Tips from November 11, 2009 The Small Business tips today discuss ideas and options for holiday marketing promotions.
Offer discounts or special offers on certain days to drive in holiday business. It's a standard ploy, but consistently works.
Give your customers a thoughtful gift. Set out homemade cookies, give one of your favorite holiday recipes; perhaps on a direct mailer or a pick-up in the store. Something special relating to your product or service would be the best idea. Free sells.
Reward loyal customers with additional discounts to your standard holiday promotions. Maybe an extra 15% off for them during a specific weekend.
Give your gift cards a holiday makeover and add a bit of holiday flair. You'll capture the eye of the holiday gift shopper more easily this way.
Daily Overview: What gets you through the door of a store around the holidays? Be inventive, creative, thoughtful an...
By Cheryl Sowa · November 11 2009
small business tips, small business, customers, promotions
When you decided to become a small business owner, you chose a franchise because the start-up would be easier, not to mention the marketing, supplies and all the other things that the corporate office has to offer. Now that you own the franchise, you have to decide whether or not to participate in corporate specials. You don’t necessarily have to, of course. The company wants you to feel a certain amount of autonomy in how you run your business, but if you don’t are you causing trouble for yourself down the road?
This question was recently brought into stark clarity by the one Popeye’s Chicken restaurant in Minnesota. Yep, they are the only one in the state and they are a privately-owned franchise. On Earth Day, Popeye’s corporate decided to run a special, which they advertised across the country. This got the folks in Minnesota pretty worked up and many came from miles around to take advantage of it. The problem was, the only Popeye’s in Minnesota decided no...
By Charles M Cooper · May 01 2009
small business, promotions, franchises, corporate specials franchisee rights
Government and Economy
Unemployment Surges to 7.6%
As if we needed further proof that the nation's employment is deteriorating at a frightening rate, employers eliminated 598,000 jobs in January and pushed the unemployment rate up to 7.6%, the highest unemployment rate since 1974.
Obama Demands Action on the Economy
President Obama spoke out against what he described as an "inexcusable and irresponsible" delay of his economic recovery legislation in Congress, especially given the fact that an estimated 3.6 million Americans have lost their jobs since the recession began.
By Charles M Cooper · February 06 2009
small business brief, marketing, small business, economy
