1. Right message, right channel, right time

Emailing, calling, texting. There are a number of channels you can use to re-engage your customers. However, if you are going to invest the time and effort, make sure you take the time to consider the following:

What are you saying?

Are you delivering a short, time-sensitive message or a longer one that requires more than just a few seconds to digest? If it is a message that needs to be conveyed immediately, a text might be the best option. Or if you are delivering a longer message, that doesn’t require a customer’s immediate attention, an email might be the best method of communication.

Who are you saying it to?

Are your customers young tech-savvy millennials or older individuals? Your audience and their preferred methods of communication will have an impact on the channel you use to reach them. Try to keep their preferences in mind. If they call you, call them. If they text, text them.

When are you saying it?

Are you sharing this message right after someone interacts with you? Or is it days, weeks (even months) later? The length of time that has passed since your last interaction can have an impact on the way you get in touch with them. For instance, with customers you have interacted with recently, a text might be appropriate since you are already top of mind.

Staying aware of all of these elements is critical to successful customer re-engagement. If you are just starting to ramp up your customer re-engagement strategy, it can be beneficial to do some experimenting to see which channels and messages your customers respond to and prefer. Try a mix of calling, texting, emailing, even regular mailing. Don’t be afraid to think outside the box and try new things. If customers have a strong preference for one method of communication, they will let you know.

2. Show some personality

As a small business owner, you’re passionate about what you do. Let your passion and personality shine through in the messages you send customers. Don’t just send boring, generic messages.

One of the easiest ways to do this is by sending messages that actually sound like a person talking to another person. Personal interaction like this is why many people choose small businesses like yours, rather than large faceless corporations. So remind them of that.

Rather than saying “Get 20% off your next purchase with promo code, SHOPTODAY.” Try something a bit more conversational “Hi there! We’ve missed you around the shop. Come see us and use the code SHOPTODAY to get 20% off!.”

3. Choose a customer re-engagement tool that works for you

For many small business owners, the most challenging part of re-engaging with customers is finding the time to actually do it. However, with the right tools, it can be an easy part of your day-to-day business activities.

If you are interested in re-engaging your customers via text, a service like Index might be a good option for you. With features like Text Templates and Broadcast, customer re-engagement is simple. Just enter your message, add your logo, and send it to your customers. You can even save your messages and reuse them as frequently as needed.

If you are more interested in using email as a part of your customer re-engagement efforts, there are a number of easy-to-use tools geared specifically towards the needs of small businesses, like Constant Contact or MailChimp.