One of the pleasing aspects I've discovered since setting up Diplomatist Books is dealing with return customers. It's gratifying to know that, having spent money with us, people are satisfied enough to come back!
I've therefore been giving some thought to how to reward such customers and how to entice more. I've come up with two possible voucher schemes.
- Payment in advance - (say) £50.00 for Premium Membership which gives you a spending power of £65.00 (which lasts for a year). This could be set at different rates - Bronze, Silver and Gold.
- A postage scheme - a payment of (say) £25.00 entitles a UK customer to free postage for a year.
By pure co-incidence both schemes, if successful, would result an injection of capital to invest in more stock and other enlargement...
What do you think? Have you any other suggestions? Do let me know by taking part in the poll (completely free of any commitment to take part in any scheme!).
What do you think? Have you any other suggestions? Do let me know by taking part in the poll (completely free of any commitment to take part in any scheme!).
Making such investments goes against my nature, I'm afraid to say.
ReplyDeleteI can see the benefits, and have no doubt that others taking the opportunity of such offers would enjoy the rewards of their farsightedness. But taking part in such a thing, such as this or a "Kickstarter", always sees me balk and not commit - The fear of loss of my invested money just weighing too much in my considerations. (Or in this case, making such a payment and there being nothing I'd want to buy from you, so either I'd lose out or have to buy books I didn't really want - Though I suppose I could order a specific book from you.)
I'm afraid I don't have any suggestions to offer, either. Suffice to say that I keep checking out the books you have available, and am a (very happy) repeat customer.
Thanks for taking the time to comment Roy - I appreciate it.
DeleteI quite understand your reasons for not favoring such schemes. It was to gauge how common this view was that I decided to float the idea before doing anything about it.
No problem. I've just been thinking about it all and, in fact, I'd say I'm part of the minority of people and bloggers I know, who don't jump on board with 'crowd funding', so possibly your suggestion would find favour with more people than not.
DeleteThe only time I've paid upfront in the past has been with magazine subscriptions, now I think about it. Why I paid for those as a blind investment and not anything else is currently puzzling me.
Is there such a thing as a mystery tour of books?
Subscribe to receive six* books a year, from a subject matter list specified by the subscriber, but the books they receive would be chosen by the seller. *a number chosen as it would be bi-monthly, but quarterly is another option.
Obviously there's the negative issues of more work for the seller, with the organisation and logistics, and the possibility that the subscriber will receive a book they already own (through outside purchase). But the fun of receiving a random-ish and 'surprise' book could work along the lines of the "Secret Santa" craze that a lot of people enjoy taking part in.
That's for the suggestion Roy.
DeleteI must admit I don't like this idea. It reminds me too much of the old Book Clubs (do they still run?) where you paid your sub and then spent the rest of the year cursing them for sending you things that you weren't remotely interested in (I'm old enough to remember buying records and tapes like that).
I think it's a poisonous brand. I'd rather be remembered as sending people stuff they actually wanted!
But perhaps what you had in mind was a 'Lucky Dip' bag (such as Northstar Miniatures have) - send £10.00 and get a random(ish) Napoleonic book. I think that works better in a field where there are miscasts or over-runs. Although I do deal in remandered stock, I rarely have more than two or three of each titles. I'm not yet at the scale where I can buy (say) a carton of Ospreys @ 50p each. Hopefully in the future...
Ha, I don't know what I was thinking, to be honest. I was pondering one thing, then 'bus man's holiday' popped into my head (for some unknown reason), and then it jumped to the mystery tour. Just another one of those random chain of thoughts we all have, I'm sure.
ReplyDeleteThe Northstar 'Lucky Dip' did jump up at me while I was making a pot of tea, funnily enough. Again, just a random thought as I was absently pondering the subject of sale offers and other companies practices. I have been known in the past to email ideas to Colonel Bills, for Stuart to then tell me why it wouldn't work :))