Six Secrets to Retail Success
Monday, March 19 2007
Published on AllBusiness.com
"It almost doesn't seem to matter what your business is. There are foundational pieces of being an entrepreneur that make you successful or not," says Doug Fleener, a former Bose Corp. executive who is now president and managing partner of Lexington, Mass.-based retail-consulting firm Dynamic Experiences Group LLC.
"In your industry (decorated apparel), there's a business-to-business aspect that most retailers aren't a part of, but other than that, some of the challenges and opportunities are the same."
Through a coaching and advisory program called The Profitable Retailer, Fleener's organization focuses on increasing sales, profitability and the enjoyment of running small to mid-size retail businesses. In the coming weeks, he will share his insights on retail success with IMPRESSIONS' readers in a series of articles focused around some of his pet topics, including those represented in the following excerpts from our interview with him. ? R.L.
1. Work "on" Your Business
One of the biggest issues I see is that as small business entrepreneurs, we become so busy running our stores that we don't take the time to run our business. We get so caught up in the day-to-day details that there's really no strategy for mapping out the future and then making it happen. My advice is to schedule time to grow your business.
2. Market and Measure
Another mistake is people don't spend enough time marketing their business; plus, they mistake advertising for marketing. Advertising is just one piece of marketing. People have a tendency to just run an ad because it's something they can take off their checklist. However, there's an old saying that 50 percent of your advertising is successful ? you just don't know which 50 percent. So we advise retailers to not only run ads but also find other ways to call customers to action.
And most importantly, small businesses need to measure what's successful.
3. Be Customer Centric
People in the embroidery business are very product-centric. You ask them what they do, and they talk about their product and what they sell. We work with retailers to be very customer-centric. We advise people to be focused on getting a customer's business and then keeping that customer. Interestingly, we get very obsessed with the customer we don't have rather than spending enough time on the customer we do have.
4. Add Value
Also, in your industry, if you're not careful, you can become a commodity business very fast. The only
"In your industry (decorated apparel), there's a business-to-business aspect that most retailers aren't a part of, but other than that, some of the challenges and opportunities are the same."
Through a coaching and advisory program called The Profitable Retailer, Fleener's organization focuses on increasing sales, profitability and the enjoyment of running small to mid-size retail businesses. In the coming weeks, he will share his insights on retail success with IMPRESSIONS' readers in a series of articles focused around some of his pet topics, including those represented in the following excerpts from our interview with him. ? R.L.
1. Work "on" Your Business
One of the biggest issues I see is that as small business entrepreneurs, we become so busy running our stores that we don't take the time to run our business. We get so caught up in the day-to-day details that there's really no strategy for mapping out the future and then making it happen. My advice is to schedule time to grow your business.
2. Market and Measure
Another mistake is people don't spend enough time marketing their business; plus, they mistake advertising for marketing. Advertising is just one piece of marketing. People have a tendency to just run an ad because it's something they can take off their checklist. However, there's an old saying that 50 percent of your advertising is successful ? you just don't know which 50 percent. So we advise retailers to not only run ads but also find other ways to call customers to action.
And most importantly, small businesses need to measure what's successful.
3. Be Customer Centric
People in the embroidery business are very product-centric. You ask them what they do, and they talk about their product and what they sell. We work with retailers to be very customer-centric. We advise people to be focused on getting a customer's business and then keeping that customer. Interestingly, we get very obsessed with the customer we don't have rather than spending enough time on the customer we do have.
4. Add Value
Also, in your industry, if you're not careful, you can become a commodity business very fast. The only