Ah, yes, February! It’s that time of the year where couples get overly romantic, buying gifts and assorted plant life for one another, trying to impress each other in attempts to proclaim their love and affection.

To merchants, this is yet another opportunity to show your appreciation to your customers. Especially those of the fairer sex. Take the time to APPRECIATE your CUSTOMERS with simple gestures and you will reap the rewards soon enough. Not only will you end up retaining a customer, you may even get new ones once word-of-mouth of your thoughtfulness spreads.

It does not take much to say thank you to a valued customer. You could send a physical Valentine’s card with discount voucher from your store enclosed. You could also enclose a gift voucher for a couple of drinks at a …

If sales have been a bit flat for you, perhaps you need to re-think your marketing strategy or do something innovative with your products to make some waves. My previous blog about SELLING CREATIVELY showcased 2 different companies putting into action different marketing strategies to boost their sales. What was similar was the fact that both companies utilized social media to spread the word to consumers – and it worked!

But if you can’t afford to give out tonnes of freebies or capture the hearts of love-struck romantic couples, another suggestion would be to use your product to help make a difference out there. There are tonnes of people that you could reach. Spend a little time doing some simple research and planning. For instance, a normal South African burger joint that was totally unheard of (they’re called WIMPY – pun not intended!) recently made massive waves and attracted TONNES of …

Selling could become so mundane at times that you need to draw some inspiration from others to ‘think out of the box’ to have a breakthrough.

Well I came across this short video showing how 7-Eleven in Australia creatively boost sales for their favorite product – the Slurpee.

They certainly made full use of social media like Facebook to help spread the word.

Click on the Slurpee image to view the video and I’m sure you’ll enjoy watching it. Just let it load completely before you play it.

Now, coming back to your store or business, what would REALLY APPEAL to your customers that will get THEM to help spread the word about your site OR products? This requires some serious marketing planning that won’t make you end up losing money or business in the long run. Don’t forget that with social media, …