Did "Give to Get" work for you?

[Mrs.Darcy]

I am a reflexologist but I realize that this forum will be a little busier than the reflexology business forum.

Did you try the "Give to Get" method and did it work for you?

 

[shadowgirl15]

not for me...

 

[C0lOMBiiAN-BABee]

I donated about 60ish "give to gets" for a teacher appreciation thing...I got 4 back and I think two upgraded to an hour and two did the free 30 minutes. One of the upgrades bought a GC for a friend who ended up rescheduling a couple of times but ultimately dropped off.

 

[TANK]

Depends on what you mean. Giving 1/2 a massage to encourage them to buy the other half... no. Not even once.

Giving massage to people who couldn't pay, needed the work and would talk? Yes. Giving massage to certain selected people for a small period of time so I could experiment with new techniques? Yes.

Giving gift certificates to try and encourage new business? No. In fact, none of the "free" GCs were ever even redeemed. Weird, huh?

 

[AlinamE]

i totally echo stacey -
when you give ... to get something in return ... an expectation of getting something, never worked for me.

when i give... from my heart with no expectation (and not wanting anyone to find out either), prosperity flows in like the katrina storm surge! (we got 11 feet here, 32 at my sister's!)

amanda (who just misspelled her own name because we're watching star wars in spanish)

edit: because of misspellings

 

[DeDe]

Giving gift certificates to try and encourage new business? No. In fact, none of the "free" GCs were ever even redeemed. Weird, huh?

I find quite a lot of the paid for gift certificates aren't even redeemed! Gift certificates purchased by my regular clients that give them to friends/family and rave about how wonderful I am, those gift certificates are redeemed. Gift certificates purchased online from the gifter finding my website would only get redeemed about half the time.
If people don't even feel motivated to use a gift certificate they know someone has spent money on for them, you can imagine the motivation when there isn't even that pressure!
I've even had people ring up towards the expiry date to check how well I know the gifter and if I would tell them if it wasn't redeemed.

 

[Bilge Rat]

The g.c.'s that I give are donated to local church groups, rotaries, and other organizations doing a fund raiser. The first reason I do it is to help them out. They like having nice prizes at their auctions and it helps them raise money for whatever worthy cause they are supporting. Only a few are redeemed. Some have come booked other appointments or purchased gift certificates. Some have upgraded their service. Certainly, this is not one of my major marketing efforts, and even though it gets a low response, I continue to do it, because it still helps out the organization I donate to. It is another opportunity to get my name out there and people become familiar with me. And, I do get a little business from it.

When I first opened my office, I went to some area businesses that I thought would be a good source of referrals......Curves type gyms, sports equipment places, etc. I gave the owners a g.c. for a free massage, in the hopes they would be able to spread the word about me. Very few of them ever redeemed the g.c, but the few that did became regular clients and a good source of referrals.

 

[rockability]

That's interesting because I have had very good luck with the give to get idea. Granted, I have given out a ton of them but they cost me very little (like 6 bucks for 100). Out of the 100 I give out at least 2 or 3 people come in sometimes up to 10. I too give them as donations to charities, races, and such. I sometimes give them to small specialty stores and tell them to give them to customers for purchasing over a certain dollar amount. This helps the business because people purchase that extra something to make the price limit so they are more apt to advertise and give them out. For me it works because I get customers who can and are willing to pay and I also ask that my brochure and cards be visible so even if people don't get the certificate they see my name. Out of about 25-30 people that have redeemed none of them have stayed with the free 1/2. All of them have upgraded. Some of them now are my most loyal and returning clients. So I guess it worked for me, especially considering the small amount of money I spent on it.

It is surprising how many people don't redeem them, especially after wanting them from a store promotion or raffle. Guess that is the way it goes.

 

[dark_angel]

I have used the "give to get" method for years. It has worked well for me. I don't use it as much these days, and I think it has actually hurt my business. I didn't plan very well for the my slow season. Which is the summer here in AZ. So, this summer I am painfully slow. My fault though! Using this method, keeps new people coming in the door. Matter of fact, most of my long time clients came to me by this method. Keeping your name out there is important. I hate marketing myself and I haven't done any marketing this year and it has affected my business. So, I fianlly got off my butt this week and sent out hundreds of postcards to past clients for a "summer special". I hope the timing is right. Just got a call from a client I haven't seen in at least two years. So, I am hoping to fill my books with some summer work. My summers are usually slower, but this year it really stinks!!! I have another therapist in my office and it's funny, certain methods of marketing work great for me, but not for her. Vice Versa! I wonder why?

 

[SourSkittles:)]

These replies have been very helpful. I am still going to try the give to get thing but I'm not giving a gift certificate for a free half hour but for a dollar amount instead. With reflexology I really dislike doing shortened sessions. My treatments are always close to the same except for extra time spent in trouble areas that I find. Maybe this is something I should check into with other reflexologists.

Fortunately the business that is having me in twice a week pays really well so I believe their employees are my target market. They are also from all different places in the world, not very many grew up in this area so I think reflexology will also appeal to them since it's more popular in places other than North America.

I am also considering giving $ amount gift certificates to the salon where I get my hair cut. It's too expensive for me but I continue to go there because I believe we share the same target market. It costs me over $60 for a wash and trim, I don't do dyes or highlights.

I am hoping that by choosing where to give very carefully will have some effect on how much I get.

I think the thoughts about intentions for giving are interesting and something I will consider and watch for.