letter to Mr. Diamond" as
this offer is not being made to anyone but them and a few of your other
close friends and clients. This lends importance and an air of
exclusivity to your gift.
Structured properly, you could become a referral source for Mr. Merchant.
You never know when a customer will casually mention that he or she is looking
for a home in the area or thinking of moving. Mr. Merchant will be able to
recommend you.
Termed joint venture marketing or strategic alliance marketing, the
profit pulling power of this technique is awesome. Your client gets a good
deal, the local vendor obtains new clients from which he will profit
immediately and far into the future, and you have once again secured good will
in the eyes of your contacts.
The beauty of this type of marketing is that you don't have to stop with the
Christmas holidays. Align yourself with floral, lingerie, candy, and gift shops
for Valentine's Day, and children's stores for Easter. And don't forget
Mother's Day and Father's Day, Grandparents Day, Labor Day, The Fourth of July,
and so on. You could offer a special service almost every month.
Do one deal and the next deal comes easily. Do many, many deals
and you can quickly finding yourself the "Real Estate Agent of Choice"
for all local merchants in addition to providing a wonderful value-added
service to the rest of your contacts.
Published: December 14, 1998
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