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Sales takes not only a great team but also a great support system. Insightly is a customer relationship management (CRM) system for your mobile device that has many great features such as linking, managing and sharing of contacts, notes, tasks and opportunities. Download the app and when you make a call, Insightly automatically adds the call to a call log so you can refer to the contact whenever you need to. With Insightly, it’s easy to search your customer data from anywhere. Insightly integrates with Google Apps, and there’s also a specific version for Apple devices, Windows phones and BlackBerrys.
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Cross-Channel Marketing: How the Nation’s Top Retailers Do It
December 31st, 2012 :: Rieva LesonskyBy Rieva Lesonsky
Are you a brick-and-mortar retailer who also has a website to sell your products? Wouldn’t it be great if you could get more customers shopping at both your physical store and your website? You can. Just learn a lesson from what some of the nation’s most successful retailers are doing to market their products in multiple channels.
Internet Retailer recently examined the habits of some of the nation’s top retail chains and here are the most common tactics they found:
Promote in-store only discounts or deals on your website or via email marketing. For instance, you can email a coupon good only in your store (but include links to your website so customers can shop both ways).
Offer online ordering with in-store pickup. This appeals to customers who are in a rush to get the product or don’t want to pay for shipping. More retailers are offering shorter time frames for in-store pickup, such as Staples, which promises to have shoppers’ orders ready in two hours. If you make such a promise, be sure you have the manpower to fulfill it.
Offer online ordering and in-store payment. Some consumers still don’t feel comfortable using credit cards online or prefer to pay in person for other reasons. You can attract those users by enabling them to reserve a product online, then pick it up and pay in-store.
Do a subtle upsell. Apple, for instance, urges customers to shop online but then come into a store to pick up the product and get “personal assistance.” If your product, like Apple’s, is one where customers could benefit from additional assistance, this approach can get them to come in and spend more in-store than they might have online.
If you’re offering the pickup or pay-in-store option, make sure the area where customers go to pick up their products is merchandised attractively. For example, you could display items related to commonly ordered products (such as cords or accessories if you sell electronics) or impulse buys such as gift wrap or small-ticket items.
Make sure your website has multiple ways for users to find your physical store/s, such as a map and directions, address, and a phone number to contact you. Also make certain that information about days and hours you’re open is prominently displayed.
Increasingly, consumers expect a seamless experience that allows them to shop how and when they want, so make sure your website encourages shopping in any possible sales channel.
Image by Flickr user Jamison_Judd (Creative Commons)
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How Your Small Business Can Compete With Big Retailers in 2013
December 24th, 2012 :: Rieva LesonskyBy Rieva Lesonsky
This holiday shopping season, big retailers did a lot of things differently—and the changes they made will continue into 2013 and beyond, posing new challenges for small retailers and ecommerce companies seeking to compete. The BDO Retail Compass Survey of CMOs polled 100 chief marketing officers at the nation’s leading retailers and found:
Big retailers rely on social media. Social media has become an essential marketing tool, used by 86 percent of big retailers, up from 4 percent in 2007. Overall, social media made up 10 percent of holiday marketing and advertising budgets this year.
Big retailers are playing catch-up when it comes to mobile. Half of the retailers surveyed are including mobile in their marketing strategy, up 39 percent from 2011, but still short of 100 percent participation.
Big retailers are going digital. Although two-thirds of big retailers report their holiday marketing and advertising budgets were flat this year, they are shifting where they spend those dollars. While print is still the top advertising expenditure for 42 percent of companies, 31 percent spent most of their marketing dollars online. That’s a 35 percent increase from last year.
Big retailers are struggling with big data. With tons of customer data available through in-store purchases, email, social media and ecommerce and mobile sales, a whopping 93 percent of retailers admit it’s a challenge to integrate and manage the data, and 40 percent say it’s “very challenging.” But two-thirds plan to increase their use of customer data for targeted marketing efforts in the next year.
Big retailers are moving beyond Facebook. While Facebook is still the top social media marketing channel for 99 percent of retailers surveyed, one in five is marketing on Pinterest, and 51 percent are using Twitter.
Big retailers are trying a variety of mobile tactics. Many different mobile marketing tactics are being used, with flash sales and daily deals the primary mobile marketing tool for 30 percent of retailers, text messages the main focus for 23 percent, and mobile coupons for 20 percent. Less popular are mobile apps and QR codes, each cited as the main tactic by 14 percent. Big retailers are also rolling out new tools for mobile engagement, such as in-store GPS and product review apps.
Will your small retail or ecommerce business be able to keep up with the big guys? It’s not going to be easy – but it can be done. All of the tactics they are using can be used by a small business, too. Whether it’s advertising online or developing an app, look into how you can engage your customers in the ways they want to be reached.
Image by Flickr user coolinsights (Creative Commons)
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The Truth About Showrooming (It’s Worse Than You Think)
October 1st, 2012 :: Rieva LesonskyBy Rieva Lesonsky
Are you scared of showrooming? If you’re a small retailer, you have reason to be. The trend in which consumers visit a physical store, look at products they like, use their mobile devices to find better deals online and then buy the products elsewhere, has spurred a frenzy in the retail world.
Showrooming & The Cost Of Keeping Buyers In-Store, a new study from GroupMNext reported in MediaPost, isn’t going to calm the frenzy. The study found that a discount of as little as 2.5 percent online will spur 45 percent of brick and mortar customers to leave and complete their purchase online. For a savings of 5 percent, 60 percent of customers will leave and buy the product online. Up the online discount to 20 percent, and a mere 13 percent of shoppers will stay to make their purchase in the store.
While the Internet used to be the first step in research conducted at home and leading out to the retail location, the report concludes the process is now reversing itself, with customers doing research in stores and returning home to make their purchase.
The study also found some surprising things about showroomers. While you might expect them to be young, tech-savvy men, in reality they’re most likely to be young women who frequently shop online. Also surprisingly, the customer most likely to stay and buy in-store is an older man.
If you have a brick-and-mortar store, what can your business do to keep customers there?
- Customers who look at product reviews on a mobile device are the most likely to showroom. Keep an eye out for people checking a mobile device in the store, so you can have salespeople approach them and offer help.
- Offer help to everyone—the study found that customers who interacted with an employee in-store were 12.5 times more likely to make a purchase there.
- Focus on the immediacy of purchasing in-store. Even a customer who wants the online discount may be swayed if you can sell her on the benefit of having it in-hand quickly instead of waiting for it to be delivered from an online retailer.
In addition to the core 10 percent or so of shoppers who seem unlikely to ever stop buying at physical stores, there’s also a “marginal showroomer” group that has high potential for retailers. The report says these constitute about 10 percent of customers and that they are price-sensitive, but can be convinced to stay in-store too. The average “marginal showroomer” is male, age 52, with an average income of $60,000 and a tendency to shop online at least once a month. You can reach out to these customers with targeted emails, direct mail and other marketing efforts to encourage them to come into the store, knowing that once there, they’re less likely to leave.
Image by Flickr user jheffrey swid (Creative Commons)
Google+How to Deal With a Negative Review on Yelp!
September 19th, 2012 :: Rieva LesonskyBy Rieva Lesonsky
If your small business is a restaurant, retailer, salon or bar—the type of business that relies on local customers and word-of-mouth—you’ve probably had some experience with review and ratings site Yelp!. How much weight do Yelp! reviews carry with consumers? A study by University of California, Berkeley, economists, reported on Mashable.com, found that an improvement of just half a star in a restaurant’s Yelp! ratings can increase business by nearly 20 percent during peak dining hours.
If you haven’t already listed your business on Yelp!, I hope this inspires you to do so. But is fear of negative reviews holding you back? After all, if half a star of improvement can boost business 20 percent, half a star of declining ratings could cut into your business, couldn’t it?
Negative reviews are a reality, on Yelp! or any other ratings and review site. It’s how you deal with them that matters. Here are some tips to help you get a grip—and keep your customers coming back.
First, remain calm. It’s human nature to get defensive when reading a bad review—especially if you feel it’s undeserved or if the reviewer seems to be a little unhinged. However, bashing the reviewer won’t get you anywhere—and in fact, will probably backfire by making you look bad to the other customers and prospective customers reading the exchange.
Talk to your employees about the review to see if you can figure out what happened and if the customer has cause for complaint. You can respond to reviews publicly or privately. Start by posting a brief, public response thanking the person for his or her comments (so other users can see you aren’t ignoring the review). Then respond to the reviewer privately to offer solutions or get more information about the situation.
Often, customers who are upset simply want to be heard and acknowledged, and in most cases, starting a personal dialogue with the person will be enough to defuse the issue. If you find you’re in an escalating situation with an irrational customer who keeps posting about your business, however, the best strategy is to disengage and trust that other readers will draw their own conclusions about the legitimacy of the complaints. You don’t want to get dragged into an online screaming match.
Consider negative Yelp! reviews as a learning opportunity to discover problems with your business and find solutions. No business can please everyone, so if you’ve done all you can to address an issue, it’s time to back off.
Image by Flickr user William Brawley (Creative Commons)
Google+Web.com Review: Small Business Resource: UPrinting.com: Online Printing Tool
August 29th, 2012 :: Maria Valdez HaubrichIf you’re looking for green-friendly printing services that also offers the convenience of uploading your files online, look into Uprinting.com. This online printing tool not only uses vegetable and soy-based inks (which reduces harmful carbon emissions), it also lets you choose paper that contains up to 55 percent post-consumer recycled content. From booklets and business cards to event tickets and menus, UPrinting has easy-to-use templates, and you can store your designs and logos online for future orders. Order a sample kit to see what your products will look like when your customers get them; you can also order a proof at no cost.
Google+Hands Off My Stapler Contest: Small Business Contest: Small Business Resource
August 8th, 2012 :: Maria Valdez HaubrichEvery office has a stapler thief. The problems are catching the thief and figuring out a way to keep your stapler where it belongs—on your desk. Win prizes for your business, including desks, shredders, staplers and more, in the OFM and Swingline Hands Off My Stapler Contest. All you have to do is share how you (or your employees) keep your staplers from being poached by coworkers. To enter, email a photo in jpeg format to stapler@ofminc.com with a short explanation of how you make sure your stapler stays at your desk. All entries must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. on September 30, 2012, to be eligible.
Google+MasterCard Business Network: Online Finance Tool: Small Business Resource
August 6th, 2012 :: Maria Valdez HaubrichMasterCard has recently launched a new online tool for small businesses called the MasterCard Business Network. Based on feedback from small business owners, MasterCard is helping small businesses by giving them the payment power of big business. The goal of the network is to offer tools and pricing that were previously only available to large companies, and to give smaller businesses leverage so they can purchase at better prices than they would normally get by themselves. Participants receive access to exclusive discounts on more than 650,000 products from national distributors; help with travel and dining booking and management; and the capability to create, save and print basic expense reports for free.
Google+Retailers: Time to Take Tech to the Next Level
August 1st, 2012 :: Rieva LesonskyBy Rieva Lesonsky
The future of retail is online, mobile and social, reports a recent Motorola Solutions survey reported by Marketing Charts. U.S. retailers polled predict that within the next five years, nearly half (42 percent) of retail sales will come from online, mobile and social commerce sites. To keep customers visiting their stores in the face of this trend, 75 percent of retailers say developing a “more engaging in-store customer experience” will be essential, and more than 40 percent plan to provide personalized product details to customers’ smartphones based on their prior browsing or purchasing behavior.
Better customer service is the core goal for retailers in the survey, with 51 percent saying they will invest in new technology to improve their customer service.
But there’s a big difference between what retailers want to do and what they can currently do. Although the retailers polled want to customize their in-store experience to each shopper, three-fourths of them admitted they currently have no way to know when a specific customer visits their store, 85 percent don’t know how to customize a store visit, and 89 percent can’t link shoppers’ online actions to their in-store behavior.
Among the technology retailers plan to deploy in the next five years is mobile or portable POS technology manned by clerks. Currently only 9 percent of retailers offer this, but 18 percent plan to add it. And 12 percent plan to offer customers the ability to self-checkout on their own mobile device (just 4 percent currently do).
So far, about one-third of retailers offer consumers the ability to buy on a mobile device in-store and have a product shipped to them. More than half (59 percent) say they will offer this within five years.
There are some ways you can improve customer service without any technology. Two in five retailers surveyed said not being able to find something they came to buy is a top complaint among customers. Simply helping customers find products or order them if you don’t have them in stock is one easy way to improve satisfaction.
Marketing Charts also noted that most customers prefer to be recognized in-store in person, not via technology. Simply greeting customers as they come in or browse, or setting up a frequent or preferred shopper program where you can greet customers by name as they check out, can improve customers’ experience in your store.
Last, but not least, integrate your in-store and ecommerce experience. Allow customers to buy online and return at your store; buy online and have it shipped to your store for pickup; or order in-store and have it shipped to them.
How are you keeping customers happy?
Image by Flickr user cogdogblog (Creative Commons)
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