We asked our staff to brainstorm ways to bring new customers to the bookstore this winter. While I was busy thinking of ways to reach out to the masses in our county who have never set foot in our store, Kelly came up with a fairly ingenious idea.
Bring a Friend to the Bookstore is so simple, it’s shocking. Rather than casting a wide and expensive net to any and all potential customers, Kelly’s idea is to ask good customers to bring someone to the store who’s never been here. We are taking folks who already love us and have been loyal supporters, folks who get us and understand our value in the community, and asking them to share us with a  friend who might not know about us. We can get no better advertising than that kind of love and enthusiasm. All the staff is being asked to think of six friends or customers they really like, and send them a postcard with a little handwritten note. I’m very excited by this idea.
But wait, it gets better. To sweeten the deal, we’ve partnered with the coffee shop across the street to give everyone a cup of coffee on us. So, we’ve created a date with a friend for the purpose of introducing them to the store. I think it’s brilliant. Kevin, the coffee shop owner, is even underwriting the cost of the coffees because he’s happy for the new business. Kevin printed up the gift certificates and even swapped out his logo for ours and added a sentence: A Gift From the Flying Pig Bookstore. How lovely is that? The gift certificates will be good for a month so we can really track how this promotion is going to work.
I just think it’s a great excuse to spend some time with a friend. I mean really, what’s better than books and coffee?