For years, I’ve told my clients that the first additional marketing program they should implement is a Certificate of Appreciation program.
- It’s inexpensive
- It brings your business to the attention of others
- It makes others look good
- It works
The Point
Presenting Certificates of Appreciation needs to be an ongoing program, and not just a one-time event. Why? Because the number one reason for doing this is to get your business mentioned by the media over and over again, across an amount of time. I’m not talking about days or weeks, I’m talking about months and years.
The second most important reason for running an appreciation program is to demonstrate to others that you’re “good folks.” That as people, you (and your staff) truly appreciate the good that others do, and want to call it to the attention of their customers and prospects. You should be seen as appreciating others.
Why Promote Others?
“If I award others,” goes the usual argument, “I’m promoting their business and not mine.”
And this is exactly why you shouldn’t pull 20 people into a room, and give them all certs at the same time. Each individual time you submit a media release, you’re promoting the recipient but mentioning yourself as the giver. Over time – say, each month over the space of a year – you’ve promoted the recipients once each, but you’ve promoted yourself twelve times!
Worth A Thousand Words
When you choose folks to whom you’ll award certs, make sure they know ahead of time you’ll be taking pictures and/or video clips and submitting them to the media. Each picture will mean a ton to the individual recipient. After all, very few people get their picture in the media unless they donate a wing to the local children’s hospital. So here’s something special for them to hang on to: a photo of them getting an award. If they’re lucky, they can get a print-out of the photo and the release when it appears in the media.
The Results
What are the results – the benefits to you – of running an appreciation campaign?
You’ve done something positive for many individuals, who will then be inclined to do something good for you.
You’ve promoted yourself and your business in a positive manner, over and over again in searchable media.
You’re building an image – that is, building a part of your brand – that says a large part of your personality is gratitude and appreciation. Those are positive qualities prospects look for.
The Cost
The most expensive part of these programs is the time invested. That’s maybe two hours per recipient; you travel to them, take a pic, write and email the release, print the pic and the release, and hand deliver those back to the recipient. You can buy the frames and the certificate paper in bulk, along with the ink or toner to print them. The desktop printer is a one-time expense. You’ll sink maybe $5 into each recipient. Over a year, you’ll spend maybe $60.
And for thousands of dollars worth of positive publicity, isn’t that worth it?
Have you tried an appreciation program? If so, what were the results? If not – why haven’t you? I’d love to read your comments below!
