Trying to nail down one exact reason why your customers stay or leave is really an exercise in futility. Whatever causes the change in your customers’ minds, though, creates churn for your business. And, yes, customers will invariably change their minds. As your business grows and evolves, so do your customers. Sometimes, these two things Read More …
Summer is here and school is right around the corner, but it’s never too early to plan for back-to-school. Just because the prospect of kids returning to school at the end of summer isn’t on your mind doesn’t mean parents aren’t thinking about it, and many like to get a jump on shopping for clothing, backpacks, Read More …
You’ve heard of Small Business Saturday, but you’ve never joined in because you’re not an American Express merchant. Or perhaps you’re a late bloomer and missed the deadline for signing up with American Express. Not a problem! You don’t need to accept American Express or use their merchant materials to participate in this movement, Read More …
When you own and operate a retail store, your primary goal may be to sell the newest, most expensive stock first; however, you don’t want to just dump old stock and take a loss. By discounting older items you can at least recoup some cost, but items that didn’t sell when they were new are Read More …
The holidays are over. You can now take a collective breath of relief now that the chaos has passed. Don’t get too comfortable, now is the perfect time to think about next year’s holiday strategy. Taking an honest look at what worked and what missed the mark this holiday season puts you ahead for next Read More …
There is no standard formula when it comes to Social Media. You will never know how your customers are going to respond to a tweet, a pin, an Instagram pic or a Facebook post until you do it. When you tap into something that works and your customers connect, they will start reposting and ‘liking’ Read More …
A great retail business can suffer at the hands of unhappy and unproductive employees. Without their consistent efforts on a day-to-day basis, everything else you do in your retail store can take a backseat. After all, if customers think they will receive poor service or run into rude employees, they will avoid your store. There Read More …
As a retailer, you have a lot of competition. With so-called ‘big box’ stores, with online retail giants and other local businesses it can be difficult to get ahead. In other words, the competition is literally all around you, in every direction. So how do you stand out from such a big crowd? By going Read More …
A well-designed retail space not only engages shoppers, but also can enhance sales. Critical to this success is the placement of checkout counters. Checkout is the last step in your customers’ shopping experience. This has led many retailers to devote considerable time and effort to strategically positioning their registers. Williams-Sonoma, for example, places their counters Read More …
Shopping with kids in tow can be a challenge—even for the most easygoing parent. Fussy kids can often lead a mom or dad to beat a swift retreat to the nearest exit. When that happens, parents lose productivity and retailers lose sales. Smart retailers, however, have caught on that integrating kid-friendly features into their space Read More …