Dr. Lynda Falkenstein     "The Niche Doctor"

Start Your Own Fan Club!
Every business needs a fan club. And what better way to ensure it's one you want--that it meets your needs and reflects your company's values--than to start the fan club, yourself! I firmly believe the best fan clubs are those you strategically plan and execute as part of your overall niche-development plan. I also believe that the fan club concept is applicable for just about any business, regardless of its focus. And, like most of the best strategies, it's also an easy one to implement.
    A favorite example.    
     Burrell Professional Labs is one of my favorite examples of a company that has used fan club to the max. Recognizing that they wanted to keep their best customers, Burrell established its Presidential Circle, a by-invitation-only "club" available to those customers who spent significantly at Burrell during the previous year. In a fiercely competitive environment, the Presidential Circle is a vehicle for deepening relationships with the company's preferred customers. Members of the Presidential Circle are honored in the company's handsome quarterly Rainbow publication as well as wined and dined at important educational and professional events hosted by Burrell. Members consider their admission to the Presidential Circle significant enough that they not only include reference to it on their resumes, but make sure their membership certificates are posted in prominent locations within their photography studios and on their websites.
    Turn your customers into  "Pied-Pipers."
     Applying its seemingly never-ending savvy, the company invites a well-respected member to chair the club's advisory group. The ingenious thing about creating your own fan club is that both the process and product create energy and momentum surrounding your business that no other strategy can produce. It's an exciting buzz. Customers communicate not just with you but often with each other. In the process, your business is transformed from mere vendor to the ultimate relationship, "family." And, in a world where people buy people, this is a pretty good deal. 
     What does your fan club look like?
    With best wishes from Niche World Headquarters,
     Dr. Lynda Falkenstein