In this post I’m going to share a variety of ways you can encourage repeat business for your cake shop.

As you implement these cake shop marketing ideas you’ll see customers come back again and again.

But at the end of the day, your product has the biggest impact on if people come back or not.

No amount of great marketing will make up for a bad tasting cake or cookie. Or poor customer service.

When you deliver great service and a fantastic cake, much of this battle is already won. 

Rewards Program

A common way to push for repeat business is a rewards program.

There are many different ways to do this. From the most basic with a stamp card to more complicated tiered rewards and bonuses. 

For the sake of quick testing I recommend trying the basic stamp card. If someone comes in to buy 6 times then on the 7th they get a free cookie. 

My favorite setup is to have rewards along the way. So after 3 visits they get a free cookie. After 6 visits they get a free cookie. And after 10 visits they get a cake for 40% off. 

You’d want to change all of those according to your business and what makes sense but I think rewards along the way are far more exciting then having to wait until I’ve visited 8+ times to get anything. 

It’s an effective cake shop promotion you can run for a long, long time.

Thank You Notes

Thank you notes are often overlooked for their ability to bring customers back again and again.

It’s a way to get back in front of the customer without it feeling annoying. I’d use this primarily with your custom cake orders and your business customers.

Just like your cake shop review requests, I’d time the sending of these based on the customer. For wedding cake customers, I’d wait until a few weeks after the wedding. Then send a handwritten card congratulating them again and thanking them for trusting you to create their wedding cake.

For custom birthday cake orders I’d send a handwritten note a week or so after the scheduled birthday. In the note I’d say thanks and can’t wait to see you the next time your craving a cookie or need another custom cake.

Than, for your business customers, I’d send out a handwritten note after they place a large order, like for a company party. 

You could also send out a thank you note at the end of the year. For your business customers I’d thank them for supporting your business and let them know how much you love baking goodies for their team.

New Customer Bonus

If it’s a customer’s first time in your cake shop you could give them something special. This could be a coupon for a free cookie on their next visit or even a free cake pop for first time customers given to them right then and there.

Just something that says thanks for coming in and we hope to see you again. 

Personally, I’m a fan of the coupon for free cookie on their next visit because it will get them in again. 

But the free cake pop (or cookie) will make them feel extra special on their first visit. Plus, there’s a great chance they’ll tell their friends about the free item the first time they visited.

Email Followup

Email is a great way to encourage repeat customers. 

You can update them with special discounts, remind them when it’s time to order something before the holiday season, or simply give them an update on your business or an exciting community event.

The key with email is to send one regularly. Often when you send at random intervals customers forget who you are and unsubscribe or worse, report your emails as spam.

If you’re interested in doing more email marketing be sure to jump into my article on email marketing for cake shops.

Well there you have it, a few of my ideas on encouraging repeat customers for cake shops. What ideas do you have?