Give And Take Why it pays to partner up on your marketing efforts

To really make it in e-tailing, you've got to keepcustomer-acquisition costs down. You have to find creative ways tomove merchandise and increase sales. And you must add value to yourcustomers' shopping experiences.

The secret to achieving all of the above-and more-may lie in areliable strategy employed by the most innovative dotcoms. Known asreciprocal marketing, the tactic basically allows you to offer yourpaying customers discounts at your online partners' sites aswell as provide discounts to your partners' customers on yoursite. To illustrate: If your customers spend $40 on your Web site,they then receive a gift certificate or discount coupon to use at apartner Web site. "Reciprocal marketing programs are awin-win-win for customers and any participating merchants,"says Shel Horowitz, a low-cost marketing consultant and author ofGrassroots Marketing: Getting Noticed in a NoisyWorld (Chelsea Green Publishing Co.). "You add morevalue to the customer's purchase and, at the same time, allowthe partners in the deal to tap into each other's customerbases."

One company that's found fantastic success with onlinereciprocal marketing programs is Proflowers. com, a San DiegoInternet flower company. In 2000, for example, in an effort toincrease sales-as well as motivate customers to purchase theirproducts before the Christmas rush-the 102-person business launcheda reciprocal marketing program with The Bombay Company, Gap.com,Omahasteaks.com and Wine.com.