Page 116 - 101 Ways to Market Your Business

MAKE IT EASY FOR PEOPLE TO BUY FROM YOU

40 The perfect gift for the indecisive customer

Most large companies sell gift vouchers. This makes buying
a generic present easy and it enables the end recipient of
the gift voucher to purchase exactly the item they want.

There are a number of options when it comes to
producing your own gift vouchers. If you are handy with
your computer make up your own and print them out on
nice paper. You can also buy pre-printed gift vouchers from
most larger stationery stores where you simply fill in your
business details and the amount of the voucher. Another
option, if they prove to be successful, is to design and print
your own.

If you decide to offer gift vouchers it is important to
let your customers know—put a sign up, send out a flyer
to regular customers or put a flyer into any bag or parcel
that leaves your store. There is no point offering gift
vouchers if your customers don’t know about them.

Another extension of this idea is a generic gift voucher
that is accepted at more than one business. Shopping
centres often do this. You can purchase a gift voucher at
any store and the person receiving the voucher can redeem
it at any store in the centre. This can be a little complicated
to coordinate but it increases the appeal of the voucher as
the customer receiving the gift can make their purchases at
the store (or stores) of their choice.

One word of caution—gift vouchers are like money so
make certain that you do not leave them lying around
unsecured. Also put a code of some sort on the vouchers
that lets you know they are authentic. Numbered vouchers
enable you to track down who made the purchase and who
redeemed the vouchers.

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