J.D. Associates Retail POS Solutions Blog

How to Incease Sales With a Company-Wide Clean-Up

Is your business at risk of being yellow-taped
as a disorganization crime scene? 

A once-a-year spring clean-up will drive sales. Having clutter around your POS system, on the sales floor and in your back room (near your inventory management software system area) will cost you time.  It may even cost you sales.

Imagine this: your customers are in line and you're looking for a product on the sales floor or in the back room. Your POS system won't allow you to pause a sale; customers wait because you're unorganized.  The POS system area is cluttered, the back room is a disaster and you have to walk around the unorganized messes to get to where you need to be. That too, is unorganized. In the meantime, the customers are mentally tapping their fingers (and muttering under their breath, "Gimme a break, I've got more important things to do than stand for a few extra minutes in line." 

WHAT TO DO?

WHERE TO START?

According to Julie Morgenstern, author of "Organizing From the Inside Out," set aside one day a year as a 'clean-up day,' Yes, you're taking some key staff off line, but your unorganized retail life is costing money. Below are her five steps to getting and staying organized:

1. Prepare in advance. Make a list of the supplies you'll need for this project and have them on hand: bins, labels, trash bags etc. No Home Depot or Staple runs to interrupt the pace.

2. Select a leader to guide staff. This person is well respected and is decisive. 

3. Determine the guidelines of what stays and what goes.  Your staff shouldn't and can't make this decision themselves.  You and your leader should write the guidelines; your leader shares those guidelines.

4. Reevaluate the space for efficient work flow. What do you do in the back room that needs a better work flow? Gift wrapping?  Ordering? Receiving merchandise?  Tagging? Make sure everything you need to complete a task is laid out in the order you need it with little movement so there is economy of space and movement.

5. Label areas to help staff stay organized. Clutter-free space sustains order.

It's everyone's responsibility to help maintain order by putting things back where they belong.  The author thinks that you're really setting them up for their next use. By keeping your business organized and clutter-free, your employees will have more time to spend with their customers, building relationships (customer-loyalty building) and increasing sales.

Our point of sale software systems (we have four in our portfolio) inherently force you to order your business.  You can pause a sale, all past customer receipts are archived, you can determine if an item is in stock from your retail POS systems screens, and plenty more. Fill out the form by clicking on the link and I'll call you today to determine how we might help you organize your retail life with a top-notch POS software.  I might even call you in the next 15 minutes.

The Seven Deadly Sins of Retail Management

Today's post is written by our guest author, Doug Fleener.  He's one of the most readable and prolific retail bloggers. 

I'm sure that most of you are familiar with the Seven Deadly Sins of pride, envy, gluttony, lust, anger, greed, and sloth.  You might not be as familiar with the Seven Deadly Sins of Retail Management, those foibles and pitfalls that impede our abilities as managers and our capacity to achieve our desired success.  Let's look at the Seven Deadly Sins of Retail Management.
 

1. Procrastination: We can call procrastination "sloth with excuses."  Procrastination can devastate a store and a manager's career.  I've seen managers lose their jobs because they wouldn't get around to doing some of the simplest paperwork. I'm sure all of us procrastinate from time to time, but most of us don't do it to the point that it has a negative impact on our customers or employees.
2. Arrogance: There's a fine line between confidence and arrogance, with the difference being the manager's own view of his/her importance. I've met some very talented people who failed as managers because they somehow got it into the heads that they were more important than others in the organization. Successful managers understand that to succeed they must serve both their customers and their employees.
   
3. Apathy: Managers are the leaders of their stores.  By their actions they determine the level of passion, excitement, and pride felt by the rest of the staff. When managers lose interest it has a domino effect that falls all the way to the bottom line. The problem in retail chains is that because apathy is so difficult to identify in retail management, mid-level managers and executives let apathetic managers remain in their positions.
4. Gossip: This "sin" looks harmless on their surface but can cause major damage to a store team and manager's creditability. Gossip often happens without the participants even realizing what they're doing. The best way to avoid gossip is to never say something about someone unless you would be okay with that person standing besides you as you say it. I know that whenever I start a conversation with "Just between you and me. . ." there's a good chance I shouldn't be having that conversation.
5. Inflexibility: Great stores are the result a manager/leader who can take a group of strong individuals and have them execute as a team. One of the biggest barriers to this occurring is the manager's need to exert control rather than influence. Anytime a manager says "my way or the highway" then the chances are they're losing their team. Remaining flexible and open to new ideas invariably leads to growth of the staff, the manager, and the overall store sales.
6. Inappropriateness: Creating any type of hostile workplace is completely unacceptable. While a manager rarely does do that on purpose, it happens with more frequency that most of us even know.  The key is to not only not go near "the line" but to stay far, far away from it.
7. Lack of accountability: The biggest impediment to a store achieving goal is almost never foot traffic or inventory availability.  The biggest culprit is mediocrity.  Specifically, the store management team allowing mediocrity to take hold in the store. This often is the result of a manager or management team not holding the staff accountable for their actions because they don't want to have those difficult conversations necessary to turn around or remove underperforming employees.  Not only is it unfair to the rest of the team (and the company as a whole) to not hold underperforming employees accountable, it's also unfair to the employee themselves.

 
So let me ask, how much sin do you avoid?
 
Doug

Contact Doug and his team to learn how they can help you transform your business or meetings.

Call Doug: 866-535-6331
Email Doug: doug@dynamicexperiencesgroup.com
Email Brian: brian@dynamicexperiencesgroup.com
Tweet around with Doug on Twitter: twitter.com/dougfleener
Web Doug: www.DynamicExperiencesGroup.com

5 Considerations for a Successful Ecommerce Site

 

 

E-COMMERCE 

Currently there are several major avenues available for retailers to expand into a multichannel approach to marketing their merchandise. E-commerce is one of them. Considerations for your ecommerce site:

1. Is your ecommerce site easy to find on the web?  Have you hired a professional Search Engine Optimization (SEO) company to help potential customers locate your e-store?  If you rarely rank on one of the major search engines, your efforts will go unrewarded.   SEO is not a onetime effort but is a living, breathing organism that requires regular nurturing and attention.
2. Is your ecommerce site attractive to the eye and easy to navigate? There are Internet tools that allow you to track visitors and click-through rates.  It is critically important to know how much traffic you are getting and how deep that traffic is traveling into your ecommerce site.  By tracking this, you can easily analyze the information and find out where the point of cart abandonment is and try to remedy the problem.
3. Is your merchandise fresh?  Like any other channel, to win repeat business, your merchandise needs to be new and exciting.  Potential customers are quick to abandon an ecommerce site that does not freshen merchandise, does not have Internet-only specials, and carries out-of-date news.   Again, through the use of Internet tools, it's easy to track conversion rates (how many potential customers visiting the site who are converted to paying customers).
4. How easy or difficult is it to make a purchase?  It may surprise you to know that many potential sales are lost at checkout. Getting lost in the process can be so frustrating to the buyer that they simply abandon the purchase.  This abandonment is also easy to track and remedy with proper Internet ecommerce tools.  Shopping online should be an easy and enjoyable experience.  Checkout should be quick, understandable and seamless.
5. Are return policies clearly stated?  As in all other methods of multichannel retail, return policies need to be clearly posted.  Whether the policies be liberal or conservative, clarity is an absolute must to avoid confusion or unwelcome and fraudulent manipulation.

Most retailers in today’s new economy are currently taking advantage of multichannel opportunities. Because of limited discretionary income, today’s consumer is demanding value and convenience more than ever before. Customer loyalty is fickle at best. High visibility is essential for all retail enterprises.  To achieve this visibility to the widest number of potential buyers, some retailers are selling their merchandise through several different channels at the same time while most are focusing on one channel which is most often e-commerce. As is the case with brick and mortar, multichannel initiatives are seeing varying levels of success.  For those who take the “build it and they will come” laissez faire approach, success will be fleeting at best.  For those who treat their multichannel initiative as a “real” business, requiring all of the attention of a brick and mortar store, the chances of success are much greater. 

The initiatives discussed in this article are not the only multichannel opportunities but reflect the most popular ways that today’s retailers are marketing their merchandise. There are also new and exciting initiatives on the horizon utilizing mobile technology.  Whatever initiative(s) retailers decide to choose when swimming across the multichannel, careful planning, consistent branding, value and extraordinary customer service are all essential ingredients to achieve a rewarding and profitable venture.

 

Greatness in Your Retail Business Performance-Just Like Oscar

Where does GREATNESS start?    

What drives people to be GREAT?

How do you keep the GREATNESS going?

 

Each year I look forward to the Oscars.  During the year, I usually manage to see about half of the nominated movies and always have a favorite.  I wonder: Will my favorite movie win? Who’s wearing what? Will I be witness to a live, memorable Oscar-winning moment like when Marlon Brando refused to accept his Oscar in 1972, but instead he sent a woman dressed in Native American attire as his way of making a political statement? Or when Halle Berry, in 2002, became the first black woman to win a best actress Oscar?  Or when Jack Palance got down on his hands and knees in 1992 and started doing one-arm push-ups!

 

These are just some of the memorable moments in history by great actors and actresses, writers, producers, directors, etc. who received recognition for their great work. 

 

 

Where does GREATNESS start? 

What drives people to be GREAT?

How do you keep the GREATNESS going?

 

Greatness starts at the top. It starts with a great leader with a strong commitment to defining what greatness is for his/her business.  In retail, it’s the owner. The owner is the barometer of greatness; your personality, your idea of greatness will resonate out, in your retail business. Your employees will emulate you and that will also trickle down to your customers in a big way. But you need to define what  greatness is for your business. You may have greatness for the employee-side of your business. You may have greatness for many sides of your business.  Here are a few ideas:

 

• Actors like recognition for their great performances, hence the Oscars. Do the same in your store. Comment, compliment, recognize your employees for their great performances with customers. Create a phrase for all to achieve like “Greatness, pass it on,” because they will pass on that greatness to each other and to your customers. That “greatness” can then become the litmus test for the next great performance for other employees. You can also recognize their greatness by giving them a day at a spa, a customized work schedule, or make it fun by giving them your rendition of an Oscar.  Take pictures, post it on your store’s Facebook page and make a big deal of it. Everyone wants to be noticed for their contributions. Everyone.

• Just as the public pays attention to the fashion at the Oscars, they can also pay attention to the fashion in your business.  How do your employees dress? Is it reflective of your store’s sartorial style? Are they wearing some of the store’s inventory?  Accessories? You could use this as a customer-facing selling opportunity. Get some input from your employees as to what approach to company style might work; create a culture where you encourage their ideas and you’ll get their buy-in. You want their contributions; you want them to know they contributed and those contributions matter.

How do you keep your greatness going?  Please contribute your ideas about GREATNESS by commenting on this blog.

Swimming Across the Retail Multichannel - Part I

Today, almost all merchants have a multichannel strategy or at least are seriously thinking about one.   Multichannel initiatives vary from retailer to retailer with some choosing one additional channel while others may choose three or four.  A good rule of thumb is to bite off only as much as you can chew.  While multichannels can and should complement each other, one unsuccessful channel can have adverse effects on the rest of the channels including the original brick and mortar store.  The other consideration to keep in mind when choosing to pursue additional channels is to hire an expert advisor.  Each channel has different ways of enhancing the customer experience and choosing inexperience can and will prove to be a very costly mistake across all your channels.

BRICK & MORTAR

Although some merchants like QVC and HSN may never open brick and mortar locations, by and large, brick and mortar has been the primary method by which most retailers market their goods to the public.  There can be many advantages as well as pitfalls to consider when opening a brick and mortar location.  The following are just a few of the primary considerations that should be taken into account when opening a physical store.

• Location is a primary concern for any brick and mortar store.  The store must be easily accessible and the demographics should demonstrate sufficient demand for the merchandise.  For example, you might not want to open a teen apparel store in the middle of a retirement community.  Then again……?
• Is there an adequate and competent workforce in the surrounding geography to ensure exceptional customer service?   When customers require assistance, they are usually looking for well informed, friendly people.  Hiring friendly and intelligent sales people is only half of the equation; training them properly is the other half.  Attracting and retaining talent means creating and maintaining a positive work environment as well as providing very competitive reimbursement.   Generally speaking, personnel turnover in retail is exceptionally high and costly.
• Is the store attractively merchandised?  Because brick and mortar locations ask more of the customer than any other channel in terms of travel expense and time, customers need to want to make the extra effort.  If a store is disorganized, unkempt and generally a difficult and unpleasant place to shop, most customers will choose to shop elsewhere or will shop online or through a catalog.
• Does the store frequently freshen its merchandise?  It doesn’t take long for customers to get bored with stale merchandise.   Don’t be afraid to get rid of SKUs that aren’t moving and free up some cash for new merchandise.  New merchandise generates curiosity and excitement resulting in more frequent visits.  If new merchandise isn’t readily available, moving merchandise around in the store will often generate the same excitement.
• Is the store adequately capitalized?  Brick and mortar stores require considerable expense.  Unlike other multichannel initiatives, a physical location usually involves a long-term commitment.  Leases need to be negotiated and signed, build-out can be costly, store fixtures are not inexpensive and merchandise needs to be paid for usually before it’s sold.

All of the considerations of brick and mortar cause many retailers to look into multichannel alternatives when looking to expand.  Retailers who consider multichannel expansion generally want to increase their revenue and their visibility while controlling many of the expenses associated with brick and mortar expansion.

Next week, we’ll look at Multichannel Expansion. What does the term mean and what does it take to be a successful multichannel retailer?

For your FREE copy of "How to Get to the Numbers That Matter In Retail" click here:

 

The Return of the Layaway

The layaway concept dates back to the Great Depression when retailers gave customers a chance to buy items they would not have been able to afford otherwise. Kmart has had a  layaway program for more than forty years.  It was available to customers the day the store opened its doors for business or soon thereafter. I suspect it's been a profit center.

Here's a short list of national retailers who currently offer layaways (some multi-store retailers offer layaway, but only in selected stores, strangely enough): Sears, Kmart, Toys R Us, Best Buy, T.J. Maxx, Fashion Bug, Victoria's Secret, Kay Jewelers, Walmart (did away with layaway in 2006, but some stores offer jewelry layaway), Burlington Coat Factory, Marshalls and AJ Wright.

Have you considered a layaway program for your store? Surprisingly some high-end women's shops have a layaway program; it's an opportunity for their shoppers to make a major purchase without worrying if that 'must-have' item will be out-of-stock when they have the cash to buy it.  It's also an easy way to grab popular gifts.  Layaway is making a comeback and the reasons make sense.

The consumer is becoming more grounded, thinking more about planning and budgeting than before the economic slowdown. Many are realizing that credit card companies are making lots of money on their late payments; putting stuff on credit cards is falling out of fashion.

Creating a layaway plan can be the best service your store offers, but there are a few things to think about:

1. Make sure your retail POS system can track those committed items so you have them in stock when your customers pick up their layaway. 
2. Get a deposit.  A percentage of the purchase price is often charged.
3. Make sure you have terms (30, 60 or 90 days) with payments every week or bi-weekly.
4. Are there restrictions on what can be placed on layaway? Put everything in writing--it's your 'layaway agreement'--and it'll be clear to you, your staff and the consumer.
5. Will you charge a non-refundable service fee? 
6. If they change the layaway in any way, a 'cancellation fee' can be charged.
7. No cash refunds should be given. Any returns should be converted to a gift card or store credit.  Whatever you do, it should be easily tracked.  That happens most effectively through a retail POS solution.
8. If you sell fine jewelry, you may want to extend the terms as the items are far more expensive than most average inventory. 
   
9. If you offer layaway as a convenience to your customers, promote it thought in-store signage. You might also want to promote it on high-ticket items.

There are lots of consumers out there who consider themselves frugal and they love layaway; it's now very trendy to be thinking of your finances compared to just a few years ago when we were credit-card crazed. Make layaway into another twin-win situation.  If you have your layaway program well-thought-out and in writing so there are no surprises--and you're willing to provide the administration necessary--a layaway program will give your customers what they want and need and, you'll make sales.

If you're a Microsoft Dynamics RMS or POS 2009 or Retail Pro user and want to know more about layaway, click here for some documentation on how to create a layaway in your retail POS. 

If you have more questions send an email to: support@jdapos.com

 

 

Do Customer Loyalty Programs Really Work? Part 2

To read Part I (1-3) of this blog article go to: http://blog.jdapos.com and scroll down.

4.   Is it easy for your best customers to make use of your loyalty program?  Grocery stores were one of the first retail vertical markets to offer customer loyalty cards.  The most common rewards in a grocery store are immediate discounts on selected items and “bounce-back” coupons good for discounts on future purchases.  When a major grocery store chain in the northeastern United States decided to offer a loyalty program, they issued keychain loyalty cards to all customers.  Well, God forbid that you should drive a different car one day and take the keychain that didn’t have the card because you were refused the loyalty discount.  This infuriated most customers and finally the store stopped requiring the physical presence of the card.  Customer loyalty is supposed to be a reward not a punishment. 

5.  Do you reinforce the value of being a rewards card holder?  Every time I make a purchase, I should be reminded of the benefits of being a loyal customer.  If it's an immediate savings, the sales associate should let me know how much I saved even if it's printed on the receipt.  If the reward is in the form of bonus points that are going to result in a future gift or discount, the sales associate should tell me how many more points I need to reach my goal.  If I’m close to my goal, I may even make another purchase on the spot just to reach my reward.

6.  Do you keep the customer loyalty program fresh and meaningful?  Many stores begin a customer loyalty program with an enthusiastic blitz.  Staff and customers get excited and sign up customers by the droves.  Often, prizes or bonuses are given to the staff member who signs up the greatest number of customers.  As often, after the initial blitz is over and the prizes are won, customer loyalty programs languish and are put on the back burner to die a slow death.  To be successful, you need to look at customer loyalty programs as living, breathing organisms that need regular replenishment and stimulation.  Periodic events for members, mail or emails to alert members about new merchandise or special “member-only” sales, signage throughout the store that makes it evident of the benefits or being part of the program are all part of keeping the programs alive and profitable.  The staff needs to be provided with regular and meaningful incentives to recruit new members and keep them fully committed to the program.

While software add-ons for loyalty programs are great tools that will help you track long-term customer value, those tools will only be as successful as the additional on-going efforts that keeps these programs meaningful. Loyalty is something that cannot be taken for granted but must be earned every day. Retail statistics commonly agree that it costs 4-6 times more to attract a new customer than it does to retain an exisiting customer. Keeping this statistic in mind certainly seems to justify the expense and work that is put into a well thought out and dynamic strategy designed to increase and maintain customer loyalty.

If you'd like to find out about our Customer Loyalty Programs written for Retail Pro, then click on Customer Loyalty for Retail Pro.