Can your shop provide a photo opp for your customers to use and post on their social media?
With these (more…)
Archive for the ‘Shopkeeping talk’ Category
Flippin’ out over Being Backwards?
Posted in Shopkeeping talk, tagged advertising, Facebook, resale shopkeeping, starting a consignment shop, web on November 9, 2017| 1 Comment »
If there’s even more you’re confused about in the resale industry, you need to click on the pic and grab all of TGtbT.com’s info!
If you’re flipping out over your Facebook Live videos being backwards, here’s how to correct that!
Or rather, here’s LOTS of ways… try them all and see what works easiest for you!
Try this fellow and his phone: Fixing Facebook Live.
Another source, complete with headgear. You won’t want to miss this. I think. But then again.
Great article on prepping for an effective Live Video, even though he doesn’t address the problem we’re working on.
Bonus tip from Authentic Storytelling:
Easy way to test anything in Facebook Live or Facebook in general. Change the status of the post or video to “only me.” Now you can publish and only you can see it. Just be sure to change it back to Public, Friends or a custom list later when you post the next time. Facebook will treat this as your new default setting until you change it.
And resale/ consignment-specific advice from Auntie Kate:
Points on SELLING via Live Video
Points on keeping your Video going!
Are any of these incorrect or confusing? Tell us in the comments, below…
Help the Kids Learn the Gift of Giving
Posted in Shopkeeping talk, tagged christmas, holidays, resale shopkeeping, starting a consignment shop on November 8, 2017|
I was cleaning out files the other day and came across this layout for a quarter-sheet bag stuffer I made up for a nonprofit resale shop I used to volunteer with. Which reminded me how much (more…)
Is the problem cheap customers?
Posted in Shopkeeping talk, tagged advertising, customers, Facebook, resale shopkeeping, web on November 7, 2017|
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 (more…)
Splurge a little. . . You’re worth it!
Posted in economics of resale, Shopkeeping talk, tagged daily operations, resale shopkeeping, starting a consignment shop, success on November 6, 2017|
Why are we resalers such a tight bunch?
Well sure, we believe in the sanctity of a bargain, and nothing delights us more than beating the trash pick-up guys to a terrific display piece sitting out on someone’s curb (I once rescued a no-seat rattan princess chair that became my favorite window prop for years!) or finding a store going out of business with hangers for a penny apiece. And yes, most of us opened our shops on a shoestring and are leery of overspending.
But darn it all, there are some little splurges that could make a big difference in your shop’s public image.
How about fresh size rings? Wouldn’t it be nice if they all matched, if we didn’t have to alter them with a black marker, if we could toss the yellowed ones? And after all, they are not very expensive.
Proper hangers go a long way to making our gently-used good clothes look almost new. Foam hanger covers save garments from stretching or falling on the floor, and both these items make our customer’s browse through our racks a more pleasant experience.
Fresh, sharp tagging needles and loop attachers for handbags and belts and other difficult-to-tag items make tagging go smoother. Why frustrate yourself daily rather than spend some money here?
I was in a shop recently where all the employees’ coffee mugs matched, and were various vivid shades. If you’re going to drink coffee on the sales floor, might as well do it in style.
Another shop, which I know makes good money, was years past the point where the carpeting should have been replaced. Not a cheap splurge, but I couldn’t help but imagine how much classier the shop would have been without the stained, worn carpet it now has. Chances are it would look so good that she could raise her prices a dollar or two per item and make back the cost of the carpeting within a month or two. Yes, the look of your store can make a difference in the prices your customers are willing to pay.
And being a cheapskate can cost you dollars.
I guess that’s the point. A little money spent on image can mean a lot more money in your pocket. So reprint new business cards and toss those old ones that you have to manually alter to show your new hours, paint those dressing rooms, replace those liquor boxes you store incoming merchandise in with fresh laundry baskets. Are you worth a bigger splurge? How about replacing the scratched glass on your showcases or that banged-up outdated mannequin with something more upscale? Getting rid of those wood clothing rods your spouse installed before you opened eight years ago, and installing an adjustable system that you can double-hang tops on?
Are you putting up with… or worse, ignoring… that amateur web site that introduces your shop to new folks? Splurge on a site you will be proud to send people to from your social media messages. One that reflects how polished and professional your shop truly is.
Spend your money where it will save you time, too. If your vacuum is so old and tired that vacuuming takes hours, would a newer unit give you back some of that time? Do you not clean your windows often enough for lack of time, when a window-washing company will keep your image bright and polished for a pittance?
Splurge a little. You’re worth it. And your bank balance will be worth more when sales rise because you finally have enough time to spend out on your crisp, clean, efficient sales floor interacting with your impressed-by-your-image customers…
which is where you belong.
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