Welcome New Neighbors with Gift Certificate Mailers

When people move into a new neighborhood, they can often feel overwhelmed by their new surroundings, but a friendly letter introducing a local business with a gift certificate attached is a great way to make them feel welcome and get them to come check out the local business scene.

Kimberly Setzer, the owner of Allure Salon & Spa in Algona, Iowa, has been sending mailers to new families in her area since the salon opened in 2004, and the results have been exemplary. “I think it’s the most effective program for us in this area,” says Setzer. She usually includes a coupon for a free manicure or pedicure with the mailer, and says she has been more than pleased with the number of new customers coming in.

Setzer gets the names of new residents from her local chamber of commerce for a fee, then mails them a letter and coupon from the salon. But there are also companies specifically designed to put businesses in touch with new residents. Moving Targets buys the names of new movers from a variety of different sources, then works with area businesses to design and distribute a custom gift certificate mailer. They can also target the mailers to hit selective markets or demographics. Says Moving Targets’ CEO Jay Siff, “We tell the businesses we work with to think of it not as a discount but as a gift, saying, ‘Here’s a coupon, come on in to get to know us.’ Hopefully when they do they will become loyal and regular customers.”

Our Town America specializes in producing welcome packets that include a single coupon from a variety of different local businesses, and they only include one business for each type so there are no competitors in their mailings. Another nice feature of Our Town America is that their coupons are trackable and they offer a loyalty follow-up program to try to ensure that people who have come in once will come in again.

If you’re curious as to how many potential new clients might be moving in to your area, visit .Moving Targetsto get an automated estimate, or check with your local chamber of commerce.