Hitting the stores this holiday season?

If you can get past the parking nightmares and the throngs of twitchy, overtired shoppers at the mall, this is one of the best times of the year to study the marketing tactics of your favorite big retailers.  You’ll be amazed at the lengths they’ll go to in order to draw in the crowds.

First, check out the shiny.  Many retailers use vivid light displays and bright colors to draw customers into the store.  But take a closer look at the lighting when you actually wander inside.  Carefully placed spotlights often direct you to high dollar items.  Discounted items areas are placed in darker, less inviting corners.

Next, check out the jangly.  Holiday music in stores is generally upbeat and easy to sing along with.  Store management wants you tapping your toes and losing yourself in thoughts of Christmases long, long ago. The more fun you’re having, the more time you’ll spend in the store.  This translates into higher sales.

Finally, throw your nose into it.  Retailers often pump scents into their stores to help conjure up emotions and memories.  This leads to feelings of comfort and an increased likelihood that you’ll make an impulse purchase or two.  What?  The smell of freshly-baked bread doesn’t make you think of a roaring fire and snuggly puppies on a snowy morning?

Seasoned retailers know that in order to get their fair share of your holiday dollars, they’ve got to pull out the stops to draw you in and keep you there.  

Does this mean, though, that smaller businesses with smaller budgets have no shot at getting some holiday cheer?

Nope.  Small businesses have a few very significant advantages over the megastores.  First, you know your customers.  You can greet them quickly and walk them personally through their shopping experiences. 

You can also offer up some heartwarming scents of your own. Bake a platter of sugar cookies.Set out a pitcher of hot apple cider seasoned with cinnamon and nutmeg.  Welcome your customers like they’re visitors in your home and share a cup with them.  Forge relationships with them and they’re more likely to reward you with shopping loyalty.

If you’re an online retailer without the benefit of a storefront to jazz up, add some holiday sparkle to your Web site with a seasonal header.  Offer folks free monogramming or giftwrapping.  Be Secret Santa friendly. Send personal holiday greetings and notes of thanks to your regular customers.

The bottom line is that holiday shoppers are out there with money to spend.  It doesn’t really matter if you’re a megastore with the bucks to hire singing elves or pipe in the smell of gingerbread cookies.  If you take the time to stand out to your target customers, chances are they’ll happily throw a little jingle your way.

{Photo by  *PaysImaginaire*}

A colleague of mine tells a story of calling himself the “de facto boss” to an audience. It must have been lost in translation, though, because the resulting transcript touted him as ”the fatso boss.”

Take care when speaking to your customers that you don’t alienate them by using too much lingo. You never know what they’re hearing.

Corporate marketing materials are something to behold, aren’t they? Full color, glossy advertisements that are great at communicating their message. Big budgets allow large companies to go all out. Want folks to buy your perfume? Stick a sample of it in a hot fashion magazine. Selling a car? Make a zippy commercial with a sleek convertible skirting the side of a mountain.

Smaller businesses don’t often have the advantage of bottomless pockets for marketing campaigns. But that doesn’t mean that you can’t create a message that packs a punch.

The secret? Hit ‘em where it hurts.

One of the biggest benefits of being a small business owner is the power to connect emotionally with your customers.

It doesn’t matter what they’re buying, there is always a human being on the other end of the purchasing decision. Your job is to make a connection.

Sparking an emotional connection with a customer isn’t difficult. Tell your story. Get your customers emotionally involved with your products by describing them in vivid detail.
Let’s say you’re shopping for peppermint soap and need to choose based on the descriptions from two different soap companies:

Shop A

“Peppermint Soap. It will leave the user feeling fresh and clean.”

Shop B

“Think candy canes on Christmas morning. Our cheery peppermint soap will leave you feeling refreshed and ready to tango with Santa.”

Which one do you want to buy?

{Photo by mark_sebastian}

Remember the days when you would get a lollipop as a “thank you” when you left the bank or the doctor’s office?  It was a simple gesture, but it helped you leave the encounter on a sweet note.

Now think about all of the products and services you have purchased over the last week.  How many times were you told how much the business appreciated you and your business?

These days, the amount of interaction many businesses have with their customers is limited.  You can enter your credit card online, then come home a few days later to find exactly what you ordered waiting on the front stoop.  This is great for convenience, but not for creating loyal customers.

What can you do as a business owner to bring back the personal touch that will make your customers loyal to you?

Show some gratitude. 

Here are five ways you can use common courtesy to give your business a competitive advantage:

1.      Send a note of thanks

When was the last time you received a note thanking you for being a good customer?  Not a note asking for more business or a reminder of an upcoming sale – simply a note to say thanks for your business?  Customers notice when you appreciate them.  They are more likely to provide you with repeat business or refer your services to their friends.  Web-based businesses can start this process by setting up an auto-responder to send customers a message after their purchase.  It’s easy to go the extra mile, though, by sending your customers a handwritten note or a personal e-mail that says you appreciate their business.

2.      Make it personal

Have you created a new product that fits in well with the style of one of your customers? Found an article that you think a particular client would be interested in?  Drop her a note or give her a call to let her know.  Not only does this keep your business fresh in your customer’s mind, it also validates that you have been paying attention to your customer’s goals and style.

3.      Don’t ignore complaints

When your customers complain, thank them.  If a customer wasn’t interested in maintaining a relationship with you, he would simply shop elsewhere.  A complaint gives you somewhere to start to create a loyal customer.When you receive a complaint from a customer, take the time to thank him and listen to what he has to say about your product or service.  If possible, offer several solutions and let the customer choose the one that works the best for him.  Listening to your customers, even if they are complaining, gives you an opportunity to give the kind of follow-up service that will make you stand out from your competitors.

4.      Give them more than what they ask for

Wrap the items your customer ordered in pretty tissue paper like a gift.  Drop a couple of new product samples in the box.  Take a moment to picture what your customers will see when they open their package from you.  Make the experience memorable.

5.      Follow up

Following up is an essential component of excellent customer service.  Let your customers know if they are going to experience a delay for any reason.  Make it easy for them to track packages and see the status of projects.

A few days after you send out a package or provide a service, follow up with your customer to make sure the experience was a positive one.  Take suggestions, make corrections and listen to the feedback you receive.  

Remember, it does not take much time or money to make your customers feel appreciated.   Happy customers are more likely to be loyal customers.  Make an effort to sweeten your customers’ experiences and your bottom line will thank you.

I’ll admit it. I have a thing for power tools.

Many women love dresses, purses and glittery eye makeup. And while I can certainly get giddy over a trip to Sephora, nothing will woo me quite like shine of a brand new drill press.

I was wandering through one of the big box hardware stores the other day, high heels click-clicking on the concrete floor, when I found the holy grail. Tool World.

I must have lulled myself into a stupor staring at all the shiny things with cords, because a blue-aproned salesman tentatively approached me. With understanding in his eyes, he patted me on the arm and whispered, “Can I help you pick out something for your husband?”

Just goes to show you that someone doesn’t have to be in your target market to be a potential customer. After all, a girl’s gotta have her tools.

{Photo by jolien_vallins}

QUESTION

Erin, When you were editing the product descriptions I sent you, you removed the abbreviation for etcetera several times. I think it sounds like I have a lot more to say and would entice customers to want to learn more. Are you just being nit-picky or is there a real reason for me to not use “etc.” in my writing?

ANSWER

Sometimes, the devil really is in the details.

Let’s say you are selling an orange and you want to describe it in juicy detail to your customers. You want them to feel the chilly peel and see the vibrant color.

It might sound something like this:

“The orange is sweet, ripe, etc.”

You’re painting a picture. But is the picture as strong as it could be?

When you’re describing a product, make your statements clear, concise, and truthful. Pick the best benefits and sell them the best way you know how.

Sentences that conclude with the abbreviation etc. imply that there is more you could say about your product or service, but for some reason you choose not to. It makes your sentence look weak and makes your customers feel a bit slighted. If there are more benefits, spell them out.

Customers often respond best to benefits or advantages if you present them in groups of three. For example:

“Our fresh oranges are juicy, sweet, and delivered to your door within 24 hours of harvesting.”

You want to paint a picture of your products that makes your customers want to buy. By clearly laying out the details, you create a more convincing story and a stronger brand.

I went for a job interview several years ago for a job I really wanted.  I was primped and polished, had a fresh copy of my resume neatly placed in a fashionable black folder,  and practiced my answers to typical interview questions in front of the mirror until I looked like a Miss America contestant. 

I was ready.

Then I got to the interview, where the interviewer handed me an ink pen and said, “One chance.  Sell me this pen.”

So I took the pen and talked about its smooth blue color, how it would write upside down, and wouldn’t smudge.  I think I even said something about it still writing after I ran over it with a car.  Brilliant sales point, I know.

After about 5 minutes of rambling, I looked up to see the interviewer’s eyes glazed over.  Never a good sign.  It was even worse when she raised her hand and said, “OK, that’s enough.”

I raced back through my speech.  Did I sell it?  Did I give enough features and benefits?  

I guess not, because I didn’t get the job.

But I do look back on that interview and realize the one mistake I made (aside from the whole pen death by vehicle thing).  I never asked what she wanted in a pen.  I never even took my “customer” into consideration.  It was all about the pen.

Now, when I’m working with a client, I always work to learn about them first.  What their goals are, what their style is.  I basically want to know what they’re looking for in a pen.  Because no matter how pretty that green Sharpie is, they’re not going to be happy if they came in looking for a blue Bic.

{Photo by -Gep-}

“Where is the line,” she asked, “between good, descriptive copy and embellishment?”

It’s a good question. In a world where we rely on the descriptions we read to help us make purchasing decisions, how do we know we’re actually getting what we think we’re getting?

Legalities aside (and you know lying to a customer is a recipe for disaster), the best plan is to describe your products truthfully, but in a way that puts them in the best light.

You can’t, for example, describe a garment’s fabric as leather when it’s really vinyl. When the box shows up at your customer’s door, what will she think when she pulls out the skirt and knows she’s been duped. Best case? She’ll return it with some harsh words for you. Worst case? Your reputation is down the tubes and you’ve got the police knocking at your door.

Either way, you’ve harmed the relationship with your customer and likely lost her as a buyer for good.

So champion your great products. Talk them up, down, and sideways. Describe how luxurious they are and the vibrancy of the color. But always tell the truth

As much as it pains me to say it, I’m on a diet. This morning, instead of slurping down a giant cup of coffee with 2 kinds of flavored syrup and whipped cream that was prepared by a cute young lady in a green apron, I sulked through a plain cup of joe with Splenda.

This is, perhaps, why I am now obsessing over cupcakes. In fact, I’ll pay just about anything to get my hands on one.

Economists love to study people like me. Not crazy sugar-obsessed cake hounds, but people who are willing to buy a product no matter what it costs.

They call it the price elasticity of demand. And, no, they’re not referring to my waistline, thankyouverymuch.

Business owners and economists want to know how much the demand for an item will change if the price for that item is raised or lowered. In other words, if they raise the price of a cupcake by a dollar, will I still buy it? How about 5 dollars?

If the amount of cupcakes that people buy drops significantly when the price is raised, the demand for cupcakes is elastic. People buy fewer cupcakes if the price goes up and more if the price goes down.

Demand is inelastic if folks keep buying a product no matter what it costs. If you have a disease with only one cure, for example, you’re likely to pay for that cure no matter what it costs.

Why does all of this matter? Because in the end, we make the choices that shape how our economy works. If we aren’t willing to pay a higher price for handmade cupcakes produced by the cute bakery down the street, that bakery is going to go out of business. On a larger scale, these decisions affect how many products our country exports and imports, how many jobs we keep, and how our economy grows or falters.

So I’m off to buy a cupcake (hey - there are people’s lives at stake!). Someone else is enjoying a thousand dollar omelet. That’s sure to keep economists on their toes for a while.

{photo credit: littlerottenrobin}

Photo by James Jordan

Welcome to the newly redesigned ExpressionWorks Web site!

I’m really glad you’re here. Prop up your feet and stay a while.  And, as always, don’t hesitate to let me know if you have any questions or want to get started on a new project.