It is already autumn, and this time of year can be one that can seem to fly by before you know it when you run a retail business. Almost all retail businesses see an increase in sales either before Christmas, if they sell things that people tend to buy as gifts or which people use in their homes over the festive season, or after Christmas, when traditionally there are the best offers and bargains to be had, and so this is really the time of year to make any changes to how you do things that can help you get more from this period.…
Continue readingHow to Increase Exposure for Your Small Business
Are you looking to take your small business or start-up to the world? Here are a few expert tips on how to increase exposure for your business:
Optimise Your Website for Local Searches
Many small businesses rely on local customers for their initial success. There are a few exceptions when it comes to ecommerce, but the best clients and customers often end up being those that are based in the area. With that in mind, it’s important to optimise your business website so that it appears in local searches.
Here’s a quick guide to get you started with local SEO.…
Continue readingTips For Protecting Your Small Business Online And Off
There has been a ton of focus put on protecting businesses online, and that is an important thing to do for both your business and the safety of your customers. You should also be making sure that your business has protection offline. Even if you work from home and your business is all virtual you still have things, like your computer itself, that need protection.
Having A Secure Business Space
Having a secure business space is important, even if you run your business out of your own home. That means having security set up, and knowing what to do in case you do get robbed.…
Continue readingHow Smart Video Screens Amplify In-Retail Engagement
The local store is evolving. As retailers rally to prove their value to shoppers, stores are re-emerging as hubs for local communities. And one of the most effective methods of retail experience differentiation is the use of relevant, targeted, vibrant infotainment content to keep shoppers engaged.
Since the rise of ecommerce in the late 1990s and early 2000s, market analysts have predicted the demise of brick-and-mortar stores. After all, why travel all the way to a non-virtual store, subject yourself to long lines and a painful checkout process, only to cart all your goods back home?
Your morning shopping expedition to a physical store can be replaced by an online shop using your mobile device in half an hour on your sofa with a cup of coffee.…
Continue readingTargeting Your Ideal Pet Business Customer
Understanding your pet owners is crucial for your business to grow. By determining your ideal customers you’ll be choosing the best focus for all of your marketing efforts, making sure your communications are effective, timely and geographically appropriate.
Who do you want to talk to?
Start by researching your market and creating a profile of your ideal customer. This should include basic demographic information, such as:
- Age
- Gender
- Location
- Income
- Psychographic information such as interests, hobbies, lifestyle and behaviours
Building a basic picture of your target audience’s life will give you insight into the type of person who will potentially buy your services and the reasons why.…
Continue readingHow Personnel Costs Impact Your Bottom Line
Whether you are a business operating in the private sector, or a municipality, personnel costs has a huge impact on your bottom line. Roughly 70% of most municipal budgets is used for personnel expenses, such as payroll and benefits. This is not far off from the expenses incurred in the private sector for personnel and their related expense. Private companies report that 40% – 80% of their operating budget is absorbed in personnel overhead.
One thing public and private business have in common is the importance of their employees. The staff of any business is your biggest asset or your biggest liability.…
Continue reading5 Cities to Consider Launching a Small Business In
When it comes to entrepreneurship and business, flexibility is the key to success. Unfortunately, many entrepreneurs fail to broaden their horizons by limiting themselves to a specific geographic location. If you can help it, avoid grounding yourself in one city. There are plenty of great cities for launching a small business in the U.S., but yours may not be one of them.
Take a Look at These Five Cities
Location, location, location – how many times have you heard people discuss the role location plays in the valuation of real estate? Well, location also has a lot to do with business.…
Continue readingHow To Use Technology When Marketing Your Business
Using technology when marketing your business offers huge benefits. It’s easy to stick within your comfort zone, but learning new ways to use technology in marketing your business will definitely prove to be beneficial. Follow these tips when using technology in marketing your business.
Start using social media
Not only are the different social media platforms extremely popular in today’s culture, but they’re also free and offer a ton of great tools to help you connect with your customers. Use different platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest to reach your customers as well as learn more about them.
Research all the ways to utilize each social media platform, such as Twitter chats and Google Hangouts that you can join to conversate about your business, customers, and feedback.…
Continue reading3 Tips for Marketing to Parents of Young Children
There’s a lot of money to be made in industries that gear their products or services toward young children and families. However, just because the main person using your products or services would be the child, your actual marketing is going to have to be focused on both parents and children if you want to find commercial success.
Because this can be a challenge for companies and brands new to the industry, here are three tips that will help you better market to parents of young children.
Play Up Being Environmentally Aware
Modern parents are very concerned with not only how a product will work for their child, but also how using the product will affect the environment.…
Continue reading6 Ways Small Businesses can Reach More Customers
After a few years of doing business you are definitely looking to grow and take your business to the next level. Here are 6 real life examples of strategies used by small businesses to drive growth:
Open a New Branch
Shake Shack founder Danny Meyer waited for nearly five years before opening the second location. He waited till the business acquired a faithful following and was known for products that people loved. From the first Shake Shack in Madison Square Park, the business has now expanded to more than 100 locations worldwide.
“We’re big believers in not overpromising and under delivering.…
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