Advertisement Ideas: Action, Action, We Want Action!!!
If you are going to succeed in any business especially in the retail business you must commit to becoming an action taker. Over the years I have approached many new business owners as well as experienced business owners who are opening a new location to ask them about their strategic marketing and advertising plans as I have become quite astute at promoting local businesses. I am always surprised by the response of I haven’t set up a budget for that or I spent so much on the build out and opening that I don’t have money to advertise. My look on my face usually says it all when I hear this as it shows a wow you got to be kidding me look. In today’s day ad age I am bewildered by how many so-called business people lack the basic principles to build and grow a business. When I work with entrepreneurs I am brutally honest and I peel back the onion so as to see where we can overcome the blockages that are keeping them in the lack mode instead of the abundance mode. Most times I find it that it is their lack of organization and inability to take proper action as they have an attitude as I am the owner and I am doing my way and I know what I am doing. When in reality they have put up the money but had no realistic plan to market to attract and keep customers. I have witnessed many tines a business owner fly by the seat of their pants only to lose those pants. If you open a business and you do not have a daily, weekly, or monthly action plan you are destined to struggle. If you open a business and do not take input from your employees who have experience you will continue to struggle. The key is to be an action taker and understand that the day you think you know everything is the day you begin to lose everything.
Every action you take should be guided by the concept of positively affecting your business. The first action you need to take is getting to know who your customer base will be and then marketing to that customer base. The next action you need to take especially with a retail store is what you will be known for as a business.Previously I wrote about having a unique selling proposition and this concept is very important to the success of your business as you must ask what is it that I want to be known for when attracting new business and retaining old business. It is great to have a diverse product offering but make sure you are too diverse.
As you take action to succeed in your business remember to listen to those who are working your business. I recently was told a story about a business owner who asked about what jerseys to buy for his store as they specialized in sports apparel, memorabilia, and accessories and when told why not to buy to many of a particular answered his staff you don’t know and bought many of this players jerseys anyway and now that player has signed with another team and the business owner is stuck with jerseys that will take a while to move. It is imperative that you listen to those in the know and check your ego at the door and understand again that if you believe you are the smartest person in the room it is time to find a new room.
When taking action check your ego at the door and get input from people who know about the process you are going to undertake. You need to advertise but you need to advertise in the right publications, on the correct social media platforms, and where your desired target audience will see the advertising and respond positively to the advertising. I recently suggested to an entrepreneur that he advertise is a particular publication that not only had ads but also had content. He decided to run an ad that did not drive traffic in a publication with only advertising. When I suggested that he change the ad to highlight items at a discount instead of a generic 25% off offer or a generic $5 coupon. His answer was I know what I am doing. I said okay and left it at that. The goal of an advertisement is to acquire a new customer, remind an existing customer that you are there to be of service and value to them by deliver a product or service that they desire. When designing your advertisement and placing it make sure you have a clear, measurable, and realistic goal in mind.
One of the best actions you can take as a business owner is to get out-of-the-way and hire great people who are knowledgeable and dependable and give them parameters to work within and empower them to run the business. In getting out of your own way and stopping the I know everything thinking you will see that your business begins to grow and flourish putting you in a position to sell it at a profit or to scale it so as to create franchises. Ask yourself how will you take action to insure the success of your business.
