A good friend told me that he’d recently been buying a lot of things in preparation for the birth of his first child. And like any red-blooded male, he’s been doing most of his shopping online. The father-to-be that is, not the child.
Following almost every order, the company he bought from sent him an email containing a coupon towards any future purchases. As any parent can testify, buying for your first child is a never-ending task. So it’s no great surprise that he’s already used many of the coupons.
From the perspective of the companies, he’s a pre-qualified customer, so they already know that he has an interest in what they’re selling. This is a beautifully effective form of marketing, that is more targeted than most other forms of advertising.
Upselling after the purchase can convert a one-time buyer into a repeat customer. And if each subsequent purchase triggers another coupon, you may be able to turn the one-time buyer into a customer for life.
