Okay, Valentine’s Day is coming up. (I still have flashbacks of all those single years when Valentine’s Day was just a reminder for me that nobody was going to send flowers. So glad I’m married now so when Valentine’s Day comes and I still don’t get flowers, at least I know who to hit.) But what if we saw Valentine’s Day as an opportunity to show the love to our customers? What if we sent our customers a note telling them how much we love doing business with them? Talk about different! I would bet nobody else is showing customer appreciation on Valentine’s Day. You would certainly be different. And don’t make it a puffy little card without real sentiment. Spend some time really thinking about it – and expressing why you like doing business with them. Don’t make this about your company doing business with their company. Make this about you doing business with that person – face to face – person to person. Just one little way you can stand up and stick out in a crowded market. (And I would bet they won’t be throwing that card away!)

And by the way…if your love note involves a lipstick kiss, pictures of you in your underwear, or involves you hanging out in the bushes by their front door –  you’ve gone too far.

Happy Valentine’s Day from your wacky motivational speaker trying to find a way to get noticed in a crowded market,

Kelly Swanson