When Build-A-Bear launched its “Pay Your Age” customer loyalty promotion for its Bonus Club members in July it turned out to be too big. Offering loyal customers a one-day opportunity to make their own stuffed toy and pay only the price of the child’s age, the company created chaos.

Parents with their children formed huge lines at stores, with some customers having to wait for four hours or more to just get in the door. The company had to close stores and later apologize to disappointed customers with another offer.

Most business owners realize the value of showing appreciation to their customers through promotions that help build loyalty. But it doesn’t have to extravagant or expensive to work.

Rebecca Esparza, a Small Business Administration SCORE volunteer from Corpus Christi, offered a simple five-point plan for customer appreciation during a recent seminar in McAllen. “Know your audience and don’t overdo it with promotions you can’t handle,” she said when relating the Build-A-Bear story. “Appreciate the fact that they come to you. Your customers want to know you appreciate them.”

Handwritten notes: A quick note of thanks on a nice card gives a personal touch. The message can be a short and simple thank you for a recent purchase. The card may have a business logo to reinforce the brand.

Make a donation: If a business knows a large segment of its customer base cares about environmental issues, donations to local nature groups could go a long way to strengthen the bond between business and customer. Social media is an effective soapbox to promote the ways in which your business gives back to the community.

Spontaneous surprises: Give frequent customers unexpected bonuses at unexpected times. “It might be something as simple as a small box of chocolates or a gift card,” Esparza said. “To you it might be small, but it makes you stand out with the customer.”

Personalized messages: Even pre-programmed segmented email thank yous or promotional offers can be more effective if addressed to an individual customer. “A recipient is much more likely to open an email if it is personalized,” Esparza said.

Customer shout-outs: Using social media to celebrate customers by name to thank them for their patronage can be flattering and effective, especially if it includes a video. “Videos tend to go viral and get widespread attention,” she said.

Beyond those five suggestions, Esparza told the group of business people that simple loyalty promotions help build repeat business. One of the most common is a loyal customer card that is punched with each purchase. With a certain number of punches the customer is rewarded with something like a free cookie or a discount offer.

Customer promotions like that cost the business owner little compared to the return they can see from repeat visits. “Sometimes vendors leave samples or give you product,” Esparza said. “That doesn’t cost you anything, so use it to show your appreciation to customers.”

When something goes wrong with a customer experience, immediately address the problem with a solution. “Ask the customer what it would take to make it right and assure them you are going to fix the problem,” she said.

Customer appreciation strategies can be simple and inexpensive and should be given priority by the business owner. “Small business people sometimes get so bogged down running the business they don’t see the forest for the trees,” Esparza said. “They lose sight of the big picture. It’s a way of giving back a little something to reward good customers.”