The Importance of In-Person Marketing

Published 7/12/23

When we discuss marketing, we often think of print collateral (like posters and inserts) or digital marketing (like social media posts or emails). However, it’s important not to overlook a powerful third marketing channel: in-person customer marketing.

Utilize Face-to-Face interactions to Promote Digital Payments

In-person marketing is a vital tool to perfect with your customer service team. Working with customers face-to-face allows you to build strong relationships and gives you the opportunity to directly educate payers about online payments. As a bonus, in-person interactions give you more insight into your customers’ needs telling you where you need to focus future customer communications.

Every face-to-face interaction with a customer is an opportunity for in-person marketing. Here are a few examples of interactions you can use to promote online payments:

• Offer to walk customers making in-person payments through the online payment registration process
• Ask customers stopping by your office if they’re enrolled in paperless billing
• Educate customers calling your office about your IVR phone payment services
• Send a staff member to your payments drop box on high-traffic days to let customers know they could save time and gas by switching to online payments
• Keep handouts and how-to guides handy so you can provide informational material to any customer stopping by your office

To boost the effectiveness of in-person marketing even more, create opportunities to increase direct communication with your customers. Here are a few ideas:

• Host a Customer Appreciation Day – Everyone loves being appreciated! Consider hosting a Customer Appreciation Day to let customers know how much they’re valued. Encourage customers to stop by your office and provide refreshments, entertainment, and take the opportunity to discuss online payments and features with customers directly. Provide informational handouts or giveaways (such as a magnet with a QR code on it that links to your payment portal), to remind them to pay online in the future.

• Host an Online Payments Workshop – To focus more specifically on customers who are interested in trying online payments, we suggest hosting an online payments workshop. This provides an opportunity to guide customers step by step through the online payment registration process. Provide handouts or how-to documents so customers are equipped to pay online on their own after the workshop.You can also use this opportunity to inform customers that online payments are more secure than traditional mailed check payments. Mailed checks contain sensitive bank account information and are often subject to mail theft and fraudulent activities such as check washing, and customers are often unaware of these risks. InvoiceCloud online payments are protected by double encryption and are fully PCI Level 1 compliant, providing customers with a safer alternative to check payments.

• Partner with Other Local Organizations – Check with libraries or community centers, to see if your organization could join any of their upcoming events to educate attendees on your services and the safety and convenience of online payments. You can also provide them with online payment informational handouts or how-to guides to provide to their patrons, as needed.

For info sheets and how-to guides that you can use as handouts during in-person interactions, check out the resources available in the Marketing Resource Center.

Need access to the Marketing Resource Center? Email us at customermarketing@invoicecloud.net.