From the Executive Director

Juan A. Navejar Jr.

Less than 60 shopping days until Christmas remain. As the holidays approach, people will look for bargains and gift ideas. With some quick thinking you can turn the end of the year in retail sales into a gold mine.
People often look for discounts or something extra in their holiday buys. Try bundling complementary products for the holiday season and offer discounts. For example, you could bring in a photographer to take holiday pictures and offer a discount on a picture frame to go with the purchase of any picture package.
Sales will peak between Thanksgiving and Christmas traditionally. Black Friday and Cyber Monday are the big door busters at the register. People are prepared to spend their money, so it is sometimes just a matter of offering them incentive to come spend money at your business. Offer free gifts to customers who spend a set amount at your business. Perhaps a free candle with a purchase of $25 or more or you could offer different levels of gifts for the people that purchase more products and the chance to be entered into a drawing to win a larger prize.
Halloween decorations came down the last week of October making way for the busiest shopping season of the year. Many businesses look forward to the Friday after Thanksgiving as kickoff to holiday gift purchases. You need to create several promotional days during the holiday season, however, to keep the sales momentum going. Do not rely on just one day to generate your holiday sales. Use the month after Black Friday to create as promotional buying days to keep the momentum going or perhaps begin the week before Thanksgiving to get the sales moving.
If you can add more to a customer’s shopping experience by all means take advantage of it like free Christmas wrapping. Offer a service that helps people to think of gift ideas and points shoppers to the correct part of the store to find suggested gifts. Help make people’s holiday shopping experience easier, and they may spend more money with your business.
I shared this idea a couple of months ago during the summer time about partnering with another business for coupon ideas. Pick another business you can compliment and trade coupons. You give out each other’s coupon with each sale. If you are a small business, perhaps a free cup of coffee or a cookie to share with your loyal customers will keep them coming back through the holiday season.
Put the customer at ease this holiday season and make them feel welcome at your store. A simple Happy Thanksgiving to you and follow up with Merry Christmas to everyone who walks through your doors will put them in a better mood and hopefully in a bigger shopping mood as well.