Many retailers hear the whining and moaning from their sales staff during sales events. It’s either the longer hours, the constant influx of people looking and not buying, the tiresome cleaning up of displays every 10 minutes or refilling refreshments etc.. but most of all, the major complaint is incentives for their extra hard work… the “What’s In It For Me” attitude.

Many retail employees are paid a basic hourly rate and receive commission on overall revenue from sales, so a discount event such as a High Impact Store Promotion or even a Store Closing Event can dampen their spirits because they work harder and most likely earn less commission. How do you keep those valuable employees motivated? Here’s a couple of thoughts our expert consultants from G.A. Wright would like to share with you…

Ask Their Opinion~ Asking an employee their opinion on things and treating them as some of the most important people involved in the sale will make the event  just as much fun for them as for the customers. Make sure you also implement some of their ideas after they offer up their opinion or advice so they can see their ideas in action. Having a sense of humor with them goes a long way as well.  Once they feel an important part of what is going on, then there are no problems with them remaining motivated.  They will ask me “What are WE going to do next week”… and I think WE is the important word here. Treating employees with respect and as valuable people creates a pleasant and team oriented situation.

Managers!- Give your sales people the SALES~ during a huge store event a manger or owner should be available to help customer, but should ultimately allow the hourly sales staff to write up each sale.  Close the deal then grab the nearest salesperson you see not with a customer. However make sure your employees know that if you see them  sitting around doing nothing you will not send  that customer to them.  Don’t play favorites, usually after the first day they realize you are serious and all of the employees will work well together to make the customer buying experience exceptional while they get their “incentives.”

Offer bonus incentives for selling the impossible~During a store promotional sale, money can be used by offering a fixed dollar bonus for achieving daily, weekly, or monthly sales goals.  Special bonuses can be given on specific items when they are sold.  This works well on “hard to sell” merchandise.  Instant gratification works extremely well in these situations as monetary awards are given immediately upon the sale of certain items.  Prizes in the form of merchandise, trips, or gift certificates can also be used to motivate employees during a promotional sale.

Store closing motivators are a bit more challenging.  Employees that are willing to stay until the end of the sale not only receive a regular paycheck but are often able to draw unemployment pay once the store closes.  In most cases if an employee leaves prior to the end of the sale they are not eligible for unemployment pay.  An owner may elect to offer severance pay or bonus pay to employees willing to stay until the store is closed.

Challenge The Team~ Giving some of the power to a sales person can go a long way. Pick an item that you don’t mind negotiating price on with customers and allow your sales staff to do some negotiating during the sale.  Challenge them from the start of the sale to find an item that you cannot seem to get sold without going below 1/2 off.  Then challenge them with an item that you pick for each of them to sell. If they take your challenge, make the bet good….maybe you’ll wash their car or buy lunch for a week.

Having a staff that feels like they are all part of the executive decisions makes for happy employees, better customer service, and better sales volume.

Special Thanks to our Expert Retail Consultants who have been in the business of retail management & sales for over 30 years… For provide their feedback for this post.

David Morris

Bobbi Orris

Lane Hoage

Rob Sublett

Harry Doering, Jr

Roger Baldwin

Chuck Schmitt

Add your thoughts about what you have done to motivate employees over the years by emailing  us at info@gawright.com or comment below.

For information on how to hire one of our Professional Retail Consultants to conduct a High Impact Sales Promotion or Store Closing Event in your store CLICK HERE.

 

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Many retailers think if they place that weekly newspaper ad, or stock the ‘in-demand’ high quality products people will flock to their stores and spend spend spend… 20 maybe even 10 years ago that might be true…but today consumers have so many retailers to choose from, they need to be sold on other things like location, price and service guarantees. Most consumers turn to on-line reviews, friends and family, and they shop the internet discount sites for a better deal. It’s times like these that having a customer testimonial is worth its weight in gold and a good customer review is ten times more likely to bring in new customers if they hear positive feedback about your store or services… they will spend spend spend and overlook the location and the price AND the competitor.

How do you get your testimonial seen or heard?

  • Set up a web-site and post your customer reviews on specific products and service.
  • Put a copy of a customer review card in each shopping bag with an offer to each new customer to write one too.
  • Start collecting emails and send out email campaigns with quotes and reviews from your customers.
  • Have events for family and friends.
  • Reward those customers that give you great reviews!

Consumers are getting smarter and smarter, they pay attention to great customer service, fair return policies, and inviting store layouts etc… they will continue to buy from stores they have built a relationship with and their friends and family will shop there to have the same positive experience.

See a G.A Wright Customer Testimonial- CLICK HERE

If you, as a business owner, knew that by hiring G.A Wright to conduct your In-Store Promotion Event (that you’ve been meaning to plan) or you have been trying to find the best way to Close Your Store and still make a profit…You may look at retail marketing in a whole new light when you see videos of our clients talking about their G.A Wright Sale.

G.A Wright has released a full DVD of our 2011 customer testimonials showing retailers talking about their Store Promotion or Store Closing Event with G.A Wright.

When you call us  at 303-333-4453 to receive this FREE DVD *you can get our FREE Brochure on How to Sell Your Store too!

* Offer is for Retail Business Owners Only*

CLICK HERE to order your FREE Information

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If You Sell it They Will Buy.… but only if you have a really well lit, well groomed professional looking attraction, have low cost high end products and free parking right?….Well what if I told that all you might need is the right display…

Many retail business owners are still under the delusion that if they have a product THEY are passionate about and THEY think people want to buy, customers will come in and buy with no marketing efforts, no attractive location, no discounting or sales events etc… Apparently customers will just show up.

If you want to create a buying experience for your customers and get people to spend money  on your products the best place to start is with the look and feel of your store and how you display your merchandise.

Displays that make people BUY:

A display must be eye catching, appealing, timely, well signed and well thought out from the start. Displays must tell several stories at the same time and at first glance:  What the store does best, how well it knows it’s merchandise,how well it knows it’s customers, the value received, and the timeliness of the item or items. You can build the best display ever of snow shovels, but if you are in Kansas in July, you are not going to sell any. Unless…that display can convince the local farmers that the snow shovel can also be used as a grain scoop.

There must be a logical theme that carries through the entire display.  Never mix unrelated  products.  An example of a theme might be “a day at the beech” or “a June wedding”.  Shock them with the unexpected such as “bigger than life” props.  A giant shoe coming from the ceiling to stomp a giant mosquito would be a real “eye catcher” for mosquito repellent!

People want be to shown what’s hot; especially in the clothing industry, the display needs to show a look that they can see, identify with and then buy.  It has to be “in style”, “hot” and of course appealing. And be sure that the main item on your display is easy for people to find on the racks… it needs to be near by so people can pick it up and try it on to purchase. If you don’t have any of the items in stock- change your display to feature something you do have that people can buy that day.

Build displays, in a higher foot traffic area or near a checkout. The old days of putting it as far back as possible to ‘drag’ the customer through the whole store are gone. Good signing with the sale price, or discount percentage,and the dollar savings should be reflected.

Move, move move.  Keep moving merchandise. Daily I hear customers remark that they never saw  a particular item before. I let them know that we are finding new merchandise every day.  Even the best display is only fresh for one day. Change displays all day long. Package items together to help the customers buy more. In a fabric store, bundle fat quarters. In a kitchen store, bundle kitchen towels, pot holders, and a utensil. In a jewelry store, show earrings, bracelets, and necklaces as sets.  Many customers are overwhelmed by mixing and matching items….do the work for them and increase sales.

Displays for different location types:

There are definite differences in promoting both merchandise displays and traffic displays in free standing and mall stores. Both need to have impact displays near the front entrance such as stacking. Nn interior displays, full boutique presentations should be used to highlight the theme of the product on the display fixture. Both of these techniques can be applied to mall and free standing stores.

For any type of location-Display a table of product with a big price reduction near the entrance of the store to draw customers in.  When I have a large quantity of a smaller add-on items I need to move, I display those items near the checkout and instruct the cashier to ask each customer if they would like to add the additional sale item. If the cashier makes a point to show the items to every customer they should all be sold by the end of the day.

Stores with walk-by windows-When it comes to window displays or displays in general, there is a lot to be said.  Display height and width must be proportional and the entire display should be in proportion to the size of the window.  Larger windows can be made smaller by covering part of the inside or using a partition.  Use “build ups” for small items in small windows such as jewelry windows.- And change your windows monthly, weekly or even daily to attract more customers based on day of the week!

Special Thanks to the Following G.A Wright Consultants for providing their expert advice from their many years of retail experience for this post:

Lane Hoage
Robert Sublett
Gary Osborne
Annette Pearce
Nicholas Dispirito
Judy Crockett
Nathaniel McDonald

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This video shows a G.A Wright Store Closing Sale in progress and the owners Grady & Martha Lee talking about their experience with G.A Wright and why they decided to use a Professional Retail Sales Consultant to close their business.

CLICK HERE for a FREE Brochure about Store Closing Sales

 
Lee Furniture Company in Harlan KY ran a store closing sale in 2012 with G.A Wright to liquidate their inventory and retire to spend more time with their family.
The entire sale from start to finish lasted just over 6 weeks and on the final day only a few items were left. This was a true wall-to-wall inventory liquidation event!

“The “Retirement Sale” has been fun and exhausting…We were excited and overwhelmed by the foot traffic the first day and first weekend of the sale.”… We are very pleased with the volume of business” ~ Grady Lee

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Retailing  in today’s economy is tough for any size business.

Retailers have suffered during the last few years not only as a result of the recession but also because of the general over-storing of the country. Many might argue that only small business retail has suffered, might I remind you of the collapse of Circuit City, Borders, Ultimate Electronics etc in just the last 5 years… it’s retail businesses of all sizes and the recession has precipitated many retail failures….undoubtedly there are more to come.

Retailing will not go backwards with resurgence of the types of retailing seen in the 60′s and 70′s. There is no more room in the market for another discount department store chain. Variety stores are gone. Catalogue showrooms are gone. Traditional housewares stores have been declining in numbers. Small retailers that sell the same products and brands as major discount retailers are going or gone and can’t compete with on-line retailers. Having said this, there IS great opportunity for independent retailers and unique specialty stores. There IS opportunity for new concepts that focus on quality products, high levels of service, entertaining store environments, convenience, and that sell to well defined niches in the market.

The brick and mortar retail store will never go away, but to be successful and stay in business in this changing industry you must start to adapt to the new customer. For information on Retail Trends and ‘How To’ guides for retail business owners call us at 303-333-4453 and we will send you a FREE brochure on Retail Store Promotion Events. * offer for retail business owners only

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The following blog entry contains selected and re-edited content from guest writer, Joan Bergmann ~Retail Ad Week.

Since the early 1990′s store closings have become an all too frequent reality in the current economy and highly competitive environment of the ‘information generation.’ For most retailers the idea of closing the doors one night and saying “good-bye” forever is not what they had in mind when the signs said, “Grand Opening.”

The solution specialist is G.A Wright.

G.A. Wright in it’s capacity as a liquidation specialist, works with a client-retailer on a consulting basis, devloping a program and providing an individual Retail Consultant who works in the retailer’s store everyday during the going-out-of-business process. Unlike other liquidators, G.A Wright does not purchase the store’s inventory nor do they bring in new inventory. Often the first thing that goes through a retailer’s mind when they are thinking about closing their store, is whether they can sell the company as a going concern. Initially it seems to be a very attractive option, which appears to have less risk and more profitability. But the sale of the retail business as a going concern depends chiefly on whether the company is currently profitable and what it’s cash flow is.

What most retailer’s don’t know is that it will be more profitable to sell their business after they sell their inventory and fixtures to the consumer. The business is surprisingly worth more when you don’t have inventory…. more on that later…

If the business is unprofitable because it is not being merchandised or advertised or selling correctly, there is good potential for correction. But if the problems are chronic, and cash flow is always short, then a decision to liquidate may be the right answer.

G.A Wright reports on Store Closing Sales are available to retailers at no cost when you call 303-333-4453. * offer is for retail business owners only* Reference letters from G.A Wright clients are also available.

 

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Without a doubt, direct mail can be the most powerful advertising available to retailers.  Many experienced retailers spend an average of 40% to 50% of their marketing budget on direct mail and some spend more!

Q: Why does direct mail work for retailers the best even in a time of ever growing technology and web-based businesses?….

A: Retail businesses operate in a market area which can be defined with geographic boundaries. Their customers tend to have specific characteristics. For Example: they’re golfers, or women over 30 or they have single family homes etc…Because a retailer’s potential customers are usually easy to identity, direct mail offers a very efficient means of reaching those customers.

Q: What kind of response is possible from direct mail?

A: It can be measured a number of different ways. I’ll give you an idea of the response I’ve been able to achieve for clients. When direct mail is used to advertise a special promotion and the mailing goes to people who are not known customers of the store, I usually anticipate $1,000 in first day sales per 1,000 pieces of mail. If 2 % of those receiving direct mail come into the store, I consider that to be an excellent response. When you mail to a list of previous or current customers, your response per piece mailed will usually be much higher for that group.

Tell us what other questions you have about direct mail advertising for the retail industry, and we can answer it! Just leave a comment below or send us an email to info@gawright.com

All our marketing advice on How to Advertise Your Retail Business and our High Impact Sales Promotion brochures are FREE  with NO obligation * must be a retail business owner.

 

 

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The years to come look very promising for retailers who position themselves carefully.
The demographic trends in our population are very attractive to retailers of almost every variety. Smaller retailers especially have big opportunities ahead in 2012 and 2013 with retail sales on the rise. There is every reason to believe that the market will continue to grow for many years.

Here are some suggestions for making the most out of the current retail landscape and gaining an edge on the competition.

#1: Think about what your customers are concerned about this year! For example; Easy no hassle returns on merchandise, low prices, quality service…. identify how you can improve on each of these things.

2.) Ensure that access to your store is safe and buying is secure & easy- (this includes on-line retailers. You must verify that on-line payments are secure!) Think about offering a shuttle service at night from your store to the parking lot. Post a sign in your store that ensures customers an honest price.

3.) Find ways to identify customers who cost you money. There’s no doubt that profitability can be enhanced with good information. The challenge is obtaining the right information and then making decisions that enhance goodwill and, at the same time, reduce losses. It might make sense to eliminate some customers from the preferred customer mailing list if they haven’t purchased in your store in the last 6 to 12 months.

4.) Build a web-site if you don’t have one… It doesn’t have to be fancy or expensive. Even if you don’t sell your products on-line, it’s critical to have presence on-line. Link your site to a business Facebook page or Twitter account. Use Google Products to increase traffic to your web-site and create on-line ad campaigns. There are many companies that can set this up for you, be sure you get references from those companies before you move forward on any project.

5.) Close your store if you cannot turn a profit. A retailer cannot survive without an advantage that can be clearly communicated to and valued by the customer.

For a FREE Brochure on how to conduct a  G.A. Wright Store Closing Event CLICK HERE

* offer for retail business owners only*

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This video shows a G.A Wright High Impact Store Promotion Event in progress and the owner talking about her experience with G.A. Wright and why she decided to use a Professional Retail Sales Consultant to move old inventory and boost her sales. SEE MORE VIDEOS on Retail Store Promotions

 
For more customer testimonials and to receive a FREE Brochure on Retail Sales Promotions CLICK HERE and mention FOOT SOLUTIONS VIDEO.

* Offer Available for Retail Store Owners Only*

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Many retailers will re-price items they want to clear out for a weekend cash raising sale in their store. But where most retailers are failing is that they only re-price and discount the items they want to move, they don’t discount other merchandise and they don’t put physical price tags on merchandise… If you want people to buy that old inventory you need to discount everything and make it visible in your store.

Here are a few things to keep in mind:

1.) Replace every price tag with a sale tag. This method will significantly increase your sales compared to using discount signs without re-pricing merchandise. Only stores that use scanning technology and do not place prices on merchandise as a regular course of business, should consider using rack signs only.

2.) Price may be the most important success factor. Your pricing strategy must attract customers to the store. One of the best draws, for example,  is the promise that everything is on sale. Every item SHOULD be marked down. That’s not to say prices must be substantially lower than the prevailing market price. Having prices that are slightly below market is normally sufficient.

3.) Carefully consider pricing for items you feature in advertising. Look for items or categories of merchandise that are broad in appeal-with your customer base- and that you have sufficient quantity to promote without the fear of running out. Price these items to draw customer traffic and then feature them prominently in your advertising. Usually a 20% discount is a good price for these attractive items. Of course some merchandise won’t draw a crowd no matter what price you advertise. —#1 rule of thumb here goes back to marking everything down. If you want to get rid of old inventory, put something on sale people want and then include additional discounts on your old merchandise so you can move it quickly.

REQUEST FREE BROCHURE

You can have a FREE store analysis and planning guidance for a High Impact Weekend Sales Event by having one of our Senior Consultants consult with you over the phone and then, if it is mutually agreeable, make a visit to your store to complete this process (some travel fees may apply if the consultant makes a visit to your store following your phone analysis)

* Offer is for Retail Business owners only. Please call us at 303-333-4453 for more details.

CLICK HERE to see what our clients are saying

 

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