There are few things more annoying than getting a wine club shipment together but suddenly, you get hit with a decline for the card you have on file. Suddenly, it become a scramble to reach the customer and get their card updated. But many times, credit card declines are completely avoidable as long as you’re staying on top of it. Here are three ways you can help avoid them and keep your wine club shipments headed out on time.

1. Use Your E-commerce Platform to Your Advantage

Many e-commerce platforms now give you the ability to see when credit cards are about to expire. So in that case, it’s as simple as pulling a report and calling customers to get them updated. By being proactive, you can avoid the last minute hassle of getting an expired card updated right before a shipment is about to go out. It’s just a matter of making the time to get it done.

2. Send Out Email Reminders

When someone is the victim of credit card fraud, there’s a good chance they’re more worried about getting their new credit card number to the power company before they even think about making sure you’ve got the right information for their wine club shipment. Adding a reminder at the bottom of your regular emails is a great way to remind customers to keep their information up to date. Just a simple reminder if they’ve moved or gotten a new credit card can be a great way to help ensure you’ve got the right information on file.

3. Call your customers regularly

Calling your customers in the spring and summer months is one of the best ways to keep your database fresh and up to date. That way, when the holidays roll around again you will be able to spend less time on database maintenance and more time selling. You’d be surprised at how much more you can sell over the holidays when you’ve been calling and keeping your database healthy. And as a bonus, you can make an offer to sell them wine while you’re at it!