The Good News for Small Retailers Is That Shoppers Love You |  |
- The Good News for Small Retailers Is That Shoppers Love You
- The Cylindrical, Powerful New Mac Pro Carries a Hefty Price Tag
- 10 Creative Ways Businesses Can Give Back
- Nokia Introduces Asha Smartphones Beginning at Just $69
- The Secret to Using Video for Customer Service
| The Good News for Small Retailers Is That Shoppers Love You Posted: 29 Oct 2013 04:00 PM PDT
Small retailers have lots of concerns this holiday season: A shorter than normal holiday shopping period, fallout from the government shutdown affecting consumers' confidence and spending, and competition from big-box and online retailers with more sophisticated digital marketing tactics. But there's some good news that could potentially offset those difficulties: The 2013 Deluxe Annual Holiday Shopping Survey reports that consumers have a lot of goodwill toward small, local businesses and a great willingness to shop there. More than one-third (35 percent) of consumers say they are going to shop at local, small businesses this year, an increase from the 27 percent who planned to last year. Of those, 57 percent are specifically doing so because they feel it is "important to support local businesses." In addition to those who already plan to shop at small businesses, the vast majority (95 percent) of respondents say it's important to support local independent businesses. Tap Into Consumer Goodwill to Capture CustomersOffer Something They Can't Get Anywhere ElseClearly, prices are a concern for holiday shoppers, especially in these tough times. But only 25 percent say "good prices" are the reason they shop at small, local retailers. Instead, 49 percent say "unique merchandise" attracts them to small stores. Rather than trying to beat Walmart at its own game, focus on finding and displaying unique, hard-to-find items. Play this up in your marketing. Consumers love being able to give unique gifts that suit the recipients' personalities. Serve It UpOf course, service matters, with four in 10 shoppers who plan to buy from small retailers citing "personalized service" as a motivating factor. Start now getting your employees prepared. If you need additional help, tap into your networks of colleagues, friends and existing employees to find qualified workers. Focus on hiring for attitude, not necessarily aptitude. You can teach someone how to work your cash register, but you can't teach them to be warm and friendly. Make sure employees are educated on what you sell so they can help customers make choices (and keep them from whipping out their smartphones to look up information and buy online instead). Tap Into TechnologyConsumers increasingly use technology to plan and fulfill their holiday shopping needs, the survey notes. As a result, you need to leverage technology to attract customers and drive sales. More than three-fourths (78 percent) of survey respondents plan to shop for holiday gifts online in 2013. But the good news is that one in four (28 percent) prefer a small business website. Since many consumers find gift ideas online, make sure your website is optimized for search engines so that it pops up in the first page of search results. (More than half of respondents say they never go past the first two pages of search results when looking for gift ideas online.) Since many consumers use smartphones to find products or stores when they're out and about, it's also crucial to make sure your business is listed on local search directories and that your listing is current and optimized. Last, but not least, review what people are saying about you on ratings and review sites like Yelp and try to fix any negative viewpoints. Reward Your CustomersNow is the time to reward your regulars with appreciation gifts. Sure, you could send a card, but most consumers (47 percent) would rather get a discount on a future purchase. Sending an email or direct mail postcard with a discount is a great way to get shoppers headed in early. Start NowJust 15 percent of respondents say they'll actually do most of their shopping on Black Friday or Cyber Monday. Instead, more than 40 percent plan to do most of their shopping earlier in November. If your business targets 18 to 34-year-olds, know that they're the group most likely to do most of their shopping over Thanksgiving weekend (22 percent will do so). Aiming at parents? The 35 to 44-year-old group is most likely to wait until the last minute to finish their shopping (19 percent will do so). Be a Part of Small Business SaturdaySmall Business Saturday (November 30, 2013) taps into consumers' desire to support small businesses in their communities by helping encourage people to shop at independent stores on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. Get involved, join a neighborhood circle and promote and prepare your marketing materials and website for the event. Shopping Photo via Shutterstock The post The Good News for Small Retailers Is That Shoppers Love You appeared first on Small Business Trends. |
| The Cylindrical, Powerful New Mac Pro Carries a Hefty Price Tag Posted: 29 Oct 2013 01:30 PM PDT
Apple introduced its unusual-looking Mac Pro last week, bringing the cylindrically-shaped desktop computer to the market before the end of the year. The company says the new computer should be available by December. Clearly, the first thing you’ll notice on the Mac Pro is its appearance. The company says the computer is designed around a thermal core and there’s just one fan on the unit for cooling. The previous Mac Pro had eight. Here’s a look at the new computer from Engadget: The second thing that will jump out at you, of course – especially budget conscious small business owners – is the price. At a base price of $2999, this is going to be a computer for a business or entrepreneur with specific and intense graphic or video editing needs or for a main, perhaps shared, work station. Apple says the new Mac Pro is designed to handle any digital artist’s demands, including the ability to stream and edit 4K video in real time. The Mac Pro also has six Thunderbolt 2 ports for peripheral devices. In a prepared release, Apple senior vice president of worldwide marketing Philip Schiller explains:
The Mac Pro can handle up to three displays, with the third connecting through an HDMI port for broadcast signals. The computer will include Apple’s new OS X Mavericks installed. Image: Apple The post The Cylindrical, Powerful New Mac Pro Carries a Hefty Price Tag appeared first on Small Business Trends. |
| 10 Creative Ways Businesses Can Give Back Posted: 29 Oct 2013 11:00 AM PDT
Being part of the startup community means giving back — not only to other entrepreneurs, but to causes you feel strongly about supporting. Despite your good intentions, it’s easy to lose sight of that goal. And not every startup can afford to (or should) incorporate social “good” into their business model. How do you use your business to give back when time and resources are in short supply? We asked members of the Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an invitation-only organization comprised of the country’s most promising young entrepreneurs, to share the following:
Here's what YEC community members had to say: 1. Kickstart It“I gave every employee a small quarterly allowance to back Kickstarter Projects they thought could impact hundreds, if not thousands, of people. We gave each employee about $150 to spend on these projects, and it was awesome to see where they would allocate the funds. Some of the projects backed included + Pool, Ghost, LowLine, Head in the Clouds and many others.” ~ Scott Ferreira, MySocialCloud 2. Lead by Example“I am very involved with my community. I share my stories and encourage my team members to join me for the next event. I also make a point to support my co-workers at their events. Philanthropy can also be a great team-building event for your business. For example, our team is all doing an AIDS walk this weekend and a brunch afterwards. Not a bad way to spend a Saturday morning. ” ~ Alex Chamberlain, EZFingerPrints, LLC & EasyLiving, Inc 3. Give Back at What You’re Good At“I actively encourage corporations and startups alike to participate in high value for time volunteering schemes. For example, don’t encourage software engineers to work in a soup kitchen, but have them instead teach STEM and CS at inner city schools in one or two day immersive programs. This way, maximum impact is achieved, and employees feel like truly valuable members of society.” ~ Christopher Pruijsen, Raising IT 4. Sponsor a Local Charity Event“We usually sponsor the marketing for local charity events, and we get our team involved with supporting the organization of the event, as well as the online marketing initiatives. This is a good way to generate value for the charity organizations without having to ask your employees to put money on the line. By helping, they can help the organization generate its own money. ” ~ Andy Karuza, Brandbuddee 5. Make Social Good a Part of Company Culture“For businesses that can't incorporate social good into their models, there are still ways to make social good a part of the company culture. Companies can give their employees a full day every quarter on company time to volunteer for an organization of their choice, or they can create partnerships with local nonprofits to donate time and resources every month or quarter. ” ~ Sean Kelly, HUMAN (Helping Unite Mankind And Nutrition) 6. Give out an Annual Grant Stipend“What if your employer just gave you money to give away? You’d feel obligated to put it to good use. A no-strings-attached annual grant stipend with a set dollar amount in which every employee is able to give to a nonprofit of their choosing is smart. It puts the emphasis on the employee, and it creatively gives employees a way to give back for social good. ” ~ Brett Farmiloe, Internet Marketing Agency 7. Align Interests“We found a way to match employee interests to opportunities to give back. The company supports such initiatives and encourages our team members to share their personal causes with teammates, supporting through attendance and tickets or contributions. We have chosen two areas, health and education, which align with what we do. Each year, we support one organization.” ~ Shradha Agarwal, ContextMedia 8. Give Bonuses to Charities“Set metrics or goals for your team to reach. If they reach the goal or certain individuals perform the best, give them a bonus that is meant to be given to their favorite charity. This way, it becomes a contest where everyone wins. Plus, they feel empowered to help with something they are passionate about. ” ~ John Meyer, Lemon.ly 9. Provide Incentives“One of my girlfriends recently started working for a very large hedge-fund management company, and to my surprise, a lot of people in the office go casual — even wearing sneakers. The reason why: Every quarter they select a new charity to support, and any employee who opts to donate $15 or more gets to enjoy business casual for the quarter.” ~ Cody McKibben, Digital Nomad Academy 10. Go Pro Bono“Because our company is socially oriented, we get asked this question by fellow entrepreneurs all the time. Nonprofits are in need of talent, but often they cannot afford to pay for it. For-profit employees need opportunities to give back and get leadership opportunities. Pro bono can be the answer to both, and we strongly encourage companies to leverage their talent to benefit nonprofits.” ~ Suzanne Smith, Social Impact Architects Charity Photo via Shutterstock The post 10 Creative Ways Businesses Can Give Back appeared first on Small Business Trends. |
| Nokia Introduces Asha Smartphones Beginning at Just $69 Posted: 29 Oct 2013 08:00 AM PDT
It may be the era of the affordable smartphone. Earlier this year, for example, Google announced it was knocking $100 off the cost of its already affordable Nexus 4 phone making the 8GB model $199 and the 16GB $249. Then Chinese manufacturer ZTE announced it would make its own phones available for just $79.99 with no contract to U.S. buyers via the Internet. The phones run on the recently introduced Firefox operating system by Mozilla. And most recently, Apple introduced its iPhone 5c starting at just $99, an unheard of move by the tech giant known for its premium prices. So it probably shouldn’t surprise anyone that Nokia, along with a high end phone and new Windows tablet, has released its own crop of budget smartphones starting at just $69. Nokia introduced the three new phones at its recent Nokia World event in Abu Dhabi. The phones are all part of the company’s Asha line of devices and are upgrades of its earlier Asha 501. Neil Broadly, a member of Nokia’s marketing team, says the phones will include:
Here’s an overview of the Asha 503 from SlashGear: More Smartphones in Emerging MarketsThe phones seem loaded with apps and designed especially for social sharing. But before small business owners in the U.S. get too excited, these devices are targeted for emerging markets. So there’s no hint if or when they will be available in the U.S. That said, the introduction of the new Asha phones fits a Nokia objective – putting a smartphone into the hand of everyone on the planet. For businesses of any size that are online and selling globally, this means a growing market…especially for those with a strong mobile presence. Image: Nokia, Asha 500 The post Nokia Introduces Asha Smartphones Beginning at Just $69 appeared first on Small Business Trends. |
| The Secret to Using Video for Customer Service Posted: 29 Oct 2013 05:00 AM PDT Sponsored Post
In this 24/7 instant gratification world of the Internet, customers with questions are too impatient to wait on the phone or for a reply through email for their answer. It is also expensive for small businesses to staff this function so customers can receive a reply quickly. Instead, customers would much rather use Web self service and watch a short one minute video for customer service purposes to get their answer. Ultimately, this will decrease company service costs while increasing customer satisfaction. How to Use Video for Customer ServiceSuccessful small business owners use video for customer service effectively in three areas: Pre SaleThese videos show how their product can be used. Studies prove that a video showing it in a real life situation by customers increases the purchase rate. This video for customer service answers the most important question, “But, how does it really work?” Photos and descriptions are not nearly as effective. FibreGlast, a commercial distributor does this very well. Post Sale Q and AUsing video to demonstrate common installation questions others have experienced will not only minimize calls to the company, but will relieve customer frustration. Photos and descriptives are not nearly as effective. It is critical to be preemptive here and post a video for customer service before customers voice their concerns. This feature from Amazon is very popular. One on One Replies to CustomersThis is a perfect way to build a more personal relationship with a customer. It can be as easy as a 15 second recording from a desk cam where an employee thanks a customer for calling or posting a comment. The key is to mention the customer by name and the specific issue that was identified. The video should then be posted on social media so other customers and prospects can see the brand promise in action. A link can then be sent to the customer with thanks. Here is an example from Nextiva. These videos for customer service can be created by employees, but customers should also be encouraged to submit their own versions. Companies testing their products could never dream of all the ways their products could be used or issues that might eventually come up. Videos submitted by real customers using products in their environment are a very powerful testimonial. Eighty seven percent of customers check reviews before completing their purchase. Apps Photo via Shutterstock This article, provided by Nextiva, is republished through a content distribution agreement. The original can be found here. The post The Secret to Using Video for Customer Service appeared first on Small Business Trends. |
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