Auntie Kate The Resale Expert

Recently, I was witness to an exchange between a shopkeeper who draws enthusiastic customers from an hour and more away, and one which says her customers are so cheap “they expect thrift-store prices”. The shops carry the same range of merchandise, so what’s going on here?

Let’s call the shop with enthusiastic buyers Shop A, and the other, Shop B.

Is it the income level of the two shops’ market areas? Shop A is in a city with a median household income is $38,231. Shop B, the one with “cheap customers”? The median income for a household in that city was $44,477.

Now while there is a difference between level of income and willingness to part with money  I’d say that median household income plays a role in the price level consumers are comfortable with.

I can’t address the physical location of each shop, since I don’t know the traffic patterns of their communities. Also,  I can’t say anything about the look and, image of the shops since these are not a feature of their online presence. (A mistake for me to address in a different post: does your online appearance match the actual experience?)

I CAN say that Shop B has posted four times in the past two months on their Facebook page and that their web site has been “under construction” for over three years.

Reread that sentence. It says “We are not accessible to anyone using the Internet.”

Now Shop A.  They had 16 posts on Facebook in one day. Now, that may be “too many” according to the online pundits, and I’m not enamored of their typical posts that consist, merely, of merchandise shots with a caption that contains only the item’s size, but you gotta admit, that’s quite a contrast to Shop B, the one that’s singing the “cheap” blues. Their web site does have consigning information on it, although in an obscure area.

As far as I can tell, neither shop uses any other social media. They might use Instagram and Pinterest  but I didn’t see any mention.

Shop A has promoted interesting and educational fun events, although no mention of that is currently on their site. I don’t know about Shop B; the only “Events” on their FB page are sales.

Now this is not to say that Shop A has maximized their advertising and promotional outreach (for example, the sole prop of Shop A doesn’t connect her personal FB profile with her business, nor does her web site have photos of the shop and other aspects I recommend a resale shop include). And Shop B DOES connect the owner’s page with her business page, and she does have FB posts that go beyond snaps of merchandise on hangers.

And  I have no way to assess print advertising, email campaigns, or in-store promotional efforts such as Preferred Consignor clubs, frequent-buyer/ rewards programs, or shop size and selection quality or the effectiveness of their layout, fixturing and staffers. So this post is mainly about how their online presence may be helping their visibility and thus their traffic count.

Conclusion:  Is the problem cheap customers… or is it something that’s infinitely easier to correct?

In this instance, I’d say it’s a slam-dunk: Shop B, work on connecting electronically with more folks who need/ want what you sell, and you will attract those customers who are willing to pay the price you’re asking… that is, customers who aren’t “cheap.”