The bigger you get the harder it is.

December 27, 2011

I just read an article about Sears closing 100 to 120 stores after the first of the year. It’s not hard to believe.

When was the last time you went to Sears. I went to Sears for a Craftsman tool. In order to get to the tools, which were hidden in a basement section of the store, I had to walk through many aisles of clothing and housewares. There was nothing in the store, other than the Craftsman tools (which I like), that couldn’t be purchased in any number of other stores. The decor was depressing and the customer service was non existent. If not for the tools I couldn’t figure out why I would ever want to shop there.

Sears has clearly forgotten who there customer is or ever was. They went from being a retail giant with a great catalog business, to an “also ran” as a department store and absolutely missed the boat on converting the catalog business into a thriving INTERNET marketer.

Amazon took the catalog customers away from Sears and Sears management did not have a clue what was happening to them.

I say all of this happened because they forgot to keep their eye on the customer and the kind of shopping experience that customer wanted.

In today’s market place there is plenty of room for the innovative small retail business person to take business away from the big guys.

The bigger the business the harder it is to maintain focus on the customer. If you are looking for a retail business opportunity look no further than your competitors. Study what they are doing and chances are you will find a niche market that is being mishandled or neglected.

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Posted by Gary Simning

Is what you want important?

December 20, 2011

When it comes to your business the answer is no.

Yesterday, I wrote a short post on understanding who your customer is, how they want to buy your product and the experience they want to have when buying your product.

Today I spent time working with a small business owner who is trying to keep the doors open. Listening to him describe why and how the store was opened it was clear that he had created his vision of what he wanted in a store and how he wanted to do business. The missing ingredient was the customer. All the thought and effort of creating the business had went into the experience the owner wanted.

I do not know who first said it, but this quote has stuck with me “We get what we want after we give a lot of other people get what they want”. Who ever said it understood the very essence of what makes a business successful.

 

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Posted by Gary Simning

Are you ready to get started?

December 19, 2011
English: It's open. First customers at Asda. 1...

Image via Wikipedia

Okay, you’ve made the decision to open your own store and you are ready to charge ahead. Since everything you do from this point on relates to your customer the first step in opening your business is defining who that customer is.

Take the next week and write down everything you can think of that describes your customer.

Ask yourself questions like:

  •  What age are they?
  •  Are they married?
  •  Do they eat oatmeal or ham and eggs?
  •  What time do they go work?
  •  Do they live in apartment or a house?
  •  Do they like to shop during the lunch hour or at night?

Spend time in your competitors stores checking out their customers.

  • How are they dressed?
  • What kind of cars to do they drive?
  • Do they browse or are they in and out as quickly as possible?

The more questions you can answer the about your customer the clearer the picture will become.

At the end of the week write out a detailed description of customer, the kind of buying experience they want and the benefit they are after from buying your product.

A clearly defined picture of your customer makes all of the subsequent steps so much easier.

Would you like to see a guide for opening a new store thats walks you step by step through the entire process. If so, shoot me a quick note.

If you have a particular problem you are wrestling with send me your question I will be happy to answer it.

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Posted by Gary Simning

5 Innovative Business Promotional Ideas

December 12, 2011

Are you looking for a ground-breaking marketing strategy to promote your business?

If yes, you are not alone, everybody else wants to climb the corporate ladder as well. Substantial and effectual marketing has always been the primary subject for many businesses. It has become more intricate as the number of marketing channels have outgrown in contrast to the customers available.

For example, a customer searching for a printing press over the Internet might never be able to find you because there are scores of them as well with successful business promotion campaigns. Likewise, a promotional email from a nearby restaurant might be ignored, despite offering a coupon. Similar promotional offers from two different businesses might never be able to garner the same customer appreciation because of old-fashioned marketing strategies.

So, what are the secret ingredients to those innovative business promotional plans? Unfortunately, there are no push-button promotional ideas that will straightaway drive a vast stream of customers into your business. Use multiple creative ideas to execute a successful marketing plan.

1. Set up A Professional Business Profile: Make a professional social networking profile for your business on Facebook, Twitter Google and LinkedIn. Ensure that each profile includes a link to your website. If you meet a prospective customer and they lose your contact information, your Internet profile will serve great benefits.

2. Take up Your Space on Google Places: Google Places are not only meant for retail stores or restaurant establishments. It will enable your potential customers to find you easily upon searching. For example, if a potential customer searches for your business on Google places, many place profiles will appear on the result page. It might also be possible that your business place doesn’t turn up on the first page of the results. However, it is beneficial for your business.

3. Write Informative and Promotional Articles: It is also very valuable to write promotional and informative articles for the product or service you offer. Upload some of them on the business website and distribute others to article directories and websites. Mention a brief author box and include your website link as well.

4. Ask For More Referrals: In addition to asking your present clients to refer your business further, reach out to the professionals in your business. Professionals in a particular field are a great way to gain some expert advice, as well as, set up more professional contacts and new customers.

5. Build a “Running” Website: There have been many instances when customers reach a business over their social networking profiles where there are no activities by the owners. This is a huge turnoff for the customers as they take it as very unprofessional and non-serious. This also results in appearing the least on search engine results. Greater activity leads to increased traffic and more customers.If you have been in the business for a long time and have not employed any marketing strategy yet, pay attention to it now.

Guest Post by Tim Brown. Tim Brown helps businesses with their promotional activities.

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Posted by Gary Simning

Weekend Reading 12/2/2011

December 2, 2011

Small Business Blog – You’re the Boss Blog – NYTimes.com. This is a good blog with good comments and articles on what it means to be your own boss.

Billion Dollar Brothers: Entrepreneurial Lessons From the Duo Behind ‘Guitar Hero’.  The lead developer of ‘Guitar Hero’ lives in a small community in the California Foothills very close to where I live. Just goes to show you that you can build your business anywhere.

Want Press Coverage? Start Small. Really Small. – WSJ.com. Take a look at this article on getting the press coverage for your business.

{r}evolution apparel: Crowdsourcing a Sustainable Fashion Start-Up – Forbes – StumbleUpon. This is an idea for raising money for retail startups that can be used by many other retail businesses.

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Posted by Gary Simning

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