One of the superpowers you have as a small business is creating a really deep relationship with your customers. And one of the most personal and impactful ways to do that is with handwritten notes.
As you grow and scale though, there’s no possible way you can keep up with that… at least not without a little help from your robot friends.
My guest today is Arian Radmand, CEO of Ignite Post, a service that helps brands create magical moments for their customers using handwritten notes at scale.
With an army of robots armed with ballpoint pens, Ignite Post lets you connect authentically with your customers. Learn how you can increase your customer’s lifetime value and reduce customer churn with the power of handwritten notes and how Ignite Post can automate the entire process for you.
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What is Ignite Post?
IgnitePOST is a platform that lets you automatically send handwritten notes, with real pen and ink, to cut through the digital noise and connect more authentically with your customers. Creating these connections allows eCommerce brands to cultivate a loyal following and turn first-time customers into raving fans that come back again and again.
Part hardware, part software, ignitePOST uses robotics to do the actual handwriting. These robots hold real BIC ballpoint pens to write out these notes and they’re programmed to use a number of different writing styles and can even mimic the founder’s handwriting if you want!
Why Should eCommerce Brands Use Handwritten Notes in their Marketing?
In this day and age, consumers are inundated with digital communication. From email and SMS to social media and everything in between, there are so many brands vying for attention it’s really easy to get lost in the noise.
If you want to grow a long-term successful company, brands need to figure out how to stand out. On average, people only receive a personal piece of mail once every 7 weeks (if that often) which means that if you as a brand show up in their mailbox, with a physical card that they can touch and feel, soo going to make a lasting impression.
One of the most important jobs your marketing has is to keep you top of mind with your customers. That’s why consistently sending emails and posting on social media is an important part of the omnichannel experience for your customers. But you’re sending those emails and posting those posts in a sea of others doing the exact same thing so the impact of each of those emails and posts gets diluted.
Snail mail has a completely different impact because most brands aren’t doing it. It’s a pattern interrupt for your customer; they can’t help but take notice.
Focus on Retention for Long-Term Sustainable Growth
While customer acquisition is always going to be a big part of running an eCommerce business when it comes to acquisition vs. retention, it’s really your retention game that is going to create breakout growth. It’s a lot cheaper to keep an existing customer, they spend more money, and are ultimately more profitable than new ones.
Using a tool like ignitePOST is a great way to supplement your other retention efforts like email and SMS, and create those omnichannel marketing touchpoints with your customers.
What Are the First Campaigns Brands Should Implement with ignitePOST?
If you think of the general sales funnel for an eCommerce business you have acquisition, activation, retention, and referral. The middle part of that funnel is a really great time to use ignitePOST.
Post-Purchase
A post-purchase thank you is a great way to surprise and delight your customer. It’s the perfect opportunity to make a great first impression and gain that mind share.
An ignitePOST employee actually experienced this exact scenario with a Whiskey Brand. The impact was so profound. She remembers the day she received that card and now, simply because of that gesture, that brand is her go-to for any occasion she needs to give a gift and it’ll be the first place she recommends to her friends.
Review Requests
Having great reviews is so important for converting first-time customers on an eCommerce website. As a brand, you want to make sure that you have a consistent flow of fresh positive reviews. After someone makes their second purchase with you, it’s pretty safe to say that they’re loving your product and have something positive to say about it. A handwritten note is a really powerful way to ask for those reviews. Because it’s so high-touch, customers will almost feel guilty if they don’t take action on it.
Preventing Subscription Churn
When you sell a subscription product or have a membership, the number one thing you’re always trying to do is to prevent people from canceling that subscription. Handwritten cards with a special offer sent 1 month before the typical churn point can go a long way in holding onto your customers and keeping them for life.
For example; a healthy meal delivery company created a VIP campaign that was sent prior to their average churn point. They sent a note from the founder thanking them for being a VIP and offered them a percentage off the next few months of their subscription. This campaign saw an 11x ROI with 68% of customers taking them up on the offer.
Other Ways to Use Handwritten Notes in Your Marketing
Because everything is automated and ignitePOST even integrates with your favorite tools like Klaviyo (scroll down for a special deal!) you’re truly only limited by your imagination. Any segment you can create in Klaviyo, you can send a handwritten note to. Want to send a handwritten note at a specific place in an email flow, you can do that with ignitePOST too.
Here are a few other ways you can use ignitePOST:
- Promoting an in-person event or market to customers in that geo-targeted area
- Connecting with your affiliates
- As a win back for customers who haven’t shopped with you in the last 3 months
- Customers who typically only shop with you during gift-giving holidays
- Customers who aren’t on your email or SMS list
- VIP customers who you want to give an exclusive offer
- Inviting repeat customers to sign up for a subscription
How Exactly Does ignitePOST Work?
How Can Brands Guarantee Success with ignitePOST?
To ensure a successful marketing campaign with ignitePOST you want to have the three C’s. Cut through the noise, connect with your recipient, and include a clear call to action. Generally, the campaigns that aren’t successful, violate one or all of these.
Cut Through the Noise
The good news is, by sending a handwritten note, you’re already cutting through the noise. What’s great about the ignitePOST platform specifically, is that you’re sending a 5×7 card in an envelope that is also addressed in real handwriting. It’s not going to get lost in the sea of other direct mail and postcards.
Connect with Your Recipient
But you can’t think of it as just another sales touchpoint. You really want to be intentional with the message and make sure you’re personalizing it for the customer. Ask yourself, if I were really sitting down to write this as a handwritten note, what would I say; how would I foster a connection with the customer?
The good news is, when you use a tool like Klaviyo to send the request to ignitePOST and trigger the note to be written, you can use any and all data you have about your customer and dynamically insert it into the message. So if you’re sending a post-purchase thank you, you can include the name of the product they bought. If you have unique information about them stored on their profile you can insert that dynamically as well.
Ultimately, if you don’t take the time to really consider the customer and make it feel personal, it’s just another sales email in paper form.
Call to Action
The funny thing about marketing is if you want a customer to do something… you have to tell them. Even if you think it’s obvious, you’ve got to lay it out clearly for them. That might be letting them know there’s a QR code or a coupon code on the front of the card. Give them the expiration date, even if it already says it on the front of the card. You have to reinforce your message because no one is paying as much attention to us and we wish they were.
Of course, you don’t HAVE to have a call to action. Your goal with a particular campaign might just want it to be a really impactful touchpoint and that’s okay too. But, if you want to be able to measure that impact, a call to action is an important part of the equation.
Get $1000 in FREE Credits to Try Out ignitePOST
Are you a Klaviyo user that wants to give ignitePOST a try? Sign up for their special offer and they’ll load $1,000 in credits to your account to test it out! Credits are valid for notes that are sent through Klaviyo flows.
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*This offer is valid at the time of publication but I make no guarantees that it is still available.
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This offer is valid at the time of publication but I make no guarantees that it is still available.
