By Ron Cooper
Director of Sales and Marketing
Profit Management Promotions
If you had the chance to reopen your store again, would it be the same model? If you’re honest, probably not. It’s time to take a candid analysis of your business and get back to the basics of furniture retail:
Reconfiguring merchandise - assessing your current product line-up to see if it’s in line with current customer tastes…and economics;
Revamping your advertising – focused on using the most cost-effective techniques available today including social media. This year features NO elections, NO special events like the Olympics so there’s an abundance of advertising inventory (use it to your advantage)
Retraining (or Replacing) sales staff – this recession has left a huge pool of talented people willing to work. Hire the right people today in order to succeed tomorrow.
Today’s take-away: Retailers need to plan to restructure the business to align better with the evolving needs of today’s customers and to ensure viability in a highly competitive environment. A properly planned high-impact sale can pave the way for an updated array of new merchandise –and perhaps enough money to paint and replace some worn carpet too!
Editor’s Note: This is the seventh installment of a new weekly column – Promotion Possibilities – that provides tips, tactics and techniques for using sales promotions for business again.
About Ron Cooper & Profit Management Promotions (PMP) Ron Cooper is director of sales and marketing for Profit Management Promotions – one of the nation’s leading sales promotion firms serving the home furnishings industry. Established in 1985, the company is headquartered in Jamison, Pennsylvania, and maintains regional offices in New York, New Jersey and North Carolina. Visit their web site at www.pmpsales.com
Questions about this article or any aspect of retail furniture promotion can be directed to Ron Cooper care of editor@furninfo.com.