Entry By Jason Brick
We're in the home stretch. Just two more weeks of work and events until Black Friday has come and gone again. For those of you joining us for the first time, read weeks one through six of our Small Business Holiday Marketing series. It's a bit late to get full benefit, but you'll find a few ideas you can still take action on.
This week, you'll feel a bit like a racer lining up on the blocks. You'll finish the last of the warm-ups and start getting ready for the big event. To that effect, we'll focus our energy on three things:
- Collectors Series, Week Two
- Clearance Event
- Changing Your Front Area
With those done, you'll have everything in place to go hard during next week's sales.
Collector's Series, Week Two
Last week, you sent a series of small discounts and offered a wider discount for people who came in with multiple coupons. This week, you'll go one further. Send three more messages out, sending each on every media platform you use. Again, these will be small deals like a minor discount or free drink with a meal. The difference will be in the value of collecting. Any customer who uses all three deals this week gets admission to next week's Black Friday sales. People who come in several times this week are folks you can pre-frame for big sales and your best deals. Make sure they know they get to bring some friends to that early admission.
Clearance Event
This one's simple. Remember in previous weeks when you went through your front and back areas, identifying items that aren't moving. If you haven't already identified the items that will make the best loss-leaders for next week, do that now and set them aside. Everything else goes on display at the front of your store, offered at as steep a discount as you can offer without experiencing physical pain. Everybody who buys anything also gets a ticket for early admission to your Black Friday event.
Changing the Front Area
Do this later in the week, after consumers have bought most of your clearance items. Now is the time to rearrange your displays -- and even your furniture -- to make the shop ready for Black Friday. You'll know better than us marketing experts about how best to arrange your shop for a major sale. Just do it this week when you have time to make adjustments. Don't wait until the last minute.
Thanksgiving is just around the corner. Out of curiosity, how do our retailers balance the Black Friday thing with time for family during this holiday season? Tell us about it in the comments below...
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