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A good offer is a powerful marketing device. It can turn an interested person into a customer, a one-time patron into a regular, or a small purchase into a huge order. Here are some ideas on how to craft a creative, enticing offer your customers won't be able to turn down.

To begin with, your offer must be clearly and concisely stated, so there's almost no possibility of confusion or of losing customers' interest before they've heard all you have to say.

It should be believable, too, since customers tend to suspect anything that sounds too good to be true. So if you're offering half-priced cars, you'd better explain that they have hail damage, or people will assume that there's something much more critical wrong with them.

A good offer should draw customers in immediately. People put things off, and then they forget, so without a "limited time only" or "call now and get the ratchet set at no extra cost" attached to your offer, you might be wasting your time and money.

An offer should have a perceived value above and beyond what customers are used to getting. Simply offering a product for a listed price won't cut it. Sweeten the pot with creative pricing and bonuses. First month free, senior/student/child discount, buy one get one free, free shipping, honor competitors' coupons . . . the list goes on and on. Creativity and originality are plusses, but there's nothing wrong with culling ideas from existing offers. Just read the paper, watch TV and listen to the radio for scores of good ideas.

Lowered risk to the customer is another essential element of an irresistible offer. Free repairs, long warrantees and guaranteed satisfaction are tried-and-true methods, and so is "return it and keep the free gift." But again, originality and creativity count with customers.

The package deal makes for an especially alluring offer. By offering a perceived discount for buying many slightly related products together, you can easily entice customers to spend more than they were previously willing to. Throw in something for free, or an item that isn't available for purchase by itself, give the package a colorful or catchy name, and you've got an offer customers won't be able to pass up.