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Article of the Month |
Not changing product lines/reps
by
Tom Shay
Doesn't it just irritate you when a customer engages you for as much information about what you are selling and then they buy somewhere else?
How about the occasion where the customer is asking the price of an item or service? Especially when you have shared so much with the customer; irritating?
The article of the month asks the question about that same situation with different participants. What about the occasion where you are asking a vendor about the price?
This is just one part of the article of the month as I ask about how we develop our relationship with the vendor and the sales representative.
Click on Article of the Month to read this article. |
Book of the Month |
Infinite Possibility
by Joseph B. Pine and Kim C. Korn
This book got on my list for one reason: one of the authors. Joseph B. Pine was co-author of The Experience Economy which is a book I quote from frequently.
Having just started on the book, there is little I can tell you. My instinct says that when someone has one great product, you look for the next one.
The reading of this book is definitely 'deeper' than the last one, but my money is on Pine for another great book.
Click on Book Referral to visit this page on our site.
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Contact Us |
Profits Plus
P.O. Box 128
Dardanelle, AR
72834 USA
(727) 823-7205 Voice
(727) 898-3179 Fax
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Global Entrepreneurship Week - November 14-20
Global Entrepreneurship Week is getting the top line mention in this month's e-retailer newsletter. Most likely if you are reading this, you are an entrepreneur; someone got that idea of owning your own business in your head some time ago. Hopefully, you are appreciative for what someone has done for you. I know I am always grateful to those generations of my family before me who showed how owning the business could be fun and profitable.
As someone has helped you, how about helping someone else? Global Entrepreneurship Week is something along those lines.
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September's e-ret@iler conversations conference call was held just a couple of days ago. During the call I shared a number of examples of businesses that had done things differently to get their name before their existing and their potential customers. If you were not a participant in the call, let me invite you to visit the link below where you can listen to that call or you can download it on your ipod.
The October conference call is scheduled to be on Thursday the 27th. The call is scheduled to discuss our staff and what we can do to have that staff become the envy of your competition. Rarely do businesses get to hire the best people - those people would cost too much. Instead, if we want to have an extraordinary staff we are going to have to build them one person at a time. Join us for the October call and pick up some ideas you can use going into this important winter selling season.
E-retailer conversations
| Internet Tip of The Month |
Turn rate calculator
Are you wanting to see the return on the investment you have in your business increase? While there are several factors that are a part of that calculation, one of the most important factors is that of the inventory turn rate.
This calculation tells you how fast you are selling your merchandise. The turn rate, usually expressed as a number with one or two digits to the right of the decimal point is showing how many times a year you are selling the inventory.
There are two ways the turn rate can be calculated. One method is where inventory is calculated at cost while the other has the inventory calculated at retail. There is a logic that says the calculation at retail makes more sense because that is how inventory is (hopefully) sold; at retail.
However, most frequently you see inventory turn rate calculated with inventory at cost. Our website shows both calculations. What would be important is that you are consistently using the same calculation and if you are comparing your business to others selling similar products and services, you need to make sure you are using the same terminology.
Turn rate calculator
| The Power Promoting Idea of the Month |
Have a Christmas tree auction
This power promoting idea, like the Global Entrepreneurship Week, is going to require you to get a start very soon for it to work in your business.
Start with aligning your business with a business that will be selling Christmas trees this year; someone selling fresh cut trees from a local farm would be most desirable because you can send some customers their way and they can reciprocate for you.
Select as many non-profit organizations as you have room to display Christmas trees in your business. Each non-profit gets one Christmas tree to decorate. Suggest to the group the tree be decorated to match the purpose of their organization.
As the trees are decorated and displayed in your business, have each of the non profits promote the presence of their tree located in your business. Their supporters are invited to visit your business and 'vote' for their favorite Christmas tree. A ballot costs $1 with the supporter sharing their name, address, phone and email. Each tree has their own ballot box for the supporters to place their ballot. The money is also collected and segregated according to the non-profit.
The non profit group receives all of the money from the 'votes' they have received. You draw one name from each ballot box and that individual gets that decorated Christmas tree for their home.
Your business looks good before the community and the supporters of that non profit. The non profit gets the money, you have a new partner in the Christmas tree provider, and you also have all this new contact information you can add to your data base. Everybody wins!
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