Colleen and her husband, Jerry, have worked hard to build a community at their SweetFrog franchise in Parkersbug, West Virginia. From having the store mascot, Scoop, making surprise appearances at summer Vacation Bible School events to hosting school or Girl Scout field trips, these two are dedicated to treating each customer like family. They also give back to the community by catering at local fundraisers and donating coupons.

“We are very personal with our customers and they like that we care about them and their families.”

Colleen and Jerry each put in anywhere from 70-80 hours a week at their store, which makes it essential to maximize efficiency for their marketing campaigns. Since they opened their SweetFrog store four years ago, they’ve been utilizing the CityGro App for Tablet to keep track of customer loyalty points and to send messages. Since neither of them is native to Parkersburg, the couple didn’t have an existing network to leverage when they started their business. The loyalty program helped them get to know their customers and make waves in the community.

I asked Colleen a few questions about how they make the most of CityGro’s tools to add to the sense of community they built within their store. Here are the things that they do to make the most of their loyalty program:

• In-store Consistency: One of Colleen’s tips for CityGro success is to be vigilant in inviting each customer to sign-in on the CityGro App for Tablet.

“We encourage each customer to sign in, and if they aren’t signed up, we explain how easy it is. We have 85-year-olds down to 13-year-olds participating in the loyalty program. We even have some whole families, which seems like a lot of discounts, but it’s what brings them to the store!

“Every customer is key. We have a very good success rate with sign ups. That helps us grow our customer base more than anything else we do or have ever tried to do!”

• Utilize customer data to send texts: Colleen uses text message marketing to send out offers and announcements of in-store events. On average, her marketing campaigns reach about 72 percent of the store’s network. According to Constant Contact, the average email open rate for restaurants is 17 percent, showing SweetFrog is reaching its network at a 123 percent increase over the average email campaign!

“The text offers are a great reminder for our customers and are the lifeblood of our business.”

At the end of the day, Colleen and her husband have done an excellent job of building a business that fosters a community atmosphere. By utilizing the CityGro software, they are able to get in touch with their customers on a regular basis — and it’s all automated!

Have you worked hard to create personal relationships with your customers in the store? Use CityGro to stay in touch and ensure your messages arrive.