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With over 25 years of frontline experience Tom Shay is America's leading small business management expert. He's a "Must Have" for your next event.

 

  e-ret@iler newsletter
February 2007
Volume 8 Issue 3

 

Profits_Plus Solutions
Tom Shay Photo
Article of the Month

Silence is not Golden

If your customers are not complaining should you be happy? If your customers are not sending you messages should you be happy? this month's article tells why you want to hear from your customers. Click on Article of the Month to view and read this article.

Book of the Month

Defining Markets, Defining Moments
by Geoffrey Meridity and Charles Schewe

This month's book is a recommendation by one of the e-retailer readers. The book helps you to determine how to market to your customers.

We have more books to suggest for your reading. Click on Book Referral to visit this page on our site.

 

Contact Us:

Profits Plus
P.O. Box 128
Dardanelle, AR
72834 USA
(727) 823-7205 Voice
(727) 898-3179 Fax



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Business Advisory

March 29 is Mom and Pop Business Owner's Day
Deferred Revenue in Gift Cards.

This month I have two items that I want to call to your attention. The first is that March 29 is Mom and Pop Business Owner's Day. this is one of our days to promote who we are and what we do. We should let people know that when they spend money with us, more of the money stays in our community as compared to the money that a customer spends in one of our mass merchant competitors.

The second item for February deals with a financial aspect of our business that many of us do not understand. When you sell a gift card or a gift certificate, you do not ring it up as a sale. Why not?

It is not a sale, because the customer has not taken any product or used any service. Instead they have given you money for which you will eventually provide that product or service, thus it does not show up on your profit and loss statement. As you are holding onto the money, it does show up on your balance sheet. It shows up as an asset as a part of your cash. The matching and offsetting entry is a liability that is often titled, "deferred revenue".

Internet Tip of The Month
New Calculator: Promotional Discount Pricing

Here is another of the new calculators we have added to the Profits Plus website for your free usage.

The concept for this calculator came from two places. The first was the number of times we saw businesses that ran expensive ads yet had minimal markdowns on their merchandise. This concept seems backwards to me. The second was a merchant from Georgia who had the same thought process and had managed to created a chart where they could track the results. This merchant was making sure that the amount of markdowns on merchandise was more than the cost of the advertising. Take a look at what is new on our website.

Go to this link to visit this page: Promotion Evaluator

The Power Promoting Idea of the Month

"How to" clinics

We all want our customers to become more engaged with what we sell. The concept is called, "transforming" the customer so that they are more to purchase more of what we sell. One of the best ways you can help transform your customer is to help educate them with regard to what you sell.

If you sell clothing, you can have a "how to" clinic to show people how to color coordinate their clothing. If you sell hardware, you can teach your customers how to use the hand and power tools you sell. We all want our customers to become more engaged with what we sell, and by helping them to see how to better use what we sell.

 

 

 

 

 

DECEMBER 2024
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Small Business

AdvisorieS

Whose job is this, anyway? Have you heard that before? The December Small Business Advisory offers ideas from those who have found solutions.

Small Business

NewS

Top Story

Past our announcement that the December newsletter starts our 26th year, we are discussing what is and what is not a problem.

 

Starting with, all these announced closings of retail operations is not a problem indicative of retail. It is an indicator of chain stores trying to correct the problems they previously made.

Article of the Month

We came across a solution of tasks not getting done as well as tasks not done correctly. We created an owner's manual for our business. Details in the Article of the Month.


Book of the Month

Atomic Habits by James Clear. Have you ever caught yourself saying that you had gotten out of the habit of doing something? Perhaps it is something you need to continue to do? This book can be applicable to personal and business life.

BOOK US

With over 25 years of frontline experience Tom Shay is America's leading Small Business Management Expert. He's a "Must Have" for your next event.

Small Business

Advisories

Whose job is this, anyway? Have you heard that before? The December Small Business Article of the Month offers ideas from those who have found solutions.

Small Business

News

 

Top Story

Past our announcement that the December newsletter starts our 26th year, we are discussing what is and what is not a problem.

 

Starting with, all these announced closings of retail operations is not a problem indicative of retail. It is an indicator of chain stores trying to correct the problems they previously made.


Article of the Month

We came across a solution of tasks not getting done as well as tasks not done correctly. We created an owner's manual for our business. Details in the Article of the Month.


Book of the Month

Atomic Habits by James Clear. Have you ever caught yourself saying that you had gotten out of the habit of doing something? Perhaps it is something you need to continue to do? This book can be applicable to personal and business life.