Here is how we have had one of the stands at the front of the store set for the last eight trading days before Christmas. We wanted to ensure shoppers understood the variety of charities we are supporting.
While not for everyone, my experience is boxed cards sell well when stacked flat like this.
The display is being tidied and topped-up hourly.
This post own Facebook pitches four different music magazines by highlighting the gift of free music with each of the four magazines.
This type of approach is better in my view than promoting the full cover of a magazine. It is the type of marketing other magazine retailers in Australia will not do. Plus, it is free, easy to do and enjoyable.
We need to do more of this.
The manager of one of my stores decided this Christmas they would feature snow globes. The range is beautiful. It lends itself to pitching on social media, to show the business as being different to what people may expect. It is a thrill to see shoppers stop and smile at the beautiful range.
This globe is especially popular as it swirls the ‘snow’ around in an eye catching way. A short video like this works a treat on social media. I shot it using my iPhone and had it loaded in seconds. It is the type of video people like to see on social media.
Competitions are a terrific way of attracting new shoppers to any retail business.
Key factors in the success success of competitions are:
I know of small local retail businesses achieving engagement of 500+ in competitions. They have got there by being consistent and following the points noted above.
The best competitions are those you run yourself for your own business. Show yours is a genuinely local business.
I love this Christmas window display from the team at newsXpress Bairnsdale for it pitches the business outside of what people might expect from this shop, it is fin and inspiring.
This is what the front window is all about, especially for retail businesses in high street situations country towns where attracting impulse visits depends on the window display.
This window display says come on in, this is a fun place to shop. Most important, the window appeals to kids and anyone who buys for kids and this time of the year that is most important.
The best place to start to redefine any retail business is from the front window. Start there, set your messaging and then work this into the business. Of course, any strategic change should start deep within the business, however, starting with the front window can unlock inspiration that demands to be addressed in the business itself.
This window display at newsXpress Bairnsdale is excellent, a proud representation of optimistic retail.
I hope it inspires plenty of newsagents to work on their window.
Each year, my POS software company, Tower Systems, publishes Christmas marketing tips for independent retailers. Here is this year’s list:
Christmas is the perfect time to plan for next year. It is the time to do everything possible to leverage bonus Christmas traffic to benefit your business through next year.
Tower Systems offers Point of sale / retail management software tailored for your specific type of retail business. Our software can help you leverage Christmas traffic for year-long benefits.
With social media content being swiped past quickly on phones, the short and simple posts are the best.
Here is one post I did two days ago that worked a treat online and in-store:
Can you see what I did? Three different panda products, from different categories, together in this one post. And with a single word text message, which was suggested by a colleague newsagent and for which I am grateful.
The engagement with and from this post made the $5.00 spend worthwhile.
Newsagents that are members of the Pacific magazines nexus program has access to a free email service allowing you to send an email to customers in the database you have built every two weeks.
I know form personal experience these emails work. I have had people in the newsagency as a direct result of receiving an email.
The service is free. Emails are easy to setup.
This is no brainer marketing in my view.
Marketing advice from newsagency suppliers is usually advice that best suits the supplier. This is all about their products being presented in a consistent way. Following their advice can mute your voice, your point of difference.
My advice today is don’t blindly promote as a supplier suggests. Promote in a way that best suits your specific business.
Mediaweek yesterday carried a link to a terrific report from Zenith forecasting that 75% of internet use in 2017 will be via mobile devices.
Mobile devices will account for 75% of global internet use next year, according to Zenith’s new Mobile Advertising Forecasts, published today. The mobile proportion of internet use has increased rapidly, from 40% in 2012 to 68% in 2016, and we forecast it to reach 79% by 2018.
If you have a website, it must be mobile friendly.
Your Facebook business page posts need to reflect that they will more likely be seen on mobile devices.
The growing level of internet access on mobile devices means we have to change how we communicate through our various online platforms.
I look at website platform access data for a range of websites and there is no doubt about the growth of mobile and the importance of being mobile friendly.
Being mobile friendly with newsagents starts with being able to be found by people using their mobile phones. Do a search for you business. If you cannot be found, fix that. How do you fix that? Talk to your =marketing group, ask them for their mobile marketing training.
This Star Trek calendar is beautiful. Star Trek fans with a passion for the original TV series will love it for sure. The challenge is, many will not know newsagents have the Star Trek calendar. So, we are hitting social media to promote it. I expect this targeted marketing will bring new traffic to the newsagency business. It has in the past.
We will run a series of social medial posts using calendars to attract new traffic. There are some excellent calendars in the 2017 range and the time is right to call these out in a way that is sensitive to the niche interest each calendar represents.
This is my marketing tip today – use selected calendars to attract new shoppers.
Most independently owned retail businesses do not have a marketing budget, an amount they spend promoting the business outside the business. My rule of thumb marketing budget advice for a retail business like a newsagency is at least 2% of revenue where revenue is product sales revenue plus commission from all agency lines.
A newsagency with, say, revenue of $500,000, the suggested marketing budget would be $10,000 spent over the year on out of business advertising and marketing. This amount should not include banner group fees or association fees. It would include print ads, flyers, local radio, local TV, facebook and other special media ads.
Setting a budget is important as it guides your weekly activity. The $10,000 plays out at $192.30 a week. There is plenty you can do with that. The key is to measure success from each spend, to ensure the business is benefiting.
Using a close-up photo of part of a magazine cover can get you a significantly better result from a Facebook than using the whole post. Take the current issue of Better Homes and Gardens. While it looks terrific, a close up of the pav was the hero so that is what I used for a post yesterday. And it worked a treat. Hundreds of shares in a few hours – extending the reach of the post beyond the like base of business I was promoting.
Here is my marketing tip: If promoting a magazine, look for the image that differentiates your pitch from what others will do to promote the same title. If you pitch the whole cover you are not offering a differentiation for your business.
I have participated in marketing events in several newsagencies this year where feature products have not, until the event, been available in the business. A purpose of the event was to test if there was sufficient. In each instance, there was. In fact, in some cases, several thousand dollars in revenue for the new products on the day of the event.
Hosting an event for products you don’t usually sell is another way to extend the reach of your business, to attract shoppers who do not usually shop with you. It can be a valuable marketing activity.
I also love this idea for the excitement it provides when the retailer sees products they don’t usually stock selling in their business.
This is a great way to build optimism.
I don’t get why any small business retailer would run a loyalty program based on points when the supermarkets have ruined the value of points programs with change after change and a value proposition that is dreadful.
News Corp. published an article about this in August. Consider the Woolworths supermarket pitch:
$1 spend will earn one Woolworths Point, with no minimum spend.
$2000 spend on anything in the supermarket, BWS and Caltex will earn 2000 Woolworths Points, which can be redeemed for $10 off your next shop.
Now, take a look at the Coles supermarket pitch:
$1 spend will earn one FlyBuys Point, with no minimum spend.
$2000 spend on anything in the Coles supermarket, Target or Kmart will earn 2000 FlyBuys Points, which can be redeemed for a $10 gift voucher in Coles or Shell petrol, effectively $10 cash off your next shop.
Now, if you run a points program, think about your offer. I know newsagents who accuse a point per dollar spent and the points are worth 2.5 cents each. In this scenario, $2,000 in purchases results in a value to the shopper of $50.00 – considerably more than the $10.00 you get from the same value purchase at Coles or Woolworths.
The comparison is reasonable because the currency is the same – the currency is points. Regardless of the value of the points.
I don’t understand why any retailer would offer a loyalty program that can be easily compared with a big business competitor, especially where the competitor actively runs a loyalty program that is anything but.
In small business especially, the loyalty program you run needs to be an easily understood point of difference. It needs to be something people will switch to your shop for.
If you run a points program, ask your customers if they understand it. Next, run your management reports to assess whether you are actually making money from the program. you know what it costs each year, are you achieving incremental business to justify the investment?
Many years ago we all jumped into points based loyalty because it was the big new thing and because we wanted to be like big businesses because that’s what we thought was right back then. However, that sea quickly became competitive and bloody. In fact, now it is so cluttered and confusing that copying big business is not a smart move at all.
Be smart about your loyalty offer. Ensure it is easily understood, differentiating and offering understood and appreciated value.
My advice to newsagents is that you do not use a consultant to run your social media campaigns. rite your own Facebook and other social media posts. No excuses. I am yet to see a social media consultant who speaks with a voice that best represents a local retail business like a newsagency. Save the money and spend it more productively in the business.
This sign in the window of a Priceline on George Street Sydney is interesting in that a national chain would only do something like this if it worked. It looks like an opportunity for newsagents in areas where cruise ships dock or tour groups visit to try if not being done already. You can leverage the opportunity with discount vouchers or similar as the traditional loyalty offer would not work with these types of shoppers.
What does your shop look like when you are closed? Smart lighting and a good window display can help your closed hours be profitable. I saw the different smart lighting can make last week in Manchester in the UK. Here is a photo of a real-estate agency on Deansgate:
Here is another real estate agency right next door.
I took the two photos one after the other and from the same distance from each window – to facilitate comparison.
The first agency looks more appealing at night. It is the one of the two you are drawn to.
Take a look at how your shop looks at night time. Are you making the most of any night time traffic?
It is Spring, time to celebrate the end of Winter and there is no better way to visually do this than with a colourful display of artificial flowers in the business. This type of display, seen from outside the business, ia perfect marketing activity. Promote the display on social media too and invite customers to share photos of their garden.
Typo hit Twitter just now promoting a 40% store wide discount at their Chadstone, Melbourne, store today.
This tweet teaches us several things:
