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"How can money be the root of all evil, when shopping is the cure for all sadness..." Elizabeth Taylor

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Blog posts tagged in marketing

Posted by on in Marketing
Generosity

You're incredibly busy and someone asks to have a product gift-wrapped. 

I've heard:
"Sorry, I can't do that today. We're too busy". 
"You'll have to wait until I've finished serving these other customers".
"Not today.  Sorry".
Or, the wrapping is poorly done with an equally poor attitude.  Mind you, I've also seen perfectionists take an extraordinarily long time wrapping a gift whilst other customers 'silently fume'...

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Posted by on in Marketing
The Easiest Sale

The easiest sale to structure is one that requires you to look at everything in your shop.

Look at every colour. 
Look at every size.
Look at every shape.
Look at every type of product.
Then act.

We're talking about a series of one-day sales, each featuring a particular category of products. These one-day sales can be held one day a week, one day a month, on consecutive days, or even every single day during an entire month.

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Posted by on in Marketing
Local Marketing Doesn't Work ... oh really?

Excuse me for disagreeing.
Bad local marketing doesn't work.
But clever, innovative local marketing - aimed at the locals - most certainly works. Check this out:

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Posted by on in Marketing
Letter Drops

I was recently asked this question:  Traditionally one of the ways our business has promoted our products is via a local letter drop. Is there a more cost-effective way to promote our products to a wider audience?

There are certainly other ways of promoting your business.  Without knowing the retail sector you’re in, here are some ideas:
Ramp up your bag stuffers.  Change them regularly and hand them out to every customer who purchases in your store;
Ensure you capture customer’s email addresses so that you can send out emails, offers and newsletters;
Start a facebook page, ensuring you spend money on facebook ads targeted towards your market ie geographic, gender and age group; 

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Posted by on in Marketing
Move that Stock

Every product has a birthday!  Your objective is to make sure that no product celebrates a birthday in your shop.  Be ruthless!

So, if you have product that’s not moving, here are some ideas to get it out of your shop:

  • Move it to another location and monitor its sales – the product could be just fine – it might just be in the wrong place.
  • Promote it using signage, or if it is already promoted with signage, change the signage.  The sign could be sending out the wrong signals.
  • If you find you’re not doing the amount of business you expected, you just may need to stimulate a little activity.  Sometimes you may not even need a sale.  Maybe all you need is a creative non-sale promotion eg. Combine the offending product with another and sell them as a pair....
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Posted by on in Marketing
Fridge Magnets
You’ve just realised that custom magnets will last longer, can contain the same information and be the same size as a business card... so how can you utilise this wonderfully inexpensive, long lasting, promotional marketing tool that will be kept and seen for ages, to increase your business turn over and sales?
Well to start, don’t think that a custom magnet has to be a business card substitute. A number of great promotional ideas for utilising custom magnets are: 
  • Once a service has been rendered offer a discount magnet for repeat business 
  • Place your company promotional message on the magnet along with details
  • Place your facebook and social media details on the card
  • Promote a competition or ongoing prize draw
  • Place a code on the magnet so when clients contact you for service they get a discount
  • Run an incentive program or repeat business bonus to encourage customers to keep the custom magnet
  • Create invitations to functions such a fund raisers, product launches or special events
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Posted by on in Marketing
Bondage and Discipline

You know how 'boring' the majority of shopping is nowadays?  - same product, lookalike shops, same less than exciting service ... yada yada yada.  For the first time in a long, long time I walked into a shop and laughed out loud with delight.  This is what took my fancy.
How great is this!!  ... bondage and discipline products to get your garden under control...

I was in Tim's Garden Centre in Campbelltown ... on a wet, wet day.  
This Centre has such a personality - it's quirky, funny, different than any other nursery I've set foot in - and I've set foot in quite a few.
People tell me that signs don't matter.  They matter! As you can see from this sign in Tim's they not only tell you about the product [and refocus you on what they're selling], but they fit the 'personality' of the business.  

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Posted by on in Marketing
Bag Stuffers

Bag Stuffers are a most under-rated marketing tool.  Somehow we seem to have forgotten about them.  So I thought I'd re-introduce you to these cost-effective marketing miracles...

What is a Bag Stuffer?
A bag stuffer is a store offer or a calendar of store events/promotions on a  piece of paper that is given to every customer who buys from you.  And, unlike its name, its not to be stuffed willynilly into a bag - nor are you to ever be tempted to pre-stuff your shopping bags!

An Offer
Ensure your bagstuffers are visual (including photos)and include your logo and all contact details of your shop (this includes your website, facebook page, twitter name, instagram link...).  They are easily made.  You can design a bag stuffer on your computer as a word document - either one A4 stuffer or multiple bag stuffers on one page - simply guillotine them after you've printed them on your COLOUR printer.  Better still, design them (or get them designed) and either email through to your local printer or put them on a usb stick and walk it up to your printer.  Shoddy, black and white photocopies won't work.  

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