Nehlsen Notebook

Applying Eye Shadow to Your Marketing Efforts

By Nancy Nehlsen, Owner  8.19.09

I approached the makeup counter at the local department store in my usual distracted state. I was startled when the young girl behind the counter greeted me by name. I stared at her with a look of utter bewilderment, trying to remember if she was a friend of one of my children, or the daughter of one of my friends. She smiled, recognizing my confusion. “You bought the waterproof mascara from me last month. It was my first day on the job”, she explained. I had no recollection.

How in the world did she remember me, and how did she remember my name? I was unabashedly flattered. Immediately I struck up a conversation as I looked for more items to buy than the lipstick I had come to purchase. I mentioned that my daughter is going to school in aesthetics to do skin treatments and makeup– a fact that I thought would give us common ground.

To my surprise, she didn’t just use the comment as a conversation starter, she excused herself to rummage through sample drawers and pull out a handful of sample products she thought my daughter might enjoy, including a full-size midnight blue eye shadow.

Now what does any of this have to do with marketing you might ask? I will tell you: I will never buy another item at that cosmetic counter unless my new friend, Amanda, is working that day. She won me over, not just to her, but to the product line she represents.

I don’t care if you’re selling mascara, water heaters or used cars, the premise is the same. You give people attentive, personal service – they give you money. It may sound crudely simple, but it is the very core of marketing. People want to be noticed. They want to be appreciated. They want to be remembered. They want free eye shadow.

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