I woke up yesterday morning, and heard birds chirping outside for the first time in months! It’s been a very long, cold, and dreary winter (not especially dreary, I have to admit, I just say this every year). I’m tired of lumpy sweaters and ugly snow boots, and the return of birds, combined with a sunny day, sent me into an early spring fever.  Another reason for this spring fever? One of my favorite boutiques in the area had recently embraced social media by the way of Facebook.

In the coldest, dreariest months, the last thing on my mind was to go out and shop for pretty clothes since all I wanted to wear were parkas and long-johns, and woolen hats and scarves.  I’ve basically swept this little boutique from my mind, and have not given them a thought until recently when I became a fan of their FB page and started receiving regular updates from the store.  Everyday, they entice me with pictures of gorgeous spring dresses and romantic scarves.  It was too much to resist, and the first day the sun came out, I was there, buying a summer dress I’ve been eyeing on their FB page for days.

One thing that surprised me when I entered the store for the first time in months, was seeing all the beautiful sweaters and cardigans they had leftover from winter.  They were my taste, and I would wear them in a heartbeat.  I had no idea they had these, since I usually only shop there in the summer.  If I had known, I probably would have went in for these sweaters during one of my mid-winter ruts – either to treat myself to something pretty, or to buy them as gifts.

The moral of the story: As a customer, I may not always know you have what I want, or even, at times, I may not remember that you exist.  Especially true in the luxury market, you are not necessarily selling me something I need, so it’s not very likely that I would go out of my way to seek you out.  This is why it is so important to be in contact with your customers, if you want to keep driving traffic to your business, you’ll want to gently (not harass) remind your customers that you’re still on the face of the planet and that you’re still providing a wonderful shopping experience and selection.

Speaking of which, I am currently eyeing a beautiful, embroidered sweater/wrap I saw at the store.  Scratch what I had said earlier about “need” vs “want”…I believe I may need it.

See…you never know what a customer might want until they find it… Make sure they come to you for their needs by staying in touch and letting them know about what you have.