We've just moved our e-mail newsletter to Mail Chimp. Which is actually kind of a big job as we'd been with Constant Contact for a long time.
[If you didn't see the most recent newsletter, you can subscribe below, and you will have access to the archive. As a new subscriber, you will also get a free copy of our e-book, Painless Qualitative Planning, a very useful document in our humble opinion.]
But it seemed like there were upcharges for things we are getting free elsewhere (like image storage, archive hosting), the interface was complicated, the help files weren't helpful, and we had trouble making a decent PDF from the site. We wanted more than one autoresponder, and they just didn't have it.
From a loyalty perspective, my take is that none of us has time to waste, and when people are leaving, it is a good idea to figure out why they would put themselves through the time and headache to learn a new system.
When people leave, there's a reason. Because it's a lot easier to just keep doing what you are doing now than it is to figure out something new.
By the same token, you need to make learning any new system as simple as possible. Because even a simple system takes hours to learn to use.
The t-shirt that surprised and delighted
After sending my first campaign, I got a lovely note from the Chimps, offering me a free t-shirt. All I had to do was select my size.
Now this is not something that would work as an incentive -- "come work with us and we'll give you a free t-shirt." That would just be ridiculous on so many levels. (Do you agree?)
But arriving as a surprise in my in-box was a really pleasant surprise. It put a smile on my face. It made me feel connected to the Chimp, which I had thought was a pretty goofy name up till now.
What about you?
I have to admit, I'm not doing anything quite as wonderful, but perhaps I should be. When a new client initiates a project, perhaps I should be sending them something fun to celebrate the moment. [I do send something nice when you subscribe, by the way.]
What do you do for new clients? How do you reinforce the notion that using your service was a good idea?
Would love to hear your thoughts on this.
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