Instead of making resolutions, pick a word or phrase that will guide your self-improvement in the coming year If you’ve set and failed to keep new year’s resolutions in the past and resolved that you’ll never resolve again, you’re certainly not alone. But there’s something about a new year — maybe it’s all those clean […]
A Secret Weapon
Secret shoppers can point out what your stores are doing well — and what they aren’t — in a way that other consumer satisfaction tools can’t Customer satisfaction surveys, testimonials, even repeat business and sales figures tell you a lot about what your business is doing well and some about what it’s not doing well. […]
Secrets Revealed
Undercover shoppers point out what retailers could be doing better Sleep Savvy has sent secret shoppers to six mattress retailers — three in the Southeast and three along the Gulf Coast — so far in 2019, and whether they visited an independent furniture store or a large national sleep chain, they found similar problems. Most […]
Worst Case Scenario: Make a Plan for Potential Disasters
Best practices and basic steps to help you safeguard your business The sheer number and variety of disasters that can strike — and potentially devastate — your business is enough to keep any retailer up at night, regardless of how comfortable your mattresses might be. Hurricanes. Fires. Earthquakes. Floods. Tsunamis. Tornadoes. Blizzards. Landslides. Volcanic eruptions, if […]
Smile! Great Photos Help Sell Beds
8 Ways to Improve Your Images and Create Content for Websites and Social Media Instagram. Your e-commerce site. Pinterest. Facebook. Today’s most popular marketing methods are image hungry, demanding an endless stream of photos to catch consumers’ attention. You can rely on manufacturers to provide much of the imagery you need for website product pages […]
E-Commerce: Improve Your Product Pages
Start with better imagery and complete item descriptions, then go from there When it comes to online sales, think of your product pages as virtual retail sales associates: They need to be friendly and informative — and they need to ask for the sale. Here are some ideas to make sure the product pages on […]
“Can I Speak With a Manager?” How to Handle Customer Complaints
On the front page of my local newspaper this morning, a columnist recounts his ongoing frustration dealing with a cable and internet provider. “I’ve been to the ninth ring of hell,” he begins. “Perhaps you know it, too. It’s known as calling ‘customer service.’ ” Crabbing about a bad experience with a company is reliably […]
Giving Thanks
6 ways to show your customers how much you value them Without customers, you have no business. It’s as simple as that. Given this fact, it’s nice to go beyond the “thank you” you offer as shoppers head out the store door post-purchase or click “Place Order.” There are a number of meaningful ways you […]
An Attitude of Gratitude
10 quotes to inspire a practice of thankfulness With Thanksgiving near, now is a perfect time to take stock of your life and be grateful for all that you have. Professional blessings can include everything from your business or job to your colleagues and customers. Some people have started an annual practice of publicly giving […]
Emails Elicit All the Feels
They can annoy recipients but also remain an effective marketing vehicle We know a lot of email goes unread, but a new survey shows marketing messages still can be effective. For the fourth year, Adobe surveyed 1,000 office workers about their email habits and their feelings about the communication vehicle. When it comes to marketing […]
No complaints about this customer service
What a recent experience can teach retailers about keeping consumers happy “I’m happy to help. In fact, I get paid to help you! Seriously, that’s the only reason I’m here.” That’s part of an exchange I recently had with a customer service representative. It shouldn’t have struck me as unusual, but it did because in […]
Get a hobby and up your sales game
Free-time activities can help you build professional skills—and you’ll have fun doing it Many of us think we don’t have time for a hobby, not with work and commutes, kids and family responsibilities. But what if we told you that regularly making time for a little fun could improve your skills at work? An article […]
Rev Up Your Summertime Sales with a Big ol’ Party
Summertime is a great time for mattress sales. Of course, there are the long holiday weekends, but consumers also often have more time on their hands and like to get out and about in the nice weather and longer days. Here are some ideas for pulling shoppers into your store between now and the official […]
Spring cleaning
A sparkling store can help build your competitive edge—especially during the summer selling season. Here are practical tips to make your store fresh as a daisy BY JULIE A. PALM If the idea of spring cleaning your store sounds as appealing as spending a beautiful Sunday afternoon in April cleaning out your garage, remember this: […]
Sign, sign, everywhere a (store) sign
How well does your store signage attract and inform customers? Here are 10 less-is-more tips to help convey effective and useful messages BY JULIE A. PALM Sign, sign, everywhere a sign Blockin’ out the scenery, breakin’ my mind Do this, don’t do that, can’t you read the sign? —“Signs” by Les Emmerson, 1970 If there’s […]
How to make your sales floor ‘POP’
New technologies—and a less-is-more approach—add punch and power to point-of-purchase displays