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1949 Retail Wisdom

I found this old typed memo from my grandfather who founded Toy House in 1949 while sorting through the archives. It was stapled to the top of some mimeographed sheets (remember the mimeograph and it’s purple ink?) of a business plan outline.

I think this alone could be the blueprint of a business plan for many retailers.

For those of you who can’t read the picture above, it says:

Dominance of the trading area is to be achieved. 

Sales are the results of poor buying. 

Never inflate the markup. 

Never stretch the truth. 

No giveaways. 

Stress realism — no Santa Claus with a false beard. 

Further legends only in a truthful manner. 

Never hesitate in refund or credit transactions so as to give the impression of questioning the integrity. 

Tell the story of tools versus novelties.

Although I disagree with the giveaways, there is a lot of sage wisdom in the remaining statements. I especially like the second to last one.

If you want to create a positive lasting impression, don’t question the integrity of your customers. Sure, there will be one or two that try to screw you. But in the end, those will be far and away offset by all the customers delighted by your treatment of them.

Powerful stuff indeed.

-Phil Wrzesinski
www.PhilsForum.com

PS I also love how he started with Dominance of the trading area. Never shy about his goals, my grandfather always said “Plan for success.” What is your plan for success?

Toy Store or Summer Camp?

Over the past several months my staff has been looking at all the parallels between our store and summer camp.

Summer camps are built around a theme (i..e. space and science camp) and a set of core values (i.e. YMCA camps). Our store is built around the theme of toys and baby products with core values of Fun, Helpful, Educational, and Nostalgic.

Summer camps have core activities that are the whole reason you are there (canoeing, horseback riding, writing, etc). We have products that are the whole reason you are here.

Summer camps have Rituals, time-honored traditions that are unique and special. They have rituals that only those who attend will know, making the campers feel like insiders. We have rituals, too, such as the birthday bell, Saturday flag raising ceremonies, story times, game nights, etc. that make our customers feel like insiders.

Summer camps have special events and activities like playing Capture the Flag, doing a swamp stomp, or star gazing on a moonless night. We have special events like play days and author book signings.

Summer camps have all kinds of kids in the cabin that require skilled counselors to work with them. There is the homesick kid, the bully, the know-it-all and the natural leader. We have all kinds of different customers who require skilled employees to work with them in different ways, too. Just knowing and acknowledging those differences makes the cabin and the store a whole lot better.

Summer camps know a few other things we should copy. When is the best time to get a kid signed up for next year’s camp? On the last day of this year’s camp, when the memories and emotions are at their strongest. When is the best time to create a happy customer? At the moment of checkout by praising her purchasing decisions, helping her complete the sale by making sure she has everything she needs, and giving her some tips for how to use her new items.

Summer camp is a powerful metaphor for how you should run your retail store. Watch how summer camps do everything from hiring and training their staff to planning their activities to marketing their programs to making sure the memories last. The best camps do things you should be doing, too.

Anyone who has been to summer camp has memories etched forever in their minds. Do what the summer camps do and you can etch similar memories in the minds of your customers.

-Phil Wrzesinski
www.PhilsForum.com

PS There are other industries from which we can learn to be better retailers. Look at amusement parks. You can ride their coattails (pun fully intended) to lots of great lessons and ideas.

I Tore Up My Office Yesterday

I freely admit it. I am not an overly organized guy. I hate filing papers away. I would rather just push it aside for later.

We all know later never seems to come.

Back in 1998 I moved into the office I currently occupy. Before then I had a desk on the sales floor in our baby department. But now I was Vice President and I needed to be in the office. We bought some new office furniture and built a desk in the corner of my dad’s office. Yes, I sat with my back to him all day working on my computer, etc.

Dad retired in 2005 and I took over as President. We moved his big desk to his man cave and replaced it with the round table that had previously been in the corner where my desk now sat. I stayed put, tucked in the corner with my messes piled all around me.

Soon my messes spilled over to the round table. Once every month or so I would bring in a big box and purge everything I could, clean up the piles and file/recycle as many papers and catalogs as possible. While cathartic, it was really only a stop-gap. The books in my library were still stacked two feet high. Piles from previous purges sat mocking me. Worst of all, a couple slips of urgent papers always seemed to go missing.

Before

Until yesterday.

Yesterday I blew it all up. It was time to get out of the corner. I removed the round table. Replaced it with a long, rectangular table that will serve as my desk for now. Moved my computers and printers. Cleaned and dusted. Put an old hutch on the credenza behind my desk. Filled it with books.

Today I will be going through every pile, every drawer, every nook and cranny. A place for everything and everything in its place. I don’t expect to have everything done today, or even this week. But eventually I will have a newly organized and newly designed office.

Will I be more organized going forward? I can’t say for sure. But I knew I would never be more organized doing everything the same old way. Albert Einstein gets the credit for this simple thought…
If you want a different result, you have to do something different.

I’m doing something different.

After

-Phil Wrzesinski
www.PhilsForum.com

PS The lesson in all this is to evaluate everything you are doing and the results you are getting. Not getting the results you want? Do something different. Not getting the traffic you expect from your marketing? Market differently. Not getting the kind of referral business you expect? Train your staff differently. Not getting the margins you want? Price your products differently. Not as organized as you want to be? Set up your organization differently.

How Much Are You Investing in Your Business?

The Jackson County Chamber and I are teaming up to offer the best segments from the Jackson Retail Success Academy for all Jackson area businesses (and anyone willing to make the drive).

Three classes. Three four-hour days. $250 investment in your business (or $99 per class if you cannot make all three or are not a retailer.)

Inventory Management and Financial Health for Retailers
Thursday, June 27 (9am to 1pm) 

Every retailer knows that Cash is King. But do you know how to get more cash in your business to grow your kingdom?

This Business Boot Camp is designed strictly to help retailers understand how to manage inventory and expenses and, most importantly, your cash. You will learn simple formulas that the smart retailers use to keep the checkbook fat and happy. You will learn the Do’s and Don’t’s for keeping your inventory fresh and moving. You will find out where your cash is hiding and how to get more of it.

We will discuss things like Open-To-Buy programs, financial statements, the proper numbers to measure, how to price your products for profit, and the simplest way to get the most out of the inventory you sell.

Yes, there will be math. The important math. The kind of math you have to do if you want to be successful. What will surprise you is how quickly and easily you will learn the math and see the results.

(Note: to get the most out of this Business Boot Camp bring your previous fiscal year’s Balance Sheet and Profit & Loss statement. You will not be asked to share, but it will help you do your own math.)

Shareworthy Customer Service for Small Businesses
Thursday, July 11 (9am to 1pm)

We all know Word-of-Mouth is the best form of advertising. But do you know how to get people to talk about your company?

This Business Boot Camp will teach you the fundamentals behind generating Word-of-Mouth from your customer base. You will learn how to exceed customer expectations in such a way that they have to tell someone else. You will learn how to create a culture in your business that wants to delight your customers at every turn and raise the bar of Customer Service so high that you turn clients into evangelists.

Whether you are a retailer, a service provider, or any type of business, you will walk away with four ways to generate word-of-mouth, a new approach to hiring and training, at least one planned staff training, and a better understanding of what it takes to offer Customer Service that makes people want to talk.

Word-of-Mouth is still the most powerful form of advertising. This Business Boot Camp will be one you will be talking about for a long time.

Branding and Advertising: Reaching New Customers in Today’s Market
Thursday, August 8 (9am to 1pm)

The advertising that got you results yesterday isn’t working today. Today’s market just can’t be reached. Or can it?

This Business Boot Camp will teach you the fundamentals of marketing that work in any day and age and how to apply those to this day and age. You will learn what moves the needle in advertising and how to craft a message that gets your potential clients to take action. You will learn the biggest myths of advertising and how even the largest companies throw good money away every single day. You will learn how to get the most out of your advertising budget (even if it close to zero).

Advertising cannot fix your business, but if you have a good business model, you will learn techniques that will grow your business the right way and keep it growing for years, no matter what kind of business you run.

Contact the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce to sign up. It will be the best twelve hours you spend on your business this summer!

Phil Wrzesinski
www.PhilsForum.com

PS If you are struggling in any one of these areas, you should sign up for that one class Ninety-nine dollars for four hours of top-level, hands-on instruction is the kind of no-brainer investment you know you should make for your business.

PPS If you don’t think you need any of these classes then you should definitely sign up for all three. Last night as I did a presentation for the Quincy Chamber of Commerce, one of the organizers lamented that it was only the businesses who were already doing well that showed up. I reminded her that was why they were doing well. They kept showing up.

Tim’s Thing

Tim Miles is a smart guy. Funny, too. Oh, and quite tall. He makes up words like Shareworthy.

He makes up other things, too, like this thing…

It is really cool.

Most of you instinctively see it for what it is.

You have to first figure out the Goals and Values of your business before you do anything else.

Then you can start making some Strategic Plans for reaching your goals. From there you can decide how to shape and control the Customer Experience. Once you know that, then you know what your Marketing Message should be. And finally you can decide which Media to use to share that message with the world.

It is really, really cool!

Now it needs a name. Tim is asking people to give him suggestions for names. You could win an iPad or better yet, bacon!

What would you call it?

-Phil Wrzesinski
www.PhilsForum.com

PS I suggested “The Order of Business” because so many businesses get the order wrong. They pick a media, then create a message without ever knowing their goals and values.

Everything I Possibly Can

I went to Manistee, MI and did a full day workshop on Shareworthy Customer Service (thanks, Tim, for that wonderful word). Part of my contract was to visit stores the day before and the day after the event to get a feel for the town and give them some one-on-one time after the workshop.

One of the stores I visited was a shoe store called Snyder’s (you can see the co-owner “Shoe Man Dan” in the video in the link up above). Even though it was off-season for this primarily summer resort kind of town, Snyder’s was hopping. The store was busy. The staff was engaged. The displays were fresh and brightly lit.

This was a store that got it. This was a store that understood the importance of building relationships, keeping the store updated, doing retail the way it needs to be done. For a store doing this well, I was curious what they were hoping to learn in my workshop.

I asked Jill, the manager, what she hoped to learn. She said…

“Everything I possibly can.”

Here was the best retailer on River Street, the shining star of retail in Manistee, and they were sending one owner and two managers to a day-long customer service workshop. In an interview after the workshop, Dan was asked if he planned to implement any of the strategies I talked about. His answer?

“Everything I possibly can.”

Now you know why they are the shining star. They are always striving to be better.

-Phil Wrzesinski
www.PhilsForum.com

PS Yes, I bought a pair of shoes from them.

Why Your Ads Go Viral

I just watched an interesting TEDTalk about Why Videos Go Viral from Kevin Allocca, a YouTube Trendwatcher (yes, he watches YouTube videos as a profession).

He explains there are three things that make a video go viral.

  • Tastemakers
  • Participation
  • Unexpectedness

The same three things are true of your advertisements.

TASTEMAKERS

If someone of importance takes note of your video – a “tastemaker” whom people follow – then others will take note. In advertising, you have to speak to the people who influence the decision.

McDonald’s has made a mint by advertising to the backseat influencers. A clown and funny characters and toys have been so effective at reaching this audience that people concerned about our children’s health have pushed to ban the golden arches from putting toys in their Happy Meals.

We have a local bra store that advertises on the local sports talk show. Yes, she advertises bras and lingerie on a radio show heavily skewed towards men.  Her message? “Guy, are you tired of hearing your wife complain about her bra not fitting? Send her to Bras That Fit.”

They are speaking to the influencers, the tastemakers.

Your ads should be targeted to the tastemakers, the people who have the influence to send customers your way. Sometimes that is the customer herself, but sometimes it is someone within her circle that has the power to influence her. Let me ask you what would be more effective? A radio ad to a woman about bras, or her husband saying, “Honey, you’ve been complaining so much about your bras. Why don’t you try out that store…?”

PARTICIPATION

What do the Harlem Shake, NYAN Cat, and the Friday Song all have in common? Besides millions of views, they have thousands of knockoffs and spin-offs, and copycats. They have audience participation.

People love to be involved. People love to be included. People love to be loved. In fact, the most seductive word in the English language is a three letter word and it doesn’t include an X.  The most seductive word is…

YOU

Do your ads speak directly to the customer (or influencer)? Do your ads talk about the customer twice as much as they talk about your company? Do your ads include the customer as an insider, as a participant? Can your customer see herself doing what you want her to do? When you talk more about her than you do yourself; when you paint a picture of her doing what you want her to do, when you include her as part of you, then you are creating participatory ads.

UNEXPECTEDNESS

How many times have you watched a video and wished you had those three minutes back? You aren’t sharing those videos. There has to be something exciting and unexpected for you to hit the share button.

Let’s face it. The expected is so… boring. The expected is so cliche, uninspiring, blah, blah, blah. We are bombarded with thousands of advertising messages a day. We have learned to filter anything that looks or sounds like an ad. We have learned to ignore the mundane. We have learned to pass over the unexciting.

Your ads need to be unexpected, too.

The most effective radio ad I ever ran started with these words… “I couldn’t believe it. They were taking customers into the men’s bathroom…”

After hearing that, you know everyone wanted to hear more. Can you say something totally unexpected to get their attention? Can you then tie that into one interesting point? Can you surprise and excite and delight people in a way that makes them want to hit the share button?

The same principles that make a video go viral also affect the effectiveness of your advertising. You might not get a few million views, but if you follow Kevin’s advice, you can make your advertising budget a heck of a lot more powerful without spending a penny more.

-Phil Wrzesinski
www.PhilsForum.com

PS Roy H. Williams, aka The Wizard of Ads, calls this the Impact Quotient of your ads. Here is a free download called How Ads Work Part 2 that I wrote to give you examples of how to make your ads more memorable and impactful.

Praying for Customers

I know it was tongue-in-cheek (kinda), but when a fellow store owner asked a group of us on FB what we were doing to attract customers, the first response was “Praying”.

This might seem like a religious post. If I offend anyone, so be it. But I found the answer to be not only funny, but also appropriate. Yes, praying can have a place in your business.

Remember what I have said over and over about being true to your Values? If religion and faith are part of your values, praying should be a regular event. Include your staff in a holy huddle. Make sure your policies also reflect your faith. It can be a powerful attractor of customers who share your faith. (See Chick-Fil-A and how they share their faith.)

Here are some prayers you can say.

Pray that your advertising will be effective.
Pray that your staff will have a good day and take care of your customers.
Pray that you will accomplish your to-do list efficiently.
Pray for thanksgiving of the blessings that have allowed you to be in business.
Pray for the blessings of your wonderful staff and all that they do (and have done) for you.
Pray for your wonderful evangelists who tell your story to all their friends.
Pray for your vendors who supply you with the products that solve your customers’ problems.
Pray for your government leaders that they have the strength and will to do good for your community.

If faith and religion are part of your Core Values, then you should be Praying for Customers.

-Phil Wrzesinski
www.PhilsForum.com

PS I say a modified version of the Jabez Prayer every single day…
Oh that you would bless me indeed
And enlarge my territory
That your hand would be with me
And lead me to good

A Reason to Belong

For those of you who have read the new book Pendulum about the shifting outlook of society, you will remember that we are ten years into a “We” cycle. We still have another 30 years to go.

For those who haven’t read the book (and I believe it may be the single most important book you can read for business), the general concept is that there is a 80 year swing in society between two prevailing outlooks – Me and We – each taking about 40 years of that swing.

A “We” cycle has “community” and “collaboration” as two of the main themes. People want to belong and be a part of something.

One way to use this understanding is to help people feel like they belong to your store. You probably already have a FB page and have a bunch of “likes”. But how do you transfer that into a “community”? How do you turn those casual likers into loyal insiders?

Make them feel special.

Two ways you can do this…

  1. Insider information
  2. Shared unique experiences

Insider Information

People love little secrets. Men, especially, love secrets because men speak vertically – did what I say make you think higher of me or lower of me? Knowing little tidbits of information that most people don’t know gives men a chance to say something that will make you think higher of them (at least that’s how we perceive it, ladies, bear with us on this).

Ladies also like secrets. Unlike men, ladies speak more horizontally – did what I say draw me in closer or push me away? Ladies want to be in the inner circle. They feel special when they know the secret handshake. Little tidbits of information make them feel like they belong and also give them something to share with others and draw others into their inner circle.

Sharing personal stories, fun facts, and insider information with your fan base builds a level of loyalty among those who are in the know. Just keep it positive and interesting (i.e. did you know that the same man – Tom Murdough Jr – invented both Little Tikes and Step2? Yes, he went into business a second time just to compete with the first business he created!) Two examples of entities that have created a loyal band of followers… Lady Gaga & her Little Monsters and Jimmy Buffet & his Parrotheads. When your fans give themselves a name, you’ve done your job well.

Shared Unique Experiences

We have a special kindred spirit when we share a unique experience with other people. Those strangers become less strange. There is a nod of understanding between the people who have had those moments, a nod of “I-know-you-know-exactly-what-I’m-thinking”.

When you do something completely and uniquely different than any other retailer out there, you’ll get your customers giving those nods to other customers.  They will feel like they belong to something special. The best thing is that they will want to bring their friends into this inner circle.

The key is that the experience has to be unique and special and unadvertised. For example, when I was in the world of rock climbing, there was a gal in Colorado who was the best at resoling rock climbing shoes. Many climbers I knew sent their shoes to her. And she sent them back, resoled. The unique experience, simple as it may sound, was that in the box she included a Jolly Rancher candy. If you saw a guy with newly resoled shoes, all you had to do was ask, “What flavor?” If he had sent his shoes to Jules, he knew exactly what you meant and responded right away.

In a “We” cycle people want to belong to something special. Give them something special with your business and they’ll be naming themselves soon enough.

-Phil Wrzesinski
www.PhilsForum.com

PS Once you get your fans to become so loyal they name themselves, you can stop spending money on regular advertising. They’ll do all the advertising for you.

Sometimes You Have to Tear it Down

They are tearing down the hotel across the street. We have a front-row seat for the destruction as a crane takes it down piece by piece.

This is not the first hotel to be torn down in that general vicinity. I watched the previous one be exploded and dropped to the ground. Yes, two large hotels have been built, abandoned, and torn down in the same area in my life.

I guess this blog could be about location, location, location. But you already know that story.

The lesson that struck me driving past this building this morning was how progress and change often require some deconstruction first before you can construct something new.

Too often, we feel like the only approach to growth is to tweak around the edges. Radical changes are dangerous, risky. So we make minor changes, which have minor effects. But if you need major things to happen in your business, you need to make major changes. Or as Thomas Jefferson put it…

“If you want something you’ve never had, you have to do something you’ve never done.”

That might mean tearing something down. You can tear things down physically such as a wall or a display or an office or a bathroom to make a better version. You can also tear things down metaphorically such as your  return policy, your dress code, your product selection, or your advertising.

The key is to remember that the tearing down, while messy, is necessary for progress.

-Phil Wrzesinski
www.PhilsForum.com

PS One of the biggest deconstruction/reconstruction projects can be your staff. Having the right people in the right jobs is the most important thing you can do for your business. If that means firing key people and starting over, do it! Yes, it will be messy in the short term, but the reconstruction will be better than the original.