How many loyal customers do you have? You know the ones. They come into the pizzeria at least once a week, gushing over how much they love you and all of your delicious food. They usually also say something along the lines of, “I tell everyone I know to come here!” You humbly thank them and bring out free dessert as a show of mutual affection.

But hold on….

Did you hear what they just said about telling everyone they know about coming to your pizzeria? What if you could track that? You can!

You can harness the power of your biggest promoters (your most loyal customers) with one simple tool–a business card.

The next time one of your biggest fans tells you how much they love you, hand them a stack of 3-5 of your business cards and instruct them to write on the back: “Referred by (insert name here).”

Then tell them that for every one of their cards that gets turned into the pizzeria by a new customer, they will receive a free pizza (or whatever you choose as an owner to give them). Once all of the cards are turned in, maybe you give them a small pizza party for them and a few friends.

The point is, these are customers who love you and will make sure to give out their referral cards very selectively. They also know that they will be receiving prizes when the cards are returned, so they’ll also make sure to give them to people who will come in and likely become regulars.

The price you spend on a few free pizzas won’t compare to the added revenue and exposure you’ll receive from the boost in referrals!

Have you tried something similar? Will you try this? I’d love to hear your feedback in the comments below.