Land of Guru

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Yesterday was my 26th Birthday. Family and Friends made the day really special, from early morning till late last night. This past year has been great, and I appreciate everyone who wished me well on my big day.

Most people probably would agree that this is the one day you are super sensitive to who is around you and the emotional confirmation one can receive from others. As I get older, I tend to notice more the people who forget my birthday(that should remember) and the people who remember(that I am surprised do).

Each year it seems there is a new way to wish someone a happy birthday. For example, this year I was wished a happy birthday via Twitter. I also got messages by email, social sites, text message, telephone and snail mail. This year I decided to keep track of how any commercial messages impacted my birthday and the week leading up to it.

Message 1: Old employer(mail). I haven’t worked for them in 5 years, don’t do business with them, and have not talked to anyone there since leaving. I doubt they know they sent me the card. They should probably purge their database.

Message 2: Ebay(mail) – I am a regular customer, making at least one purchase a month. They sent me a coupon along with a nice funny card.  I used the coupon almost immediately.

Message 3: Online Forum(email) – There are several forums that I visit on a regular basis, but only one sent me a birthday email. It actually is one that I had not visited in a month. Since I got the email I have visited daily.

Message 4: Women’s Boutique Store(mail) I was surprised to get this one. Must have snagged my info when I signed up to get a discount on a gift purchase. No doubt I will return there for an upcoming gift purchase.

Message 5: Steak House(email). Guess where I chose to have my birthday dinner? By emailing me a small coupon, they turned a free entre into a $300 bill for a party of 8.

Message 6: Amazon(email). I have not visited the site in months, but immediately browsed the site for an hour looking for something to purchase with my small coupon. $10 coupon led to $420 order. Suckered me right in!

Message 7: Local Video Rental Store(mail). It has been over a year since I stepped foot in a “real” video rental store. But their card and coupon will probably get me back in atleast one more time.(Who can resist a free rental and popcorn)

There were some other ones, but these were the ones that piqued my interest the most. It is very important to know your customer, and thank them, especially on their special day. If you don’t, your competition will.  It does not take much, and even the smallest guesture can result in sales and a stronger loyalty.