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Posts Tagged ‘holidays’

October’s for Beasties… and Bras

Posted in Shopkeeping talk, tagged , , , on August 31, 2017|

If you’re planning your October promotions, it’s a great month for two things: Halloween and Breast Cancer Awareness. Or, as this delightful pumpkin decor suggests, you could combine the two!

Suggestions re Halloween:

Why it’s the most important holiday for resalers

Promote pre-cycling by putting together some of these ideas from your stock  for a whole RACK of eco-friendly costumes. You’re welcome to print this HowToConsign booklet out to have in your shop for customers to read!

Learn to make both Halloween and Christmas money-making seasons in your business

Suggestions re Breast Cancer Awareness Month:

See if you can schedule the mobile mammogram unit in your parking lot. There may be a lot of demand that month, though, so be prepared for some sort of Plan B to benefit your clientele and the less-fortunate in your community.

Bling your Bra is fun, but you need to start working on it now. You can award a prize by getting your customers to vote on their favorites, charging $1 a vote to go to your choice of cancer charity. The winner(s) get shop gift certificates. Google for how others have organized their events fr some great ideas you can adapt.

Collecting bras for the homeless is a simple, reputation-enhancing event. And believe it or not, bras are one of the most-requested clothing items at shelters. Talk to local homeless charities about being a collecting point and find out how they can help you publicize that.

 

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What Do Your Customers Need to be Buying Now?

Posted in Shopkeeping talk, tagged , , , , , , on July 24, 2017|

The Ohio State Fair is starting this week. So, if your shop is within the geographical circle that’s likely to be planning to go, the main thought in your customers’ minds might be

What am I gonna wear?

Your consignment customers will be needing the perfect outfit for the fair!

and of course

I need it NOW!

Using the unspoken immediate needs or wants of potential shoppers means (more…)

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Got any plans?

Posted in Shopkeeping talk, tagged , , , , on January 15, 2017|

Take a moment and think about what’s coming up in February. And how your shop could use these wacky “national days” to tickle the fancy of your current… and potential!… clientele. Here’s some I’ve chosen at random, and a thought or two on each to get your imagination going to

design a promotional event for your shop!

Feb 1 Wednesday Work Naked Day: Your email, blog post, social media message could be: If you’re not allowed to work naked, the next best (more…)

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Fill up your New Year Calendar

Posted in Shopkeeping talk, tagged , , , on January 1, 2017|

Consignment promotion calendarThe best part of a new year, to me, is that fresh, crisp, BLANK calendar. I can’t wait to fill it with family birthdays, anniversaries, outings… and, in the case of my business calendar, the wonderful promotional events I will present to my customers. And those folks who are just dying to BE my customers.

A promotional event is any special happening that is not a normal part of daily business. It could be as simple as an anniversary celebration with refreshments and decorations, or as elaborate as an invitation-only after-hours seminar with speakers, special offerings, and discounts.  — Resale’s Best Promotions, page 5

So grab your calendar and come along with me….

First, mark the “real” holidays, those events that will already be on your target market’s minds. Here’s a nice list to use. Pay close attention to the all-important Monday holidays since you might ant a little something extra on those days.

PS That same link, has “national food holidays”, which would be great, you think, if you ran a restaurant. True, but hey! Who says you can’t promote “Free Gum Drops with every purchase” on February 15, National Gum Drop Day, or offer, “Free, just stop in” peanut butter recipes in a shop-branded brochure during the whole month of November, AKA National Peanut Butter Lover’s Month?

Next, skim through some odd holidays and pencil in on your calendar the ones that might tickle your town’s fancy. Take a look at:

Resale's BEST Promotions from TGtbT.comNow mull over which holidays will make the final cut in your shop. Things to consider? Whether it’s a theme that appeals to you, will be fun for your target customer, and whether it falls at a time of year when you NEED a gimmick. Remember, you can just use that odd day to take a quick shot of some relevant merchandise in your shop (green home decor items for National Pistachio Day or serape striped shirts for Cinco de Maio) to post on social media, without planning anything special in the shop. For other ideas, you might want to go all out.

If you can create a newsworthy happening and get the media there, the publicity will increase public awareness of your event. Be imaginative: for your Evening at the Symphony fundraiser, send out a strolling violinist to serenade the shopping center’s crowds the day
before your event, with a staffer dressed in evening clothes handing out fliers. — Page 25

Next, count backwards to get your time line for decorating, promoting and so on. Check the worksheets in Resale’s BEST Promotions to stay organized.

And don’t forget the after-event promotions that will create wide-spread attention to your shop and drive social media year-round. Find ideas for this in our PDQ.

Happy Whatever Today Is to you!

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I just adore it when I’m proven right.

Posted in Kudos: Ideas to inspire!, Shopkeeping talk, tagged , , , , on December 29, 2016| 1 Comment »

I just got off the phone with a consultee whose December business was up 30% over last year. Why? Maybe because …

she FINALLY took my suggestion of hand-written thank-you notes

She’d had this suggestion on her to-do list for literally years. When she finally sat down to do it, she took a whole year’s worth of contacts and hand-wrote Christmas cards to each.

Think that there was any correlation between customers feeling cosseted, and customers coming in to the shop in December?

If you’re in a similar fix and need to thank dozens of great customers from the last 12 months,

New Year’s cards work too!

Go buy some, pull out your best customers’ report or email list, and go for it!

Can’t find New Year’s cards? Try a blank card that says Thank You on its front, and inside write

We want to take the time to thank you for a wonderful 2016 at [Myshop] and to wish you all the best for 2017.

Yours,

(signed with your full name, and shop name if you wish)

(Be sure to tuck your business card in, so there’s no doubt in her mind who you are!)

Now, doing thank-you’s all at once can be daunting (ask any bride.) But for a shopkeeper who’s fallen behind in her daily/ weekly sessions, a holiday’s the perfect “excuse” for sending them long after the customer’s visit, isn’t it?

Extra-credit Reading

Find this idea useful? Learn more:

The Importance of “Thank You” to your wallet.

Want to write notes, but don’t know what to say? Read You Can Do It.

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