Thank You Very Much
by Dera DeRoche-Jolet

We write thank you notes for birthday gifts and thank someone when they bless us after we sneeze. We thank someone for holding the door for us and even though the speeches are usually long and drawn out, academy award winners have to thank just about "everybody." Being thanked makes you feel good.

A "thank you" can definitely come in handy when you make a large consumer purchase, such as a house or car. Anyone, who has bought a new car, drives away with two very different emotions. Along with the joy of owning a new car, comes the responsibility of paying for it. Most people feel a little remorseful for quite a while after driving the car off the dealer’s lot.

Those two feelings tug at consumers, but the remorse is usually stronger. In marketing, we call that feeling, "buyer's remorse." That’s what we feel after making an impulsive decision -- until we can justify our decision with logical reasons.

Now imagine receiving a personal letter about a week later from the salesman who sold the car to you. In the note, he thanks you for the business and congratulates you for making such a wise decision. He then goes on to list all the benefits you’ll have as a result of your wise decision. While his letter won’t change the car payments you face for the next three years, it will probably change the way you felt about them. You’ll lose your buyer's remorse almost immediately, and, most likely will also change the way you feel about him. In the future, whenever you need a new car, you’ll go to that salesperson.

Why not give that same feeling to your customers? Thank you notes will not only make your customers feel good about buying an alarm system from you, it will also make them feel good about doing business with you.

Here are some benefits you gain when you send a personal "thank you" to a customer who just purchased an alarm system.

* You reduce or lower any buyer's remorse your customer feels after their
purchase.
* You develop a closer relationship with your customer.
* You gain free word-of-mouth advertising when your customer tells everybody
about your unexpected "thank you" letter and how good he or she feels about
doing business with you.
* You have an opportunity to sell add-ons.
* You enhance your image as a caring and security conscious business.

Your unexpected "thank you" doesn't have to be lengthy and you don't have to write every one individually for each customer or client. You might try a basic form letter with minor changes such as their name and type of system they purchased. Just be sure to personalize it as much as possible. For instance, if they have children, and both parents work, you might add a line saying that you know that when the kids come home from school they will be safer and the parents will feel better.

You might even repeat the specific goals of keeping the whole family safe and secure and how they will now be able to achieve those goals. At the end of the note, tell them to call you if they have any questions or problems.

Most buying decisions are made on impulse. It’s only after we make a purchase do we again look for those logical reasons to justify our decision. You can help your customers with this by including all the benefits they'll gain from your product or service in your "thank you" letter. These benefits are what initially steered them to buy an alarm system and to buy it from your company. Repeating these benefits reassures them of the wisdom of their decision.

Your customers will appreciate that you think highly enough of them to take the time to write to them. When it comes to add to their system or recommend an alarm company to a neighbor, you’ll be at the top of their list.