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The Small Business Dilemma – how to clear Surplus Stock

January 16, 2012 By Amanda Leave a Comment

Yes it’s a dilemma faced by all retailing or wholesaling businesses, how to clear surplus stock. Auction sites such as ebay, listing sites such as craigslist and the likes has helped with connecting sellers with buyers, but there are thousands of sellers offering similar products to just as many buyers, For new items ( not second hand or used), were the condition of the goods is not an issue, it boils down to price and maybe location. How does your product stand out in a crowded marketplace and how far are you willing to lower the price?

UPDATE:try your own daily deal site, click here for more info

Maybe location can be a factor in the decision. In today’s society it’s all about now and fast. If a potential customer is looking for an item surely if it is available within a short space of time, as in minutes rather than days, would this influence the buyers decision?. The answer is more than likely.

Our course the next issue is how to connect the buyers to your store. Well, here just maybe the answer to how to clear surplus stock.

A new web and mobile device based service that connects local buyers and sellers called Zaarly.

From Zaarly’s You Tube channel

Zaarly is a location based, real-time buyer powered market. Zaarly helps you to buy and sell from people around you. You get What You Want, When You Want It.

This short video clip will give you more of an idea of what it is and how it works

Now, I do not advocate discounting as a pricing strategy for any business, especially those operating in niche markets. There are times when it is necessary to clear surplus stock and this might be another tool. I also suspect that this will not clear large quantities.

As an added bonus, use this system to educate the buyer on the benefits of shopping at your store, Get them on your email list, ask them to like you on facebook. You never know you might have gained a new customer.

UPDATE:try your own daily deal site, click here for more info

Filed Under: Small Business Marketing Ideas and Tips, Small Business Resources Tagged With: small business, small business help

The Social Network Academy Review

January 13, 2012 By Amanda Leave a Comment

Business owners or managers looking for training on social media on the internet are faced with a huge challenge. There literally thousands of courses, both free and paid to choose from. On course that I stumbled upon on my search to gain more knowledge for my business was the Social Network Academy. Review of the website was the first step and then searching for more information on the owner Jo Barnes and the actual content.

Sonia Hoque reported on her website of her experiences with Jo Barnes bringing in the human factor to the Social Network Academy review.

Sonia states

This was a three day event all about how to harness the marketing power of Facebook. The content was truly amazing and a complete revelation!

I found Jo Barnes herself to be a very sincere, genuine and gracious woman, very passionate about what she does and a true inspiration.

The second time we met was at Mark Anastasi’s ‘The Ultimate Traffic Generation Summit’ in London. A four day event spent with some of the world’s top internet marketers.

Jo was very generous with her time. Despite being a very busy lady, Jo always makes an effort to talk, answer questions etc. Such is evident in that on both occasions agreed to do an interview with me.

Having bought several of Jo’s products / services (including ‘The Social Networking Academy’), I can personally vouch; the content and value she provides is second to none, always over delivering on her promises.

I found this personal touch refreshing, getting to know the real person is a bonus.

Another Social Network Academy review focuses on what on what is in the course. The following is extracted from an article from Potent Knowedge

The Social Networking Academy is is the ultimate resource that will help you understand social media and learn how to conquer it. There are so many things you can do with social media marketing, yet your knowledge might not be enough. Jo Barnes will show you everything you need to know about conquering these social media sites and become a more competitive internet marketer.

The Social Networking Academy is a collection of High Definition training materials and resources that will walk you through the steps of successfully and effectively using social media sites in your link building and traffic-generation campaigns. With this tool, you should be able to gain a leverage above your competition..

What’s in Store for You with The Social Networking Academy?

This Guide Will Show You How to Work With:.

Google+

Facebook

Twitter, and other social Media Sites

Other reviews concentrated on the internet marketing aspects of the academy, however there is allot of content to make it a great resource for any business owner. My opinion is that the Social Network Academy is a website worth taking a cruise though. You can even access some of the material for free, so an ultimate try before you buy scenario.

I would love to hear from you if you have anything you would like to add to this Social Network Academy review.
this is an affiliate link

Filed Under: Small Business Personal Development, Small Business Social Media Tagged With: free small business marketing tools, small business, small business help, small business marketing tools, social media for small business

Small Business Employee Retention Tips

January 11, 2012 By Amanda Leave a Comment

Small business employee retention is a critical factor in any small business. We spend literally thousands of dollars investing in an employee so it is very important to keep efficient, productive employees. Thousands of dollars you say? but we don’t have a training program that costs big bucks? Sure we have an induction manual for new employees but this didn’t cost allot!

Yes, there are quantifiable costs involved when taking on a new employee, such as advertising, employment contract costs and employment agency costs. But there are also costs that are not as easily calculated. How about the time taken to find a new employee, the fact that it takes time for new employees to come up to speed with your business. Do you have repeat customers? It takes time and effort to build a relationship which keeps those customers coming back. This is especially true for hairdressers and also restaurants and cafes with a local base. New employees generally take longer to do tasks meaning not as much gets done in the short term.

When an employee leaves then allot of knowledge of your business leaves with them. They have learnt just how Mrs Jones likes her coffee, how often to rotate stock to stop spoilage, the way to turn the key in the door in the morning, how to use the point of sales system, how to notice a shoplifter, know what sells & what dosen’t, is proficient in the machinery that is used in your business, has in depth knowlegde of your market, gives great advice to customers, make good decisions based on what they have learned from you over time. The list goes on and on so it makes sense to try and keep good employees.

But how to keep them. Well cash is not the number 1 reason why employees leave, mostly they feel undervalued & not appreciated. So here are some small business employee retentiontips that do not cost the earth from an article by Micheal C.Bush

Micheal has tips for small business employee retention

Michael C. Bush is president and founder of 8 Factors, an action-oriented framework that has been taught over a decade and utilized by thousands of successful entrepreneurs

Go the extra mile to keep talent. For those who cannot afford to give raises or bonuses to keep talented employees, many may find that caring can be just as or even more valuable. Personalized gifts such as salon certificates, movie tickets, restaurant gift cards, sports tickets and treats can go a long way when it comes to keeping your staff happy. It is important to pay attention and find out what each individual employee values so the gifts are received with true enthusiasm; Becky might not like the salon certificate but love tickets to a Warrior’s game. Not all things stop at the buck.

Have you had any success with small appreciation type benefits that has helped with your small business employee retention? Any ideas that you would like to add?

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Filed Under: Small Business General Help Tagged With: small business, small business employee retention, small business help

Small Business Training for Owners

January 10, 2012 By Amanda Leave a Comment

Business Owners and managers must continue to educate themselves in current

Small business training for business owners

View a webinar from anywhere in the world

best practices and trends. Now finding Small Business Training for Owners has got a lot easier with the mountain of information available on the internet. One of the easiest way to receive training is by way of a webinar. Instead of driving to a location, parking finding the venue etc. viewing a webinar from the comfort of your own home, a cafe, from your business premises or anywhere in the world makes alot of sense. Ventureneer is a website that is providing 6 free webinars which offers a range of small business training for owners as detailed here: [Read more…]

Filed Under: Small Business Personal Development Tagged With: small business, small business help

Small Business Marketing – Google Places for Business

January 8, 2012 By Amanda 2 Comments

In the hustle & bustle of running your own business do not forget that Google Places for Business is a great marketing tool. When potential customers search via google for local

Make sure you have a Google Places for Business listing

businesses in a specific category ( like dentists, plumbers, electricians etc.) those with a google places listing often top the searches. These results are also now pushing the historically top sites down the list.

Google has made a lot of changes this year with what is known as the Panda Update for SEO and as reported below, changes have also been made with google places for business. Please review as to how this will affect your business. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Small Business Marketing Ideas and Tips Tagged With: free small business marketing tools, small business help

Small Businesses Marketing Tips – Text or SMS Messaging

January 6, 2012 By Amanda Leave a Comment

Do you think your small business could use text or sms messaging as part of it’s marketing? Maybe not? Well to give you inspiration here’s some ideas to help. Think outside the square, there could be something to apply in your small business.

Bars, Lounges and Nightclubs – Whether it’s a neighborhood bar or a trendy nightclub, mass texting can help bring in bodies. Nightly drink specials, live bands appearing on stage and VIP access to special events are just a few of the messages that the owner of a bar or club could send out. TellMyCell has been helping those in the nightlife industry do just that for more than six years now.

Restaurants – As in the nightlife industry, text marketing can help bring in restaurant patrons as well. For example, restaurant owners use http://www.tellmycell.com to entice diners to visit on slow days of the week. Research shows that 95 percent of text messages are opened within minutes of receipt. Around mid-morning, restaurant owners simply text the day’s specials to their list of regulars and wait for the tables to fill.

Boutiques – Storeowners often use mass texting to announce special sales or new shipments of merchandise. Text messages with coupons or announcing contests and giveaways also work well in the retail segment.

Financial Advisors – Since financial and market information is time sensitive, this particular type of small business uses mass texting to keep clients informed. Sending daily trading tips, market summaries and links to full reports are just a few of the ways financial advisors use TellMyCell to serve their client base.

Apartment Complexes – Property managers can send one text message to an entire community when issues arise, such as a crime alert or a notice of bulk-trash removal. Many also use text marketing to send rent reminders and overdue notices.

There are many text messaging services available at little cost to your small business. It’s instanteous and efficient, why not give it a try!

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Filed Under: Small Business Marketing Ideas and Tips Tagged With: small business help, small business marketing tools

Small Business – Marketing Pricing Strategy

January 6, 2012 By Amanda Leave a Comment

With pressure on rising costs some small businesses are looking at increasing prices in order to stay viable. But is this prudent when consumers are constantly being bombarded with sales and special pricing on nearly every possible item they wish to purchase . If there are no more ways to cut costs, and in fact they are increasing, there are only two options left. Increase prices or increase volumes sold Having said that, there is no guarantee that either of these options will have the desired effect of increasing the bottom line.

Looking firstly at increasing sales volume, forgetting that there may not be a demand what other issues are there? Well, more stock is required, possibly more sales staff, more holding room for stock, more advertising to bring in customers the list goes on. This in turn puts pressure on cashflow. How is this all to be paid for when cash is already tight.

This then makes the alternative of inceasing prices attractive. But how to do this without upsetting customers? The following extract of an article in Entrepreneur.com reveals a strategy for increasing prices

Many businesses blame higher overhead, including steeper manufacturing costs and employee wages, for their planned price hikes. For example, Chris Zane, owner of Zane’s Cycles, a bike shop in Branford, Conn., expects to raise prices between 6 percent and 7 percent in 2012, because of higher labor costs at manufacturing facilities in China.

But he says customers will likely complain because they don’t buy bikes very often and remember when his prices were lower. “‘Now I have to spend $500 plus to get something similar?’ is a common objection we hear and have to overcome,” he says.

Zane, who has raised prices numerous times in recent years, is upfront with his customers. “Gas prices, airline tickets, as well as bikes, have gone up over the past few years, and when we discuss that, it seems to sink in,” he says. To cushion the impact of the price hike, he promises top-notch customer service–lifetime free service, a lifetime parts warranty and 90-day price protection. If a customer makes a purchase at Zane’s Cycles and then finds the same item elsewhere at a lower price within 90 days, Zane’s will refund the difference, plus an additional 10 percent of the price difference.

So Zanes approach is to increase prices, but with a twist. He has something to offer customers in return including full service and a price guarantee. This is a slick strategy, is it one you can use?

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Filed Under: Small Business General Help, Small Business Marketing Ideas and Tips Tagged With: small business, small business help