Word of Mouth marketing ideas?

[mobileloyal]

Thanks to everyone who read my last post. I've been thinking about coffee shop marketing and it seems to me that many coffee shops don't do a great job of marketing themselves. Because most independently owned shops likely don't have a huge marketing budget, I can see how marketing might be a challenge. What that means to me is that you have to find low-cost (or FREE) ways to get the word out. Anther thing that is obvious is that most good coffee shops have customers who LOVE them - you know the ones, people who come back every day and who just love being in your shop.

So, it stands to reason that the best marketing plan would be the one that gets your most loyal customers to tell others about you. Word of mouth is one of the best ways to get new customers - people tend to trust their friends and are willing to try something when it's being recommended by a trusted source.

What, if any, word of mouth marketing have you tried? I'm interested to hear different ideas from actual shop owners.

Thanks!
Roddy
MobileLoyal.net

 

[eldub]

What about facebook?

 

[CanadianBrian]

Very true Eldub, facebook and twitter are great free advertizing.
ALWAYS have a secure base/foundation before you try to expand your client base.
What about printing a special card that says something like "receive a free drink when one is purchased" or even "Receive a free coffee on the house" so that you can hand them out to your loyal customers so that they can bring in a friend?
Always treat your customers as the best. You must continually look after them and even give service above and beyond and they will always give you a great referal.
You can also set up a loyalty program and send them email offers and birthday / anniversary card.
You could go to a local business and sell them 10 free coffee cards for a 50% discount so that they may reward their customers and you could get something similar from them to hand out to your clients.
I strongly suggest that you go and read Jay Levinson's books on "Guerilla Marketing" I found all of his books great even tho some are a little old. You can probably find alot of these in your local library.
Brian

 

[dstrand]

Word of mouth (also called referral) marketing can be extremely powerful. When we had our coffeehouse, we had a core of very devoted customers who wouldn't tell anyone about us, because they didn't want to ruin the place's atmosphere! We loved them anyways.

A regular customer can be worth $60 - $100 a month. That's $1200 a year! So, don't be too shy about spending money on them. Brian's idea of the free coffee cards is a good one. But I wouldn't sell them at half price, I'd give them to the local businesses. The first time the customer comes in, let 'em have a coffee or latte or cappuccino or whatever - gratis. Then, give them a loyalty card, so they can get a free drink for every 10 they purchase. If they like your coffee & service, they'll be back.

Also, once you get to know your regular customers, you can give them a free drink, everytime they bring in someone new.

You should also check out Jay Abraham. He's a marketing guru in the same vein as Jay Levinson, but he's put all of his publications on the web for free download (and they're really, quite good).
Here's a link; Jay Abraham - Marketing Genius.

Knock 'em Dead, Roddy.

 

[CanadianBrian]

Very informative. Have read some of Jay Abrahams stuff but didnt realize that so much was available on the web. Thanks for the link.
Brian

 

[mobileloyal]

Great input everyone, thank you! I have to say I never really used Twitter much until this past week and I can 100% see why it's a great marketing tool, I'm loving it. I'm curious though, do you see more results from FB or Twitter?

In terms of using punch cards I couldn't agree more. Mobile Punch cards are actually the main service of Mobile Loyal.

I also love the idea of selling 50% off cards to local businesses, that's an amazing idea.

Thanks again for the feedback!

Roddy
Mobileloyal.net

 

[JRMobile]

I prefer to not look at the mode of marketing as the strategy. Thinking "what free ways can I get the word out?" is just like trying to put together a plan piecemeal, with potentially little thought to the whole picture.

Why do people share a cafe with a friend anyways? Why do YOU share cafes or other businesses with friends?

It's because you had an amazing experience that made you feel good, and you want your friends to have that same feeling (and wether you realize it or not, you want to be the one who shares that good experience).

So to my mind, the focus should be on clarifying and perhaps broadening the experience you share with your customers. This can certainly include connecting with them on Facebook or Twitter - but the easiest way to get people to talk about you, is to give them an undeniably amazing experience.

 

[dstrand]

Hey Roddy,

One of the things I enjoyed most when we ran our coffee house was the conversations we had with our customers (in fact, it's what I miss most). What if you could extend those conversations to facebook? It would be like an extension of your cafe, but in cyberverse. It could be more engaging than the typical business site, and as your regulars hang out and converse, they're friends may just come join them.

Just thinking...

 

[tazzadiluna]

I'm not a coffee shop owner, but I hope to be someday... may I make some suggestions anyway?

1. Partner with noncompetitive businesses who have the same target market (i.e. buy this much from us and get 10% OFF from this and that business)
2. Donate some coffee to nonprofit org events, attendees may end up liking your coffee and become regulars through that
3. Ask your loyal customers to write testimonials, then post them on your website
4. Create a customer email database. With permission, send them exclusive or special updates via email.
5. Take advantage of holidays/special occasions, offer to have thoughtful prepackaged gifts for those who procrastinate
6. Have some kind of "guarantee" that your customers can count on, one which your competitors can't offer (i.e. We only use fresh roasted beans, no older than 10 days); make sure it's posted visibly in your shop
7. Open your shop to schools; schedule tours to teach kids about how you run your business or how you make your products; send some samples to bring home to their parents
8. Offer goods or services to radio stations for unsold radio time
9. Teach employees to treat customers like gold
10. Run silly contests and post them on Facebook (i.e. "Guess the number of coffee beans in the jar" contest) -- post a photo and make it mandatory for the customer to come into the shop to submit a guess ... be sure to award a prize to the winner (take a picture of him/her with the prize and post it on facebook)

11. If you have a website, you could also create a section or a blog where you can keep your customers updated or teach customers about things you want them to learn about...

 

[dstrand]

Very informative. Have read some of Jay Abrahams stuff but didnt realize that so much was available on the web. Thanks for the link.
Brian

You're Welcome Brian!
I've been a fan of Jay's since I read "Getting Everything Out of All You've Got" the first time, years ago. I re-read it every year now, and am amazed at how it still gets my mind going. Very effective book.

On the website I shared, he's posted a 6 week marketing course! I'm about 1/4 of the way through. I really, highly recommend it!

 

[dstrand]

I'm not a coffee shop owner, but I hope to be someday... may I make some suggestions anyway?

1. Partner with noncompetitive businesses who have the same target market (i.e. buy this much from us and get 10% OFF from this and that business)
2. Donate some coffee to nonprofit org events, attendees may end up liking your coffee and become regulars through that
3. Ask your loyal customers to write testimonials, then post them on your website
4. Create a customer email database. With permission, send them exclusive or special updates via email.
5. Take advantage of holidays/special occasions, offer to have thoughtful prepackaged gifts for those who procrastinate
6. Have some kind of "guarantee" that your customers can count on, one which your competitors can't offer (i.e. We only use fresh roasted beans, no older than 10 days); make sure it's posted visibly in your shop
7. Open your shop to schools; schedule tours to teach kids about how you run your business or how you make your products; send some samples to bring home to their parents
8. Offer goods or services to radio stations for unsold radio time
9. Teach employees to treat customers like gold
10. Run silly contests and post them on Facebook (i.e. "Guess the number of coffee beans in the jar" contest) -- post a photo and make it mandatory for the customer to come into the shop to submit a guess ... be sure to award a prize to the winner (take a picture of him/her with the prize and post it on facebook)

11. If you have a website, you could also create a section or a blog where you can keep your customers updated or teach customers about things you want them to learn about...

Tazza, you're right on the money.
Let me guess...
You're in marketing??:razz:

 

[sidg]

One of the things we did in our first year was to identify our best referring customers and gave them cards that said, "I've found this great new coffee shop that I think you will enjoy. Try them out and they will give you 50% off your drink." We had them sign them and then gave the person who had the most cards returned a Chemex to use at home. For under $60 we had over 50 new customers come in to try us out in a months time. I would say that at least 40 of those have been back many times.
It was money well spent and reminds me that it is probably time to do it all over again.

Thanks everyone for sharing your ideas and suggestions I'm going to have to think about how to implement some of these ideas as well.

 

[tazzadiluna]

Tazza, you're right on the money.
Let me guess...
You're in marketing??:razz:

No, I took some ideas from an advertising book I read a while back.

 

[mobileloyal]

Tazz, great ideas! After thinking about it a little more, I love the coffee shops I love because 1) they have great coffee - I've been to some that have a great atmosphere, but just so-so coffee - the product has to be great. 2) they have a great atmosphere - just having a place to relax, listen to some music, spend time with friends, etc. is amazing. Marketing promotions are great, but to go along with what JRMobile said, running a great coffee shop is SO much more than just marketing strategies!

Roddy
MobileLoyal.net