It’s easy: simply DO what 9 out of 10 of your consignment, resale, thrift peers are not doing…that your market place wants.
9 out of 10 shops have no , or no effective, Internet presence. So, do. Have a web site. Maintain a blog with consistency. Talk on your Facebook business page (forget the personal page, that’s nothing to do with your business) or your shop‘s Twitter account, about things that matter to your clients in language that communicates to them. Do it right.
You say you do? But is your site, your blog, your FB, presenting your business in the way you’d like it to be presented? Or are you merely copying others? Or trying to “save money” with a less-than-professional site?
Participate. I know, I am a nag about giving back. But if you’re in Washington state and you’d like a peer in Washington D.C. to recommend you to a customer… how else will you get known among your peers? Less than ONE PERCENT of the resale shopkeepers who visit Sharing ever even say howdy, yet alone participate in Sharing. That’s no way to promote your business.
Invest in things that will help your business. You know what your shop needs, whether it’s fixtures, equipment, knowledge or exposure. Find where your dollars will be an investment, where they will make your shop money. Then, have faith and invest in yourself.
Do not be all about YOU. Believe me, proceeding through the world looking out “simply” for yourself doesn’t work. Hold your hand out to help another. With good faith. Not because YOU will benefit, but because it’s the right thing to do. Karma is real, paying forward is real, simply being generous is real. We’ve all met people who are only out for themselves. I’m betting you could name at least a few, right in our industry. Don’t be them.
Auntie Kate The Resale Expert 
Great post, Kate. And so relevant to me right now. Thanks, as always, for posting! You are an inspiration to me every day!
You are so right Kate. We have a FB account that updates daily, check it out (Home Enhanced ), and a Twitter account. Our FB and Twitter also post on our website. I love my web guy, and we are also on a free website that WRTV6 has the Alist. In fact, the site is getting ready for their “best of” voting. So we are gearing up to promote the voting.
We also do Constant Contact email campaigns. I know all this takes time of a day that is already chocked full, but I also know it will work. Our customers love the FB page and Constant Contact gives them upcoming events and information about what is going on at the shop.