What Ever Happened To “Rewarding Your Past Buyers”?

If you subscribe to various Internet Marketing “guru” lists, then you would no doubt be aware of how many stream offer after offer to you, in some cases a new one almost every day. Every one is presented on the basis of “you can’t do without this”!

Yes, the majority of offers are done on an affiliate basis and often undertaken as a show of support for the people (affiliates) who support them. There’s nothing wrong or improper with that. It’s just that many simply switch off after a while and progressively that mail simply gets zapped by internal spam filters without the promoter even being aware of it,

The one thing that is really annoying though is when you have spent money with these people and they don’t acknowledge you in any way as a valued “past customer”.

This happens all the time with Bonuses. There is nothing more galling than to have spent $1000 or more on a product only to see it being given away as a Bonus just 3 months later. A special offer on the new product which includes that Bonus should be given as a minimum to PAST buyers.

Unfortunately, too many online marketing gurus have forgotten that the real value in their lists is not the sheer numbers, but those who have actually purchased from them. Yes, not all past customers are repeat buyers, but a good percentage certainly can be if you treat them with respect and make them feel special.

Offline marketers have always understood the value of their past buyers and that is why many are still prospering.

By comparison, the methodologies of many online marketers are ones where customer loyalty is driven by who has the best Bonus offering.

Fortunately, this direction is one which you see predominantly in the Internet Marketing (IM) arena.

There are winners from this trend — buyers get some wonderful Bonuses (e.g. buy this product for $495 and you get $2,000 worth of Bonuses) … and promoters are building their lists and therefore positioning themselves to dominate in their segment.

The problem with this is that the loyalty factor is being tossed out the door … and that is ultimately a factor that can bring any business undone.

There are exceptions, IM promoters who treat their customers and subscribers with full respect. One of these is Stompernet. They are not alone.

If your focus is another niche, there is no need to adopt the tactics used by many IM marketers. Yes, it may generate some quick cash flow.

However, it’s a trend you don’t want happening in your niche … because you may never turn it around.