Marketing

Recent Branding News

January 10 in Brand Development, Marketing by SunUp Group | No Comments

This year we’re going to make Branding News a regular part of our blog. Our goal in doing so is to: bring you up to speed on what some major, well-known companies are doing, highlight the latest trends in branding, and inspire you with stories of creative, unique branding moves.

Here are three of the most interesting branding stories to come out recently:

Nissan debuts brand scent.  In a bid to woo car-lovers at the North American Auto Show, Nissan is appealing to consumer’s olfactory senses by testing a ‘brand scent’ that they may roll out to dealers if successful.  Nissan describes its brand scent as “quite a modern smell — a bit Oriental”.  The brand scent is part of the automaker’s new multisensory brand experience. According to Nissan, “The new Nissan exhibit is designed to interact not only with the senses of sight and sound, but also touch and smell.”

The goal is to make people feel “at home” and of course, spend more. Nissan is certainly not the first to use brand scents, but we haven’t heard of it in the auto industry in many years. Brand scenting is common in the luxury hotel and retail industries; Victoria’s Secret, Abercrombie and Fitch, and Singapore Airlines all use it.  Overall, this trend is more than just brand scents; it’s actually the multi-sensory brand experience that we see emerging.

MAC puts female bodybuilder in cosmetic ad.  MAC cosmetics is well-known for their unconventional choices to advertise their brand. They typically are a cutting edge brand who has used Lady Gaga and Nicki Minaj in their advertising campaigns. They’ve gone a completely different route this time, though, to advertise their makeup line called “Strength”.

Instead of using waifish models as the rest of the fashion and cosmetics industry usually does, in this new ad they feature bodybuilder and fitness model Jenna Abbou.  And she is ripped!  We’re talking well-defined muscles here, not just toned.  The tag line for the new line is “Flex your femininity with a color collection that’s fearless, elegant and strong. Strike a powerful pose, stand out, redefine the notion of beauty – and do it with strength too irresistible to ignore.”

It’s a beautiful ad, and frankly we love the fact that they’re embracing a new standard of beauty!

Lipton launches “Drink Positive” tagline in the U.S.  We were intrigued by this story because, well, Lipton is not really a very exciting brand. It’s been around forever, but they have been overshadowed by specialty tea brands with exotic flavors, as well as their own newer lines like green tea, tea in pyramid-shaped bags, herbal tea, and iced tea.  Now, however, they’re focusing on the flagship black tea product that comes in the highly recognizable yellow box.

Interestingly enough, the Unilever execs (Unilever owns the Lipton brand) are saying this new campaign is the first extensive effort to be devoted to Lipton black tea in the U.S since 1989! The new campaign targets Millennials, whom the executives describe as “life embracers”.  The branding efforts also include making the yellow box even brighter; maybe even to a ‘lively’ shade of yellow?

With this campaign, Lipton’s carving out their unique benefit by focusing on the feeling you will get from drinking the tea, rather than their expertise or origin of the tea, like many other companies do.  All in all, we think this is a very smart move by Lipton and will be following this campaign to see the results!

That’s our branding news roundup for this issue. For more interesting and relevant marketing news, please Like our Facebook page or follow us on Twitter!

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To Change or Not to Change, That is the Question

December 27 in Marketing, Small Business, Strategy by SunUp Group | No Comments

The New Year is almost here!   This is important, because the New Year represents a change where we leave the old year behind and swiftly move into a new year with new challenges.  It would be easy enough to declare “What’s behind us doesn’t matter!”  However, such change deserves reflection on what the passing year means to our business and what the New Year holds. Here are some questions to ponder when considering a new direction for the New Year:

 

  • What was our biggest accomplishment for 2012?
  • Did we meet our overall goals?
  • What mistakes did we make?
  • Did we track our progress regularly?
  • Were our customers satisfied?
  • What do our employees say we did well?

One of the biggest questions for the New Year will be, “Is it time to make a change”.    For the visionary in us, such a thought is invigorating!  Why, then, would we be reluctant?  For any experienced entrepreneur or executive, we know making a conscious effort to change takes time, energy, resources, and commitment.  It will reach into every component of the business, and may forever alter the course of the organization.

A review of the passing year should reveal whether change is needed.  Because we generally improve the things we measure, we need to have the pulse on our key metrics.  We should know, for instance whether or not we exceeded our customer’s expectations.  We should know if our team members and partners are happy, and if we did a good job with cost control, production, sales, and warranty.  Through our metrics, we’ll be able to determine if we have achieved what we set out to accomplish.  If we can’t readily assess the state of our business, then we know what the first “change” should be.  We need a dashboard that gives us a quick read on the key metrics in our business so that we can see at a glance where we are succeeding and where we are coming up short.  This is an important driver for success!

Let’s presume that we have such a dashboard.  Some of the metrics will be based on feedback from our customers that will help us gauge the effectiveness of our processes including customer service, product design, sales processes, pricing and warranty.  Interviews with our customers should give us information on how they perceive we performed in comparison to our competition and how well our team is performing at each level.   By having this important feedback from our customers, we can often see what is working and what is broken.  If we pay attention to our customer surveys, we can obtain some valuable feedback on what we need to do to move the needle in a positive direction.

Our customers are obviously key stake holders, and they are the ones we are all accountable to.  Team members are also key stakeholders because sound execution depends on them.  If we properly support and incentivize our teams and empower them to always do the right thing for our customers without delay, our customers will reward us for it.  At the same time, if our employees fully understand our value proposition and believe in the service and products we offer, they will become ‘walking billboards’ for our organization.   By measuring performance, we can identify the strengths and weaknesses in our culture and our team, and may also find weaknesses in our processes that need to be shored up. Ultimately, the feedback from our key stakeholders will lead us to answering the big question “To Change or not to Change!”

Let’s face it, some companies operate their business without reflecting on previous year’s accomplishments and mistakes, and some business leaders operate “by the seat of their pants” when it comes to processes.  Great companies have a defined mission and purpose, a clearly articulated set of core values and a firm commitment to excellence.   In his book Good to Great, Jim Collins writes this about the Culture of Discipline: “When you combine a culture of discipline with an ethic of entrepreneurship, you get the magical alchemy of great results.”

The New Year presents a fresh opportunity to change the direction of your organization and infuse momentum into your company.   An objective review, assessment, and diagnosis will get the ball rolling.     It will involve a transition plan that is well orchestrated, and buy-in from everyone on your team.    In the end, your enterprise will be moving forward on a solid footing, prepared for sustainable success with the appropriate tools and the right team to get the job done.

If you are considering a new direction for your business in 2013 and are struggling to map it out, please feel free to contact us at 877.609.3840 or email us  – we would love to help!

Cheers to a Happy New Year!

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Last Minute Holiday Marketing Tips for Your Small Business

December 17 in Marketing, Small Business, uncategorized by SunUp Group | No Comments

The National Retail Federation predicts a 4.1 percent increase in holiday sales over 2011, and overall small businesses anticipate a strong holiday season this year.  Hopefully you are seeing these sales translate to your small business!  Though it’s mid-December, there are still plenty of shopping days left this holiday season, so we are here to help your small business make the most of your marketing efforts over the next week or so.

Here are our top 6 tips for easy, effective marketing techniques that you execute in your small business over the next few weeks:

1.  Make your website easy to navigate.  Consider making a few easy changes to your website, by highlighting great gift ideas by category.  On your home page, feature “Gifts under $50”, or “Gifts for Him/Her” or possibly “Popular Gifts”.  Additionally, you can also send these ideas out by email, or highlight on your social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter.

2.  Offer gift suggestions.  To continue with the idea of making it easy for people to find and choose the perfect gift, you might want to offer specific gift suggestions.  One way to do this is to create and highlight specials for the month of December – the key here is that you are determining which of your products you are trying to drive sales for.  People are always looking for the perfect gift, especially for those hard-to-buy-for people in their lives, so this is your opportunity to get in from of them  with some great gift ideas.

3.  Use Your Creativity.  It doesn’t have to be elaborate, but the holidays are a great time to implement a campaign such as “The 12 Days of Christmas”, “Reindeer Games” or “Santa’s Elves Suggest” where you highlight a ‘deal of the day’ via email or social media.  You can easily do this in conjunction with tip #2 above (Offer gift suggestions) or make it a stand-alone campaign.  Do what works best for your small business!

4.  Highlight shipping deadlines.  Make sure your shipping deadlines are very clear on your website and on your social media sites and emails.  Nothing is worse than an angry customer who ordered a gift and it didn’t make it in time for Christmas day.  Another thing you can do is offer special expedited shipping, or highlight upgraded shipping services.  The intent behind this tactic is to instill urgency, and motivate people to buy now, instead of waiting.

5.  Drive customers offline and into your store.  If you don’t offer shipping services, or online purchases, you can still use many of the above ideas, and simply drive them into the store to make their purchase.  Consider offering your customers the ability to call and purchase over the phone, as well the option for gift wrap, and they can simply drop by to pick up their beautifully wrapped gift purchase!  Use email, as well as Facebook and Twitter to remind people how many shopping days are left, and continue offering gift suggestions and specials right through Christmas Eve day.

6.  Plan for Super Saturday.  Super Saturday, as it is called, is the last Saturday before Christmas, and it accounts for a significant portion of holiday sales for retail stores – to the tune of $15 billion dollars!  Surprisingly, some businesses do as much as 60% of their sales on this one day, so make sure you plan ahead for Super Saturday! This year, Super Saturday lands on December 22nd, which is great timing for retailers.  Plan to offer your best targeted promotions, incentives and specials on this day, and consider offering some freebies to entice shoppers.  Some ideas here include fueling customers with free Christmas cookies and snacks, free hand or shoulder massages, coffee and hot cider, or even an appearance by Santa.  By all means, spread the word via email and social media and make sure you are staffed to support the additional traffic on this crazy shopping day!

It might take a bit of extra effort and planning, but this holiday season can be your best ever, in terms of revenue, if you implement a few of the above strategies. They are low-cost and relatively simple to implement, which make them perfect for busy small business owners like you!  Happy Holidays!

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5 Tips to Ensure Success on Small Business Saturday

November 19 in Marketing, Small Business by SunUp Group | No Comments

Saturday, November 24th has been designated as the 2nd annual Small Business Saturday. Small Business Saturday is an American shopping holiday that was created last year by American Express, with a goal to raise awareness about the importance of shopping at small businesses and encouraging Americans to make some of their holiday purchases at a small, local business.  It is sandwiched between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, which typically are the largest shopping days of the year for many big box store and online retailers. Last year, over 100 million people “shopped small” and supported Small Business Saturday!

If you are a retail business, hopefully you will be participating in Small Business Saturday. The holiday season is typically a great time of year for retail businesses, and data from the US Department of Commerce supports the probably obvious notion that drastic spikes in retail activity occur during the holidays, particularly online, so prepare to capitalize from Small Business Saturday!

If you are not a retail small business, you can still benefit from Small Business Saturday; you might just need to be a little more creative.  Check out our 5 tips (for both retail and service businesses) on how your small business can profit from Small Business Saturday:

1.  Create doorbusters.  You’ve seen doorbusters prominently featured in Black Friday ads.  They are typically loss leaders that entice shoppers to come into the store.  These deals are purposely offered at a loss, because the stores know that usually if they can get people into their store and excited about shopping, shoppers are likely to buy more goods at full price.

There are a few critical elements to designing a doorbuster.  Obviously make sure you limit the number of doorbusters that are available.  You have to be purposeful in how much you can afford to lose, and also if you’re sure to run out, people who come in to look for the doorbuster will likely look for something else to spend their money on, even if the doorbuster is gone.  Also, it is a good idea to limit the timeframe the doorbusters are available. Doing so ensures the maximum number of people present—and creates the psychological “shopping frenzy” that will propel additional full-price sales.

2.  Special Offers. Special offers, limited-time offers, and limited-quantity offers are somewhat similar to a doorbuster, but can be used not only by retail businesses, but service businesses as well.  If your small business is one that typically slows down during the holidays, creating a special offer can stimulate additional business for you that you might not have had otherwise. If you don’t offer special offers too frequently, this can be a very effective way to generate new business during traditionally slow periods.

3. Offer gift certificates/gift cards.  The holidays are a very popular time for gift certificates and gift cards, so make sure your small business is offering them!  Gift cards and gift certificates are great not only for retail businesses, but service businesses as well. Make sure everyone knows about them by posting on your social media networks.  You might even want to think up some special offers that can be bought by gift certificate.

4. Partner with a charity.  People tend to be more generous and charitable around the holidays, and many purposely donate food, toys, and clothing to their favorite charities during the holidays.  Partnering with a local charity on Small Business Saturday and continuing through the holiday season will help your community, give your brand name a boost, and can get you good exposure during a time when customers may or may not be thinking about you, depending on what type of business you have. This tip can be especially helpful for service businesses that are typically slow during the holiday season.

5.  Promote Small Business Saturday.  American Express provides small businesses with free in-store signage, which will help raise awareness and let everyone know you will be participating in the big day. Download free signage here.

American Express also offers e-marketing materials that include logos, email templates, free “Shop Small” decals, and suggested Twitter and Facebook posts for your pages.  Download free e-marketing materials here.

So whether you are a small business owner or customer, encourage your friends and family to rally around the local small businesses in your area on Small Business Saturday. The more businesses and people that get involved, the larger the impact and the more beneficial it will be for everyone!

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Your Brand Isn’t Just External

November 5 in Brand Development, Marketing, Small Business, Strategy, uncategorized by SunUp Group | No Comments

When it comes to leading brands, small and medium size businesses often look to replicate the success of companies like Apple, Google, or Zappos. They might wonder how to achieve that same level of brand fanaticism. Yes, these companies spend millions of dollars to build their brands. However, the truth is companies like Apple could not have achieved the level of success and brand loyalty they have without starting with internal branding.

Many people are not familiar with internal branding, or at least not with the specific terminology. Internal branding in the simplest terms is when a company uses the power of their organization’s culture to build a strong brand. It is aligning and engaging the employees to consistently deliver increased value to your customers.  It is also connecting employees with the company’s vision for delivering distinctive value to customers.

Your employees will express their perception of your brand by the way they do their jobs, the way they treat your customers, the way they interact with each other, and the way they embody the brand on their own accord.  You will always have a few people that just want to clock in (so to speak), do their job, and go home.  But, the majority of employees truly want to be a part of something bigger than them and are ready to get emotionally involved in their work.

As with your external brand, your internal brand will develop whether you deliberately define and shape it or not.  In fact, your internal brand is influencing your success, or lack of success, right now.  That’s why it we think it’s important that you put just as much effort into developing your internal brand as you do developing your external brand.  This is why at SunUp Group, we have built internal brand discovery into our core brand development methodology.  Interviewing employees and garnering their input as to the perceived strengths, weaknesses and daily performance of their organization can be an enlightening part of the brand development process.  We call this “brand truth”!

Customers are more likely to connect with your brand if they have a good understanding of what your company is about, what you value, and the experience delivered by your employees.  Companies like Starbucks, The Ritz-Carlton, Zappos and Southwest Airlines have dedicated time, resources, and attention to developing their internal brand so that their employees reflect the brand to the customer every day.

A side benefit, albeit a very important benefit of developing your internal brand, is that it can create a continuous cycle of improvement within your company. When your employees clearly understand your company’s orientation and intentions, they can address specific aspects of their jobs that are inconsistent or in conflict with those intentions.  This in turn will improve your product or service and create a better customer experience.

As you purposely set out to develop your internal brand, it is critical not to leave anyone out – everyone in your company plays an important role and can benefit from understanding and embodying your internal brand. Obviously it is probably most important for your employees that interface directly with customers, but the employees on the production line, in the warehouse, and in the shipping department will be able to do their job better and make the right decisions if they truly understand your internal brand.  Your employees should be a walking billboard for your brand – clearly demonstrating the ‘why’ behind your organization and the ‘what’ that makes you different.

We hope this brief introduction to internal branding helps you understand the need for an internal branding program. If you have questions or want to learn more about internal branding, please feel free to contact us or check out our webpage on brand development!

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Recent Branding News

October 9 in Brand Development, Marketing by SunUp Group | No Comments

We are passionate about branding and think it’s absolutely critical to create a strong brand by intentionally developing perceptions of your business.  We are not alone in this belief, companies have huge marketing teams that work on branding, and spend millions of dollars establishing or refreshing their brand.  Here are some interesting current branding moves:

Arby’s. Arby’s recently rolled out a brand refresh and new logo. The new U.S. campaign is “Slicing Up The Truth About Freshness”, based on the notion that the fast feeder is “slicing up” the truth about how Arby’s has been freshly slicing meat in its restaurants for nearly 50 years.  The new logo is described as an “updated, modernized logo that stays true to the iconic hat, but also communicates Arby’s pride in freshly slicing meat daily in each restaurant.”

Fresh slicing of meat is certainly a unique differentiator in the fast food world.  Is this new campaign believable for the average fast food consumer to understand?

Girl Scout Cookies.  The iconic Girl Scout Cookie packages are getting a redesign for the first time since 1999!  The new packaging includes stories of what today’s girl scouts do, the fun they have while doing it, and the important things they learn from the program: goal setting, decision making, money management, people skills, and business ethics.

Girl Scouts USA CEO Anna Maria Cháve says, “We have more than 50 million cookie customers across the country, and the cookie box is the most tangible and powerful way for us to communicate directly with consumers.”

We think this package redesign is an excellent way for an already reputable brand to increase awareness and expand their brand essence by sharing the ‘why’ they do what they do.   The new packaging is sure to be a home run with girl scout cookie lovers everywhere!

Kraft Foods.  Kraft Foods is positioning themselves for a brand refresh (and possibly a makeover) by spinning off their faster growing snacks’ business, which will be Mondelēz International.   Kraft brands include Oscar Meyer, Velveeta, Jell-O, Planters, and of course the Kraft brand itself.

Jell-O (and pudding) will be one major area of focus, because it has lost a lot of ground in the kid’s snack category to yogurt, which is probably perceived by mothers as a healthier option.  Cool Whip is also being focused on with a new co-branding campaign that uses characters from the Family Guy television show.

Stay tuned for an update on what strategic moves Kraft Foods will make to strengthen the position of their brands.

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On Raising Prices: Lessons from Successful Small Business Owners

September 25 in Brand Development, Marketing, Small Business, Strategy by SunUp Group | No Comments

For many small business owners, the thought of raising prices also raises their blood pressure and stress levels! After all, the decision to raise prices is a tough one, and can have many ramifications for your small business.  The main fear of most small business owners who need to raise their prices is that their customers will flee.  That definitely can happen, but most small business owners who’ve successfully raised their prices have learned that it’s not all about the numbers.  And that’s the first lesson:

1. Don’t assume price is the only factor customers consider. There is a common misconception in today’s economy that customers shop on lowest prices. That is true for some industries, but there are typically many customers who shop on quality, not just price.  Companies who try to compete on price alone often find themselves winning that race to the bottom, but don’t have any profit to show for it.

2. Compete on something other than price.  We’ve already talked about how competing on price can be a losing battle for many. Competing on something other than price allows you to charge more for a product or service because you’re offering your customers something that is better than what your competitors are providing. For example, better customer service, money-back guarantees, a better return policy, or support are all factors that give your business value and support higher prices.

3. Clearly communicate your unique differentiation and the value of your products and services.  Most small businesses who charge more for their products and services can do so because they have created an experience, a story, or a perception that allows them to charge more. Focusing on the value you deliver and communicating that consistently through your marketing mediums is key.

4.  Cover your costs.  Surprisingly, many small business owners don’t really understand what they need to charge to cover their costs and make a profit.  As a result, they work extremely hard to stay in business yet don’t make any money. So many find themselves in a position where they need to raise prices soon after they have started their business. Small or incremental price increases are what works for most small business owners. Some find that even a few dollars price increase can make margins much less precarious, and not affect sales at all.

5. Add value.  Many small business owners find they get the best results from increasing price and value.  Take a look at what you are offering, and see where you can add some value. Often-times small business owners can cross-sell or create packages that allow a price increase and give the customer more value.  Pricing tiers are also popular and typically successful. Bring the cost down for a basic product or service and add an higher value product or service can boost revenues and give the customer a choice. You might be surprised at how often the customers pick the higher value product or service!

If you’ve been struggling with whether to raise prices for your small business, we hope these lessons on pricing from successful small business owners gives you inspiration!

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Local SEO Tips for Your Small Business

September 13 in Marketing, Small Business, Strategy by SunUp Group | No Comments

Search engine optimization (SEO), specifically local SEO, is a critical part of your small business marketing strategy. Here’s a statistic from Google that shows why: 60% of local searches that take place on Google lead to sales. That’s pretty powerful!  It makes sense, though, because most of the time people performing local searches need to get somewhere or are looking to get something.  The number of actual local searches that take place on Google is something that is debated, but in 2010 Google said that location-related searches make up over 20% of all desktop searches, and 40% of mobile searches.

While it’s easy to see how important local SEO is for small businesses, lately we’ve seen the search engine result pages that Google returns for Local Intent searches get more and more complex. Though complex, they are good changes for local small businesses. For example, a searcher located in Huntington Beach, California, who searches for “lawyer” will see many local results that she previously wouldn’t have seen without explicitly including “Huntington Beach, California” in her query.   In regards to local directories, Google Places is now called Google+  Local, and is absolutely the most critical directory to be listed in.  We’ll talk more about local online directories in our tips below, as you’ll need to also build profiles on other sites to build citations for local SEO.  The more consistent your listings are on all of your local search directories, the better your local rankings will be.

So now let’s move on to the top 5 factors that affect your ranking in local SEO rankings:

1.  Physical Address in the City of Search:  You can’t really do much to affect the #1 factor; it makes sense that local searches return local addresses. Although technically it’s possible to rank outside the city where your physical address is located, it’s not easy, and nearly impossible to do in highly competitive industries.

2.  Proper Category Associations:  Picking the right 5 categories in Google+ Local is critical, as setting the wrong category can severely hurt your rankings.

3.  Proximity of Address to Centroid:  This is another factor that you can’t really affect. Basically you have a better chance at ranking if you’re physically located near the center of the area your business is located in.  With the increase in searches from mobile devices, the location of your Physical Address in relation to the location the user is searching from makes a huge difference.

4.  Domain Authority of Website: Websites that have been around awhile are well optimized and authoritative rank higher.  Google is now looking more at the website than they used to – -it’s actually a very important factor now. Make sure your website information exactly matches the information in your local online directories, in the form of your business name, address, and phone number.  It’s more important than ever that Google be able to associate your +Local page with your website.

5.  Quantity of Structured Citations: Citations are business listings in other local online directories. The additional directories that you need to make sure your small business is listed in are: Yahoo Local, Bing Local, Yelp, Merchant Circle, Superpages and Yellow Pages. The more listings you have, the better, so if you have the resources to list your small business in additional directories, you can find the most authoritative directories to start with in The Top 50 Citation Sources for Local Businesses.

There is obviously much more to local SEO, but if you want to get started with the most important items, this is a good list to start with. If you have questions or need help with your SEO, please feel free to give us a call at 877.609.3840 and we will be happy to help you!

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5 in-Store event ideas to boost your small business

July 17 in Marketing, Small Business by SunUp Group | No Comments

In our last blog, we talked about planning in-store events, and how to use them as part of your small business marketing strategy.  This time, we thought we would give you 5 in-store event ideas to get your creative juices flowing.  These types of in-store events can boost your small business by generating additional sales, bringing in new customers, and bringing back repeat customers.

The great thing about these types of events is that they don’t have to be elaborate, costly affairs. We have budget-friendly, creative ideas to help you decide what type of in-store event is appropriate for your small business.  Many small businesses host tasteful, creative, fun events on a shoestring budget.

Sidewalk sale. Sidewalk sales generate a lot of attention because of their venue – the sidewalk! People who may not have intended to shop in your store are often compelled to stop and browse, so it’s important to think about how you are displaying your sidewalk sale tables. Items in a sidewalk sale are usually compellingly priced, and the ultimate goal is to pique the customer’s interest enough with the items on sale, so they are drawn into the store, where they can shop your fabulous selection of merchandise!  One important note is to check with your local city authorities to see if a permit or license is required. Each city’s requirements are different and you want to make sure you have the proper approval in place!

Client appreciation event.  Client appreciation events are a little different, depending on the type of industry and/or the type of business.  For retail stores, client appreciation events can often revolve around the store’s anniversary, the unveiling of a new product/product line, or the celebration of a holiday.  One of the reasons client appreciation events can be so successful is the exclusivity of the event.  These types of in-store events are often held after normal business hours, and are invitation only events for current customers.  One of the secrets to retaining customers is to make them feel important; people like to be recognized. A special customer-only event will do just that!

Holiday Party. Most people are in a festive mood around  a holiday – it doesn’t have to be Christmas – the 4th of July, Memorial Day, Labor Day and Halloween are all holidays that people love to celebrate.  A holiday gives people an excuse to celebrate a little bit more!  When hosting a holiday party in your retail store, there are a few key things to remember:

  1. Create a festive atmosphere – show your holiday spirit!
  2. Give people a reason to linger: food, drinks, and/or entertainment will do the trick
  3. Display your products prominently: make sure you have specific items on sale and make beautiful displays with them. You might also consider a raffle to generate excitement.

Gallery event.  Contact local artists to see if they are interested in contributing artwork for the event. Most artists will jump at the chance to get more publicity!  You can use the empty wall space in your store or rent/borrow some easels to place around your store.  Make sure you invite the artists to attend as well, and host refreshments, which will help people linger longer.

Demonstration/Fashion Show.  New product demonstrations are useful to customers, and can be a great incentive to get them into your store.  For retail clothing stores, a season-inspired fashion show can be a HUGE draw for both your repeat customers and new customers as well.  Also, don’t feel you have to go the literal route. For example, a store that sells cooking products could host a wine tasting. Partnering with a local wine merchant gives you the opportunity to cross-promote and gain new customers who may not have shopped your store before!

Hopefully these ideas will get your creative juices flowing. Don’t wait – start planning an in-store event for your small business now and boost your sales!

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