When retail sales are going well, you’ll rarely hear retailers complain. When sales are less than stellar, though, retailers have a number of excuses: the economy, it’s an election year, the weather is too hot, too cold, too rainy, too dry… you get the picture. Could you be part of the problem? Might you be[…]
As Fair Trade Month is around the corner (October, actually), what better way to engage customers than by inviting them to your ethnic table and enjoy some global cuisine? According to Mintel, a global market research firm, sales in the ethnic food sector have been climbing steadily since 2004, reaching $2.2 billion in 2009 and growing[…]
We live in a world of snaps, texts and tweets. Yet despite our reliance on technology for real-time updates, the greeting card industry continues to grow. In fact, the Greeting Card Association (GCA) estimates annual sales of greeting cards to be between $7-8 billion. Not million. BILLION. And, if you think Facebook birthday wishes posts[…]
We realize that it’s not easy for independent retailers to come up with new things to do everyday to increase business, especially as we enter the ever-busy 4th quarter. Here are 30 things to do every single day throughout the month of September. Some will take more time than others but the idea is to[…]
Ever wondered how to get your products into the pages of top lifestyle magazines like InStyle, Shape, New York and others? While magazine editors are constantly on the hunt for products to include in their layouts, holiday gift guides are prime times. Here are some things to consider if you’re interested in getting your products[…]
Late last month, Facebook announced via a blog post that the popular social media platform will prioritize posts shared by friends and family over brands, publishers and other pages. This is particularly important to independent retailers because this algorithm change means your customers will see fewer posts from retailers and brands. “The growth and competition[…]
Every single business has them: customers who are “just looking”. How do you move them from the just looking aisle to the register? First of all, maybe some people are just looking, and that’s fine. There is something to be said about the power of retail therapy. They’re in your store, they’re getting an idea[…]
Is radical transparency the latest retail buzzword? Consumers are demanding more information when deciding which products to buy or consume. Rightly so, thanks to E.Coli outbreaks on produce like broccoli and investigations that reveal some of the items they buy might be produced under sweatshop conditions, among other human rights violations. How do retailers reconcile[…]
Does getting your product into a celebrity’s hands translate into sales at the retail level? Pick up any celebrity magazine or watch any awards show and you’ll notice how often celebrities show off their baubles or accessories and mention which designer they’re wearing. The reality is that we live in a celebrity-obsessed society and many[…]
Much has been written about how consumers engage with businesses that are active in cause-related marketing campaigns and its cousin, corporate social responsibility. Bottom line: it’s not whether a company decides to engage, since consumers expect companies to act responsibly and to see proof of their commitments, according to a 2015 Cone Communications / Ebiquity[…]