By Colby Horton
Shop Site of the Month
Columbia Transmission Corporation - Columbia, Md.
www.columbiaautomotive.com
This site features professional graphics and easy-to-use navigation. The “Ask Ed” section, along with an online appointment scheduler, gives this site a personal touch.
Web Wise
Using E-mail to Market Your Shop
It's been preached time and time again in small business seminars: establishing a Web presence is a must if you want to increase your business. But, with this establishment comes loss of precious time and money. There is a way, however, for you to inform your customers about certain aspects of your shop. E-mail has become a crucial part of the corporate world. Phone calls and memos have been replaced by this technology. You can use a shop e-mail account to distribute information to your customers at little to no charge.
Establishing an e-mail account for your shop is easy and cost-effective. Search engine sites such as Yahoo (www.yahoo.com), Excite (www.excite.com) and iWon (www.iwon.com) will allow you to set up a free e-mail account with them. When doing so, it's a good idea to put your shop name as the root of the e-mail address (myshop@yahoo.com). By doing so, you have established a Net presence for your shop free of charge. If you are connected to the Internet, chances are you have access to an e-mail account. Check with your Internet service provider (ISP) about establishing a second e-mail account to your service. Many ISPs provide more than one e-mail address per account.
Collecting e-mail addresses from your customers can become an obstacle if you are not organized. You should display a sign somewhere in your waiting area explaining that customers can receive the latest news and specials from your shop by supplying an e-mail address. Some shops offer incentives such as discounts or coupons if a customer supplies an e-mail address. This is an excellent marketing technique and will keep your customers coming back. Once the addresses are obtained, maintain a database or mailbox in your e-mail program that allows you to send out information to all your customers at once. Most e-mail programs allow you to enter many addresses in one mailbox.
The benefits of establishing an e-mail network for your customers are substantial. You are able to save on mailing costs, time and overall advertising and marketing costs. Use this technology to send e-mail coupons, special offers, and shop newsletters or tips. The cost is low and your customers will appreciate the information.
Net Numbers
In 2004, marketers will send more than 200 billion e-mails to increase customer retention and sales.
Source: Forrester Research, Inc. (www.forrester.com)
ASA Web Ways
ASA News-Network
The ASA News-Network is an electronic e-mail list designed to inform ASA members of important industry and association news. Sent out every other Friday, the News-Network announces new member benefits, association events, industry news, new information added to the ASA Web site and much more!
To become a participating member of the News-Network, send your name, shop name and address to news@asashop.org from the e-mail address you wish to add to the list. Or, you can add yourself to the News-Network list through the Members Only section of the ASA Web site (www.asashop.org). For access into the Members Only section, enter your six-digit ASA number into both the name and password fields when prompted.
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