Tip Jar - March 2009

Try some - or all - of these seven ways to create more quality traffic and sales during slower days:

1. Create an event. Remember in college when "every day was a good day to throw a party?" Well, maybe you didn't go to the same college I did, but one of the best ways to create traffic is to give people a reason to come to your store. Don't miss the biggies like Groundhog Day or Valentines Day. This Friday is the 13th and could be a fun way to kick off Valentines Day. But after you hit the obvious "Days," create your own. How about Avoid Spring Cleaning Day, Pitchers and Catchers Reporting to Spring Training Day, or We Love Cupcakes Day? Heck you can either do Celebrate Thursday Day. The more fun and different the event, the more likely you are to pull people in.
      
2. Call your customers. I know this one isn't a favorite of most employees but on slow days the best investment of the staff's time is to get on the phone. Obviously you want to call your top customers who haven't been in the store for some time. Think about calling some recent buyers to make sure they're happy with their purchase. You'll be surprised how often that leads to additional sales. Of course if you're doing events you call and invite customers to join you.
      
3. Put an employee near the front door and invite people in to enjoy something to drink and eat or to participate in a special event. Don't be overly aggressive; wait to make eye contact with a person before inviting him/her into the store. The key is to have a reason for them to come in (beyond your good-looking face, of course).
      
4. Keep music playing throughout the day. On slower days a too quiet store can unnerve some people and cause them not to stay as long than if other customers were in the store. You might even turn the music up a bit louder than usual so people passing in front of the store hear it. Just be sure it's not too loud for those customers already in the store.
      
5. Don't let the staff congregate in the store. I recently walked into a store on a weekday afternoon and felt like I needed to walk through a rugby scrum to get to the merchandise I wanted to see. Customers who only have a mild interest in visiting your store will turn away if they see more employees than customers.
      
6. Ask (or politely tell) your customers to tell their friends and family about store specials or events. This is the most low-cost, low-tech, highly effective method to increase your traffic. The power of suggestion is amazing. The odds of people advocating your store go up considerably when you ask them.
     
7. And last but not least, maximize the traffic you do have. Sometimes the traffic really isn't that bad but once we start to think it's a problem we miss opportunities. Remain positive, keep engaging your customers, and take action to make your week.

So let me ask, what can you do today to make it a Good Sales Day?