Category: articles

The Best Loyalty & Rewards Programs for Small Businesses

Morne Boshoff
The Best Loyalty & Rewards Programs for Small Businesses

There’s plenty of evidence that customer loyalty and reward programs drive sales for businesses of all sizes. 72% of all adults in the US belong to at least one loyalty program, and 87% are willing to have their consumer activity tracked if they get something in exchange. I’ve written about the importance of loyalty and reward programs before, but it’s time for an update. Technological advances have made loyalty programs more effective than ever. The Qualities of an Effective Loyalty Program There’s no question that consumers love loyalty programs, but…

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Is Your Reputation Costing You Business?

Morne Boshoff
Is Your Reputation Costing You Business

The song says, “I don’t give a damn ‘bout my bad reputation.” Those lyrics sounded fun and rebellious when Joan Jett sang them but taking that attitude when it comes to your online reputation can be disastrous to your business. Not caring about your online reputation is a mistake. And your online reputation consists of more than your carefully-thought-out website and social media pages. Most importantly, your online reputation is something you can control – for the most part. Here’s what you need to know. The Elements of Your Online…

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How to Turn Your Fans and Followers into Paying Customers

Morne Boshoff
How to Turn Your Fans and Followers into Paying Customers

You’ve got a big following on social media. So what? Unless those followers are paying you for products or services, they don’t mean much. I’m not saying that social media followers aren’t important in some ways. Having a lot of followers sends a signal to potential customers that you have a popular brand. It can help you get more traffic and attention. That said, sales and profits are the name of the game. If those followers aren’t buying from you, they’re not doing anything for you in real terms. The…

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How to Create a Relationship-Building Autoresponder Series for New Subscribers

Morne Boshoff
How to Create a Relationship-Building Autoresponder Series

Email marketing is one of those topics that keeps coming up – and for good reason. Email is still one of the most cost-effective ways to connect with your customers, nurture leads, and build your business. Arguably the most important time to engage with subscribers is when they’re new. By subscribing to your list, they’ve indicated a serious interest in your company and what you have to offer. It’s the ideal time to start building a relationship with them. That means you’ve got to create an autoresponder series that will…

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Your Website Redesign Checklist for 2020

Morne Boshoff
Your Website Redesign Checklist for 2020

Is your website in need of a facelift? Even if you’ve spruced it up in the past couple of years, it might be outdated. And, if that’s the case, your website’s lackluster design could be hurting your business. The key to a successful web redesign is understanding what the latest trends and tools are. Here’s what you need to know. Website Redesign Checklist Let’s start with an overview of what you should be looking at. Then, we’ll drill down into some of the specifics, including my recommendations for the best…

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Step Up Your Game (and Revenue) with these Proven Email Marketing Strategies

Morne Boshoff
Step Up Your Game (and Revenue) with these Proven Email Marketing Strategies

Email marketing has been around forever, it seems, and yet it remains one of the most popular and effective marketing strategies for local businesses. Let’s face it, sometimes old school marketing techniques become old for a reason! If they didn’t work, they’d die young – so to speak. I love email marketing. I think it’s a sure-fire way to attract new customers, nurture leads, and grow a business. The key, of course, is doing email marketing right. Let’s talk about how to attract new subscribers – and keep their attention…

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6 Customer Success Metrics You Should Actually Pay Attention To

Morne Boshoff

How much value are your customers getting from your products or services? If you don’t know the answer to that question, you might be putting your customer retention at risk. And, considering that it can cost up to 10 times as much to win a new customer as it does to retain an existing one, ignoring customer retention is – simply put – a bad idea. Of course, the key question here is understanding how your product affects your customers. One of the best ways to do that is to…

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The Unofficial Email Marketing Roadmap for Local Business

Morne Boshoff
The Unofficial Email Marketing Roadmap for Local Business

Email marketing remains one of the best ways for local businesses to build customer loyalty and attract new customers. It’s affordable and accessible – but it won’t be effective if you don’t make the most of it. The good news? Every dollar spent on email marketing in the United States generates $44 of revenue. That’s crazy ROI by any standard. Welcome emails generate 320% more revenue than other emails – something that underscores the importance of attracting new subscribers. Convinced? Good! Here are some pointers to help you navigate the…

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How to Use Facebook to Connect with Your Local Followers

Morne Boshoff
How to Use Facebook to Connect with Your Local Followers

You probably already know that Facebook has more than two billion active monthly users. Obviously, not all of them are in your target audience – but many of them are. For that reason, it’s important to understand how to use Facebook to encourage your existing customers to talk about your business and recommend it to their friends. Facebook offers a variety of tools – some old, some new – that enable small business owners to connect with their customers. I It’s time for all small business owners to make full…

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Creating a Loyalty Program That Keeps Your Customers Coming Back!

Morne Boshoff
Creating a Loyalty Program That Keeps Your Customers Coming Back

Loyalty programs are everywhere. I’m willing to bet you have several loyalty cards in your wallet. You may even have loyalty memberships you’ve forgotten about. Customers love them – and with good reason. A well-thought-out loyalty program provides benefits to customers that can range from reduced prices for products to giveaways to exclusive access to special events and offers. For businesses, they help with customer retention by incentivizing loyalty. The trick, of course, is creating a loyalty program that does both. There are lots of different options, including referral programs.…

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