In an effort to clean up my desk & get things off my plate I tackled my in box very early this morning. One of the items "to do" was to renew a magazine subscription. Simple, right?
The publisher made me an offer for an early renewal - I would get 2 free gift subscriptions & a cookbook. Great, sign me up!
So, I go gather my friends' mailing addresses & fill in the form to send them gift subscriptions. I fill out the rest of the renewal card & then...I can't find the reply envelope.
OK, no big deal right just use my own envelope. So, I grab one & put a stamp on it along with my return address sticker & when I begin to address it, guess what? There's no address ANYWHERE on the renewal card. Front, back - really, nowhere!
Next, I figure I'll wait until 9AM & call. Yikes - no phone number!
As a last resort, I figure well at least I can renew online. Alas, once again, there is no URL anywhere to be found.
Now, I'm annoyed. I just wasted precious time & a stamp! Never mind, I was looking forward to doing something nice for 2 good friends.
This publisher is one of the oldest magazine publishers around - simply put, they ought to know better. They missed 3 tremendous renewal opportunities. Doesn't anyone proofread this stuff on their end?
Lesson? If you want someone's money then make it easy for them to give it to you. This means giving them options. Consumer behavior has evolved to the point where they want to choose how to be in touch.
Smart marketers who understand this will thrive. The rest, well...not so much.
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