Increasing repeat business by using colored invoices or receipts?

[sun818]

Do you think an invoice in color has a higher chance of communicating your idea than a black and white invoice? I'm thinking a "thank you" written in red will be noticed more than one written in black and white. Or a 10% off coupon in color is going to stand out more.

Has any one had success experimenting with color in their invoices?

[jsinger]

You're kidding right? Yes, I imagine colored or jazzier invoices would help a bit...after you've done 10,000 other things perfectly.

You really think anyone at the world's 100 most profitable companies are thinking about changing the color of their invoices to boost profits? As I recall, Wal-mart uses pretty ordinary cash register receipts.

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Certainly a colored discount coupon would be noticed more that a b/w one.

[Ally_Cat]

In general, a receipt I receive that is just plain black text on white paper is going to get filed and never be noticed again.

A coloured font, coloured paper, or non-obtrusive graphics might get an invoice added to my "check this out later" file - in which case could lead to a repeat buy.

In certain sectors, this would be a great idea.

[Marcia]

Someone I knew used flyers in her business a lot. She passed on a tip one time that she'd tried using different colors and yellow was the winner hands down - better response than any. Said she'd never use plain ones again. But flyers may be different.

[curlykarl]

Why not consider sending other items?

With every invoice we send an offer sheet, and a sticker :)

The offer sheet is Black & White with the url printed in big coloured letters down the side.

Karl :)

[hcstudios]

What type of sticker? Generic (e.g. purchased off the rack at a store) or one specially printed with your name/url on it?

At one point I had a task lamp on my desk with many Apple stickers on it. So, personalized/unique stickers might appeal to some folks.

We send our invoices as emailed PDFs, so can't include anything, but we're thinking of sending out a yearly "account summary" (like the credit cards do) in January that we could include something with. I think I'll stick with white paper (I want to keep the statement itself very business like) but I guess I could insert a separate colored note or maybe try the sticker route.