The May issue of e-ret@iler contains:

1. Article of the month: The Emblem of a business
2. e-ret@iler advisory of the month: What motivates
them to buy from you
3. Our Power Promoting Idea of the month: Advertise
in unusual places
4. Why the e-ret@iler is free, your subscription,
and how to contact Profits Plus and Tom Shay

=> Print the May issue of the e-ret@iler so
you can read it at your leisure.

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1. Article of the month: The Emblem of a business
When you look at various products, you often
decide the quality by only seeing the name of the
manufacturer. Think about Mercedes-Benz and Kelloggs
as a couple of examples. Then take a look at a business
and the owner or manager of that business. As you
watch that person in action, you will often make
a decision about what you think is the quality of
that business.

In the May article of the month, we will take a look
at businesses and how the owner or manager can
be a good emblem demonstrating to their customers
that this is a business they should trust and reward
by spending their dollars there.

Click on the link below to see the May article of the
month, entitled:

The Emblem of a Business

0 <= After printing the e-retailer, check here if
you plan to read this month's article.

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2. e-ret@iler advisory: What motivates them to
buy from you

For those who have been reading the series on
understanding why and how people decide to buy,
we are going to take a look this month to see
what motivates a person to make a first time purchase.

Whether the first time purchase is a particular
brand of clothing, a spark plug, carpet, or a golf
ball, we look at how and why they make a decision.

As there are probably some of you that are like
me, and are not the best with numbers, let's try
to look at this situation by imagining a sample
group of 100 customers.

38 of these 100 will make their decision based upon
the store, while 53 will do so based upon the
marketing forces. The remaining 9 of our 100 have
a whole list of other miscellaneous reasons that
are too numerous to mention. Let's look at our groups
of 38 and 53 to see what makes them decide.

The 38 make their decision based upon the store. 25
of the 38 choose the item because they saw it on
display. 6 make the decision because of the price, with
4 making the decision because what they initially
wanted is out of stock. The last 3 pick the item
because of an advertisement of the retailer.

Now we look at the 53 that respond to other marketing forces.
Of the 53 people, 29 have been influenced by the manufacturer.
Their breakdown goes like this: 13 will remember the
manufacturer's advertisement. 5 will buy because
they like another product by the same
manufacturer. 4 like the packaging, 3 have a
money saving coupon, 2 see a discounted price label and
another 2 make the decision because of a free
sample.

The other 24 of this 53 can be had because of
"word of mouth". 10 make the choice because of a
family member's request. 8 have heard about the product,
and the last 6 buy it because a friend makes a
recommendation.

That all said, let's look at the entire group starting
with the biggest influence:

25 see it displayed while shopping
13 see or hear manufacturer's advertising
10 buy because of a family request
9 buy because of "too many to list" reasons
8 have heard about the product
6 buy because a friend's recommendation
6 buy because of price features
5 buy because they like other items by same maker
4 buy because the first choice is out of stock
4 buy because of the packaging
3 buy because of the store advertising
3 buy because of a money saving coupon
2 buy because of a discounted price
2 buy because of a free sample

All totaled, we have our 100 people. Next month
we will discuss what we can do with this information.
And again, a very special thanks to Jupiter Music Supply
and Bob Woodhall for sharing this information with us
so we can share it with you.

0 <= After printing the e-ret@iler, check here if
you plan to use this information in your business.

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3. Power Promoting Idea of the Month: Advertise
in unusual places

Customers become creatures of habit. That can
work in your favor if you are the store they
are doing business with. But if you are the one
trying to get their attention, we could have a
problem. We have actually seen customers that
have shopped in one business for years, and be
totally unaware of the business next door!

What is a business to do? The Power Promoting
answer is to advertise in unusual places. Think
about all of the businesses that have waiting
areas for customers - banks, doctors, dentists,
restaurants, auto repair shops. And from personal
experience most have only 3 year old magazines to
help those people pass the time.

What could you do to get a customer's attention?
One paint store developed a swatch card of colors,
gave each of the colors a cute baby name, and then
placed the swatch cards in the doctor's office that
was filled with expectant mothers.

Another example was the neighborhood diner that was
known for their great milkshakes. They arranged to
take a small freezer, mix machine, and other necessary
items to a clothing store located in a mall on a
Saturday afternoon. The samples were given away in
small paper cups. The diner operator also created
stickers that were placed on the side of each cup
telling customers of the location and hours of
his diner.

Both of these are great examples of very low cost
advertising that does a great job of targeting a
new bunch of customers.

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4. Yes, it is free! Receiving the e-ret@iler is
a free service from Tom Shay and Profits Plus.
If someone passed this to you, tell them thanks
and then subscribe.

Last couple of reminders: National Small Business
Day is May 10. And National Independent Retailers
Week is July 20-26. Be sure to do something to
celebrate.

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Make an effort to locate and do business with
other small businesses - let's keep the money
in "the family"!

Get your Profits Plus and may God bless you and yours!

Tom Shay