Expert Marketing Blog - Page 56

The countdown to Christmas is on and while we are all still enjoying the Spring Racing Carnival, there are a few large retailers who have already put together their Christmas displays and have started their Christmas marketing campaigns.

So what should you do? Do you start early because they have, or do you wait until it is closer to Christmas?

I have put together a reatil marketing "TO DO" list to help you decide what actions to take. 

1. Connect with customers early

In today’s marketing world, there are so many ways to connect with your customers, and when it comes to marketing at Christmas time, the earlier, the better. Especially when it comes to those big ticket items that require some research.

Start sending incentives and loyalty packages out in October, to lure customers to your store over your competitors. Make sure your customers know all about the latest products, and give them reason to purchase early to ensure that they don’t miss out.

I am utterly and completely in love with the business right now, I can't belive it has already been 10 years since Marketing Eye first opened its doors. 

What keeps you in the game is the ability to constantly change and perhaps, rev it up a bit.

In the past 3 years, we have been focused on change, innovation and revving it up like no tomorrow. Be careful what you wish for because we have also had to put the brakes on a few times and that has had some very interesting outcomes. 

As a college student money is more than the motive; it is the problem, the solution, and the goal. In one semester college student’s worry about tuition, fees for books, and how many packs of ramen noodles will last an entire semester? But as graduation draws near we have a new concern and that is is getting a job after we graduate. All college students must first conquer an internship before we graduate, to get the experience they need to get the job. There are two types of internship: paid and unpaid. NO one likes to work for free; especially a struggling college student but for more reasons than one, the task must be done!

So when we start to look for an internship, we begin to look for what matches our major. What are we looking to learn? Where are we looking to take our future? What do we want to get out of this internship but most of all IS IT WORTH IT? This is where cost benefit analysis comes in.

I've had a few sleepless nights and I am not quite sure why. I don't have any real worries and life is treating me very well of late. They say if you rid yourself of negativity or people that don't fit your core values whether they are someone you are in a relationship with, friends with, or associates - life becomes a lot more authentic and clean.

When people ask what my management style is, I often find this a hard question to answer. I am almost never "there" and we have had in place until two years ago a CEO, so there was never a reason for me to be actively involved in day-to-day management or leadership. In the past two years, we have focused on a flat management style where no-one really has a boss but they have a "coach" or person to go to with a title of State Manager whenever they feel the need to for normal administrative purposes or if they feel they are looking for leadership.