Do you or should you offer special offers only for your very best customers? I have been considering doing this on my own website. The question is will it have any impact. On my day job we offer a two per cent discount for on account customers only if they pay within 15 days instead of the required 30 days. I'm not sure it has been a great success. some customers who get it are delighted and think we're awesome but we get some negative feedback from those that just missed.

It's a fact of life (and of this business) that whatever you do, someone somewhere isn't going to like it.

If a company is going to give specials to certain customers for whatever reason, go for it. Just make sure that whatever special is applied consistently, so that if someone tries to raise a claim of preferential treatment (or a complaint about their *not* getting preferential treatment because of X-Y-Z) the company has the power to refute that statement.

Depending on what kind of specials/discounts you offer, and to whom, I think it can have an all-around positive impact. For example, giving a free year of hosting to customers who stay with your hosting company for five years makes you feel good - because you've had this customer and their revenue for half a decade, and may for the next half-decade - and makes them feel good - because they suddenly get to save money that they'd probably budgeted as 'spent'.

Just make sure that the discounts aren't constructed so as to seem like more of a lure than an actual discount (five years' regular patronage gets a 2% discount for one year's worth of hosting, which can be really really small on some services) or so large that they either make your company seem like they're giving away the farm -=or=- be financially ruinous to the company. There's also the possibility that if you give customers something at five years, they may think that it will be equalled in another five years' time.

Incentives such as additional discounts for different segments fo your client base are a good practice and fall into the loyalty program side of marketing. You can also provide service add-ons at discounted rates to current clients based on variables such as length of time as a client, revenue value of the client, etc. I've stayed away from static "published" programs and used loyalty marketing in conjuction with promos and new product launches. Good luck.

I've always been leery of places that don't advertise (or admit) to having loyalty discounts when you ask, but give them away to customers freely for other reasons (Sprint comes to mind). But so long as you offer them consistently and not as a reward for being a pleasant customer (As opposed to the one who nit-picks to get exactly what they paid for) I think its a good idea.

I guess I must not be a very good customer because I have yet to experience this I have seen plenty of places that offer discounts for new clients, but not those that offer them to existing customers which in and of itself always annoyed me.

I think that your system is far more fair-such as the discount I used to receive for paying my bill direct debit instead of by cheque. It cut down on work for the company, in the same way as prompt payment does.

I think you have a great idea going there. I've gotten several discounts on eBay because I usually pay within 30-60 minutes after the end of an auction. I agree that consistency is the key and your customers will appreciate any type of discount they can get.

Chris

I can see discounts on auctions being a VERY good idea, because some people really drag their feet when it comes to paying for their goods. When you are waiting to ship something and you want the money in then you don't want to be waiting, it's a pain in the rear.

Many places also will have "upgrade specials" that are for a limited time. For example, you have a great customer so you give them an upgrade, with the upgrade itself being free for 6 months, or a year, etc. Then when that time period is up, they may choose to keep the upgrade at which time you will have in increase i revenue.

Probably best off offering it to everyone. Unless its something very special and limited there is really no reason no to offer it to everyone.

I treat long time customers very well. We give them priority over everyone, as well as offer them free upgrades, etc. I think this is good rep for the company, and keeps the customer happy. A repeat/long term customer is the best possible kind of customer.