We have had good success with applying a small amount of our ad budget towards promoting our Facebook posts.  As long as the graphic meets Facebook’s criteria (including having less than 20% text), you can “boost” a post to those who like your page, their friends, or a target group you create. It’s fun to play… Read More

When email became a prominent form of communication, many predicted that greeting cards would become extinct.  And while it is true that there has been a decline in card sales since the heyday, the Greeting Card Association reports that card sales have actually held steady in recent years. This is in part due to independent… Read More

What is 4” X 9” and found in tourist areas all over the country? The ubiquitous rack card, a promotional piece used to advertise shops, restaurants, events and attractions to visitors.  These vertical cards usually have a strong, brightly colored graphic on the front in order to stand out from the competition. The attractive sample… Read More

The “for lease” sign finally came down on a vacant storefront on our shopping street last week, and according to the new sign we are now going to have a boxing studio as a neighbor.  At the same time it was announced that another vacancy is being filled by a holistic vet clinic. Don’t get… Read More

We’ve all been watching the national discussion about minimum wage carefully, because payroll is the largest expense after rent for most retailers.  Last year Wal-Mart announced that it is going to raise all employees to at least $9 an hour, and it has been interesting to see how this played out.  Wal-Mart stock fell more… Read More

The first mail of the new year brought a new kind of invitation from a sales agency we have bought from for many years: Ellie & Friends.  Instead of continuing with her usual gift show booth, Ellie Garber has decided to try offering three “Pop-Up Wholesale Cafes” in cities across the country. The first will… Read More

What RTB do you present to your customers?   For the uninitiated, RTB stands for Reason to Believe — and it’s the latest term I learned during my eleven years on the United Way of Dane County (Wisconsin) marketing committee.  I can heartily recommend volunteering as a way of increasing your skill set. I can’t… Read More

I like the fact that Facebook allows us to select a target market when we pay to “boost” a post.  (Never mind the rather irritating fact that the limit to the amount of text in an illustration sometimes means that it can’t be boosted.) When you boost a Facebook post, you can select people who like… Read More

One of the basic tenets of retailing is that you can’t sell from an empty cart. In order to be successful, we need merchandise. And we need merchandise that is the right goods at the right price, delivered at the right time.   Here are ten ways that a vendor can earn the “Best of the… Read More