Marketing.....Windows Pet Peeve

I just spent 20 minute writing this blog entry on (ironically) "pet peeves" when I clicked on the spell check icon prior to posting. My pop up block notice showed up so I clicked on it and the f***ing thing wiped out my entry when it reloaded the page.

Sighhhhh...

So here we go again. My MARKETING pet peeve is...was all about being marketed to when I'm already a customer. For example, receiving a "free trial membership" offer from a club that I already belong to or a 0% interest offer from a credit card that I'm already holding (and paying 13% on!).

Mega-corps aren't the only culprits. A lot of businesses are guilty of looking at their mailing lists as a means of carpet bombing ANYONE who has shown an interest in having a conversation with them.

Lazy marketing...and I don't blame the agency or the mail house because they're paid per unit. It's not "their fault" that no one cross referenced the current customer list.

Don't you find it insane that companies are willing to pay the $1+ per unit (if you consider list rental, printing, stuffing & postage) on a collateral piece but won't spend the time or effort to cross reference their lists?

Even if you can't (or don't want to) invest in a CRM system - at the very least, segregate your clients from your prospects in Outlook and split down your mailing lists so that you can offer the most customized relationship that you can afford.

A conversation with your customer shouldn't be akin to spending time with your weird, forgetful uncle who babbles uncoherently and asks you the same thing he asked you five minutes ago.

You will save time and money as well as probably stop the erosion of any good will from the customer you hosed last month BEFORE your special offer (valid for NEW customers only).

I'll talk some more about this on episode 21 of ideaPeddling which you can subscribe to here.