I was giving a marketing seminar at a gift show last month and I asked the store owners in the room to give me a show of hands on how many had called their top customers recently. Out of about 30 retailers, only two raised their hands.

One man in particular had a look of horror on his face, and when I asked why he didn't like the idea, he explained that he wouldn't want to get a call during dinner from a retail store, so he wasn't going to call them.

Here's what I proposed to the group. At the register your goal should be to collect the email address and phone number of every customer. (For tips on how to best collect and use email addresses, read my previous post.)

If you offer every customer the chance to receive something free for giving you a valid email address and phone number, you'll get a very high rate of participation. The trick is that they have to bring the email back or mention your phone call to redeem their free gift.

If you just asked most of your customers, "can I have your phone number/email address so I can contact you," the majority will answer no. But if you said, "I'd like to put you on our special list of VIP customers… we're doing a product giveaway next month, can I have your number so I can call you about it," the majority will probably say yes. (Everyone likes something for free.)

The bottom line: we need to get very creative right now and give customers reasons to come into the store. What are you waiting for? Call or email your customers and invite them in with a special offer—one they can't say "no" to.

While some retailers have decided to market deep discounts to keep their registers ringing (Macy's for one), others (like Zales) are utilizing a different approach. They are focusing on price and marketing items in the store that are less expensive. And they aren't the only ones.

Ann Taylor Loft sent out an email blast promoting fashionable apparel (their 10 top picks) for under $50. And in the store window of The Gap, they are marketing their new polo shirts for the sweet price of $20.

If you do email blasts for your store, you should think about sending out an email promoting your favorite items that are under $20 or under $50. Emphasize how you are cost-friendly, not how low you'll go.

I'm currently reading Eckhart Tolle's book, The Power of Now. The book is about adopting the practice of focusing on the present moment, rather than remembering the past or trying to predict the future. He believes that when you look back, or try to look forward, you get caught up in an emotional "dialogue" in your head that takes away from your experience in the moment.

Even though Tolle's book is meant to be used as a tool in every area of your life, I find it particularly helpful from a business perspective. As business owners we can get so caught up in thinking about how the future might unfold, that we are distracted from using every moment now to propel our business forward.

Of course we need to do some practical planning for the future (ordering, scheduling, etc.), but the more you make the most of today, the less inclined you'll be to worry about the "what might happen."

On Friday I read an interesting article about how Dunkin' Donuts decided to use Facebook to glean customer feedback and brand awareness by hosting a forum event. DD focused the forum on their healthy menu items, such as egg white flatbread sandwiches and multigrain bagels, and encouraged fans to participate.

To promote the new Facebook market research intiative, DD sent an email blast to their loyal opt-in database on the Friday and Monday before the day of the forum, and promoted it on their Facebook page. The result—they now have more than 436,799 fans on their Facebook page.

David Tryder, manager of interactive and relationship marketing, when asked what the biggest thing he learned from the experience was, explained that through this experience he has figured out "a cost-effective way to communicate with loyal fans that doesn't just look like advertising."

Are you feeling as inspired as I am to host a forum event on Facebook to connect with your loyal customers?