Retail Tips Blog

Ideas for the independent Gift Retailer

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The holidays are over and put away, your getting ready for spring but what are you doing to bring in customers NOW?

Retailer:
business has come to a halt now that Christmas has past, last year our after Christmas sale kept us busy but this year that has not been the case.
Me:
Are you planning anything special to get traffic flowing again?
Retailer:
We haven't thought about it yet.
Me:
What inspires you to go out and shop in January? Sales, Girls Nights Out, Special occasion's (birthdays etc..)
Retailer:
I guess all of those things.
Me:
How about you do a fun Girls Night Out event, you could have your supplier for _______product do an in store demo on how the product is made or used. Put out some treats like you did for your Christmas open house. Maybe spotlight a few new products that you have just brought in with small name cards that say "New" or "Just In". Have fun with it, make it a party, use this opportunity to get customers in to see your newest products. Another fun idea have all your customers come in there favorite hat or something and give a prize for the best or ugliest, something that the women can laugh about is always a good shopping environment.
Retailer:
thats a great idea we could do ______ demo and we could spotlight our Giftcraft Jewelry.....and so on and so on
The moral:
think outside your normal box and find a creative way to get your customers in your store in January. I hope this helps you in someway! Happy retailing.

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See below, This looks promising as a new advertising opportunity and it costs you NOTHING up front. I have not heard of anyone using it yet, If you have tried it and have feedback let me know. Check it out at  http://www.grouponworks.com/ horaciogaray: Groupon is testing a new feature called Groupon Stores, which allows local businesses to create Facebook-like pages where fans can follow them and access deals. The businesses can add their own deals, bypassing Groupon’s long waiting lines in each city, but do they have more than enough to keep track of already?

See below, This looks promising as a new advertising opportunity and it costs you NOTHING up front. I have not heard of anyone using it yet, If you have tried it and have feedback let me know. Check it out at  http://www.grouponworks.com/

horaciogaray:

Groupon is testing a new feature called Groupon Stores, which allows local businesses to create Facebook-like pages where fans can follow them and access deals. The businesses can add their own deals, bypassing Groupon’s long waiting lines in each city, but do they have more than enough to keep track of already?

Filed under retail advertising retail tips

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Good seasonal display. I like they have taken out the ceiling tiles and stuffed the empty space with florals to set the tone. Enjoy.

Good seasonal display. I like they have taken out the ceiling tiles and stuffed the empty space with florals to set the tone. Enjoy.

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Have a back to school party

Back to school is an exciting time of year for mom’s….they have free time to shop again! Stir up some in store excitement and have a back to school party for the mom’s, maybe join with a local salon or spa to come to your store and demonstrate hair styles or give 5 min messages. Make it a fun girls night out event with Mocktails (cocktails without the alcohol so you don’t have to worry about the liquor licence) and appetizers. Do a special discount promotion, 5% off your total purchase if you bring 1 friend, 10% off if you bring 2, 15% if you bring 3 or more. Blast fun music and leave your front door open so passers by can’t resist coming in to check out your party! Good luck and Good selling!

Filed under retail tips Promotions promotion ideas girls night out event retail events

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The summer time sLuMp

♪♫  Summertime… and the livin’ is easy…  ♪♫

It’s high summer and if you’ve got seasonal staff in your store it’s time to check in with them.  We’re past the halfway mark and this is when burnout begins and productivity starts to slump.

  • Ask how they are doing. Just caring about their morale will give it a boost. Tell them you know that summer burnout starts about now and you want to help them make it through the season with flying colors.
     
  • Praise their efforts so far and mention any new slips in performance. If you’re going to do a performance review for your seasonal staff, now might be a good time.  There’s still time for them to improve and become an even bigger asset to your store.
     
  • Consider scheduling some kind of fun event to get them re-energized and rockin’ the last five weeks of summer. Check out this article on employee appreciation events for some good ideas.
     
  • Give them an extra day off.  Sometimes all that’s needed to bump up morale is a little bit of extra R&R at the beach or by the pool.  Hey, while you’re at it, take an extra day off yourself.  You deserve it!

This tip offered by Whizbang Training.

Filed under event employee staff seasonal morale event store day off appreciation summer slump lazy unproductive work

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Your customers vote with their wallet....read tip.

Customer writes:
"We are a struggling Interiors store. We handle furniture, window treatments, rugs, lamps, wall art, and accessories as well as gift items. During this recession, gift items (women's accessories in particular) have been our biggest sellers. How do I decide if and how much we diversify into other areas in order to be more profitable?"
Bob w/Whiz Bang Training Writes:
It's a common question, and I'm going to answer you with one of my favorite quotes from the Assortment Planning Kit in the Retail Mastery System....
Your customers vote with their wallet.
It’s absolutely critical to keep the customer at the center of your assortment plan. Without your customers, you’ll have no store and no merchandise assortment.
Your main mission is to offer what they want to buy!
It doesn’t matter if your customers say they love your merchandise or tell you that you’ve got the best store on the planet if they’re not actually buying. The vote is cast only one way, when the register rings. If they don’t want to take the stuff home with them, you don’t have the right assortment.
It’s up to you to tally the votes and tailor your assortment to meet their needs.
To do this effectively you must learn to separate what you like from what your customers like; what you think (or hope) they are buying from what they are actually buying.
You can be in the store every single day, watching the cash register every second, but still get a false impression. That’s because our brains constantly filter information based on our own personal biases – the merchandise we think is the best or that we like to sell.
Fortunately, your POS System doesn’t have that problem. It’s going to give you just the facts, ma’am. Your job is to interpret those facts and give customers more of what they want, and less of what they don’t.

Filed under retail tips retail retail business retail business tips