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Archive for May, 2017

Please, come on in.

Posted in Shopkeeping talk, tagged , on May 16, 2017|

If your shop has more than one room, the entryway/ passage can be a real WOW factor… without interfering with their browsing pleasure. Doing something to lead folks in makes for an enjoyable and memorable shopping experience.

Which leads to more (more…)

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See how simple? A Kudos post.

Posted in Kudos: Ideas to inspire!, Shopkeeping talk, tagged , , , , on May 12, 2017| 3 Comments »

Okay, I get it.

Your shop’s so busy, you’re lucky to snap a shot and post it on social media, yet alone do as Kate suggests: brand your photo with your shop name.

One more step is just one step too far? Don’t care to take the time to let folks know that it’s a photo from YOUR business?

Then do asRose Marie Banner does here on her Instagram.

Put a SIGN in the darn photo.

Kudos to Rose Marie!

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Ruining a perfectly good employee

Posted in Shopkeeping talk on May 9, 2017|

When things get more difficult we start to ask some of our employees to wear multiple hats. That’s the right thing to do but be aware that just because they are good at one thing doesn’t mean they are good at everything. We can turn a strong employee into a weak one by giving them a job they can’t do well. — Rick Segel

Resalers on the ladder to successLet me tell you about Erica. She was the modelemployee. Literally.

She was a model. She was the star of our selling floor. She did great work for us in a shop-resale video. She dressed great, looked spectacular, made our customers look and feel like models themselves.

But we knew from Day One not to let her help incoming consignors (she couldn’t keep the steps of checking them in straight) and shortly thereafter, we literally BANNED her from the sales counter. Handling financial transactions was, well, not on her radar.

She adored selling; she adored putting wonderful outfits together. But had we required her to wear all the hats the rest of us wore, she would have dissolved into a red-haired puddle (a cute puddle, but still a puddle) of misery.

Erica was the first, and one of very few, staffers I ever had whose job description was so circumscribed. Had I required her to wear all the hats the rest of us did, not only would those crimson curls have ended up squashed… so would her spirit and her effectiveness.

Now not every shop has the latitude to work with someone whose talents are spectacular in one area and non-existent in another.

But if you’re lucky enough to have a stellar performer, let her (or him) shine.

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A risotto recipe for busy shopkeepers.

Posted in Shopkeeping talk, Slices of (my) life, tagged on May 3, 2017| 2 Comments »

Yummy baked risotto.

Yummy baked risotto. It ain’t traditional, but it’s quick and easy and infinitely variable.

Traditional risotto calls for standing at the stove stirring for at least half an hour.

Which is the last thing (more…)

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Kudos: Outfit them for an Occasion!

Posted in Kudos: Ideas to inspire!, Shopkeeping talk, tagged , , , , on May 1, 2017|

Nothing’s more timely, than a social media post showing what to wear this weekend!

Here, Designer Renaissance has a suggestion for the perfect picnic outfit. (And yes, they listed brand, size, price.)

 

A Closet Affair had a flat-lay outfit that would be perfect for that picnic, or any casual Saturday get-together.

What kind of outfit could you get together and show your followers for next week? What’s happening that your customers will be thinking about?

  • A ball game down at the park?
  • A festival?
  • A local celebration, event, parade?
  • Maybe they’re thinking of visiting the newest chic restaurant? (Great opportunity to cross-post and cross-promote there!)
  • Or hike the local state park, go to a carnival… or just take a drive in the country?

The key to this idea (besides, of course, letting them know sizes etc., and telling them that there’s lots more choices/ come in and let us outfit you) is painting a picture with a few words:

Feel the wind in your hair when you’re wearing this Trip to the Country outfit (convertible optional but recommended!) from MyShop

Oh yeh, and don’t forget (as our two lovely shops did here) to include your shop info in/ on the picture. When enchanted Facebook or Twitter or Instagram followers share your wondrous outfits with their friends, you wanna get your name out there, don’t you?

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