Saying Thank You to Your Customers Will Really Help You

Yup. It is polite to say thanks. It is amazing how few folks do this in the retail end of our business. The installer gets a check leaving the house and that’s the end of things. If the installer does a good job and earns a tip, he or she will thank you, but that is not the same.

In speaking with many, many retailers, the ones who proudly say thank you see a huge return on their small investment. The very next day a job is finished, send a thank you letter to your customer and offer a 10 percent coupon on their next retail purchase at your shop. Mention what you carry, from professional glass cleaner to screen repairs.

In your letter ask them to recommend you to others. For each shower door system you get to install based on a recommendation, give the original customer $50 or $100 off future work. This really does work well. If you have a private label glass cleaner, have the installer leave a can along with a prepared note from the owner/president of your company. Mention that if they bring this note to the office, they will get a case of cleaner as a thank you. This brings customers in for a rather small price.

Ask your installers to look around in a customer’s home, on a casual basis. If they see a chip in a table top, a torn screen or an entrance door without a screen door, they should tell you. In your thank you letter mention that you have the expertise and products to help. The most obvious one here is the bathroom mirrors. Most have some discoloration on the edges.

Thirty days after the install, and your letter is sent, call the customer as a follow-up. Is everything okay? Is there anything else you would like us to quote on or help you with? Time your thank you note and call to the season. Right now it would be dining room tables. In the hard winter it would be storm doors. You get the drift.

Here is a basic fact of business. If you do a good job on an install, you’re okay. If you do a lousy job, the customer will tell seven friends how terrible you are. You can turn this around with a simple thank you note and then your follow-up. Your customer will tell a couple of their friends they found a good tradesperson. Go for it.