The sleigh bells ring… and so do the cash registers

During the holidays, people all over the world shop many hours to buy gifts for the important people in their lives. Spending this time of year is one of the driving forces in our economy, and retailers go to great lengths to make the hectic experience festive. The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, the NeimanMarcus catalog, FAO Schwarz toy decorations and Saks Fifth Avenue window displays are part of the holiday marketing tradition.

When our kids were little, we lived in Fort Worth, and every December we drove an hour to Dallas to take our kids to Northpark Center. There, our family really got into the Christmas spirit. From the sarcastic puppeteer Scrooge preying on unsuspecting shoppers to the massive clock tower representing the 12 days of Christmas and the most authentic Santa Claus we’ve ever seen, shopping at Northpark was truly something we looked forward to. every year.

Northpark’s goal is to provide shoppers with a memorable holiday experience and encourage them to purchase more products at the mall’s stores. When making a purchase decision, retailers understand that shoppers go through screening processes that weigh against their “scarce” resources: time, money, knowledge, and affinity.

The filtering process: The first thing a customer does to filter information is review the options (think of what you do when looking for a new computer). With a universal list in hand, customers begin to distill options by comparing them based on their own scarce resources. Ultimately, they reach a logical conclusion by assigning a value to the various options.

Example: Alan has a foreign car that does not change gear. A quick phone call to the dealership where he bought it four years ago reveals that they are no longer in business.
What does he do?

In the first stage of his decision-making process, Alan considers all possible means to satisfy his main need: to get transportation quickly. He starts by filtering options: he finds another distributor in a nearby city; look for non-dealer mechanics in the yellow pages; call AAA; park the car in his garage and wait to see if a new dealership opens; fix the car himself; call his brother-in-law; buy a new car; take the bus; etc.

As Alan considers all of these options, his own scarce resources come into play. His busy schedule won’t allow him time to drive to a nearby city. This is the only car of his, so parking it will not solve the problem; he would just have to rent another one, and he doesn’t have the money to do it. He has no knowledge about fixing brakes. He really doesn’t have much of an affinity for his brother-in-law. After working through all the scenarios, Alan finally decides to find another mechanic.

As you can imagine, the way he chooses that mechanic triggers a whole new set of filters that take Alan’s meager resources into account. For example, since he doesn’t know any non-dealer mechanics, he will have to rely on a friend’s knowledge of which local mechanics are qualified to do the job right.

The Marketing Opportunity: Looking at the example above from the mechanic’s point of view (both non-dealerships and those at dealerships in nearby cities) reveals some strong marketing opportunities.

By undertaking this same filtering process to understand where owners of similar cars from that defunct dealership find themselves, any of these segments could provide the knowledge Alan and others need to choose them.

Non-dealer mechanics qualified to work on this car can obtain a list of local owners from the manufacturer. They could then start a direct mail campaign that focuses on educating car owners about the benefits of doing business with them. They could also send a postcard to all of their existing customers: “If you have any friends or family affected by the loss of XYZ Dealership, we are ready to help.”

A dealership in a nearby town, presumably with a larger budget than non-dealer mechanics, could set up a temporary service center to help the dealership’s car owners out of business. While Alan may not be able to get there this time to get his car fixed, there’s a good chance that the next time he’s looking for a new one in the market, he’ll take the time to drive there and make a much larger purchase than the breaks. .

Success Driver: With your team, play out the screening process your customers might go through in specific situations. Set up various scenarios and find the best opportunities for your small business. Then develop an action plan to capitalize on them.

Consider the following:

o What is your message and how will you share it with prospects and customers? What will it look like? How will you deliver it? (Direct mail, advertising, website, community event, sales call, brochure, open house, newsletter, industry association, etc.)

o Once you get their attention, what do you want them to do next? (Call, fax, write or email, make an appointment, order something, sign up, enter a sweepstakes, choose your gift, hand in your coupon, etc.)

o Once they contact you or allow you to contact them, what will you do? (Who answers the call? What do they say? What other materials do you provide them with?)

o How will you follow up? (Call them every XX days, put them on your mailing list, invite them to an event or seminar, etc.)

o Once they buy from you, how will you exceed their expectations? How will you say thank you? How will you keep in touch?

o What are the opportunities for repeat or additional business from them? How will they know all your capabilities and services? What other scarce resources can you identify with?

Remember, you need to put yourself in the shoes of your customers and prospects from time to time to understand how they think and how you will best meet their needs. Whether it’s designing better marketing materials to help increase your sales, shipping computers across the country while forgetting about all the worries, or just making the holiday shopping experience for parents a little less stressful, you should understand why they buy from your small business. .

Happy holidays and happy shopping!

Copyright © 2004 by Success Handler, LLC. All rights reserved.