Marketing Your Retail Store in the Internet Age

BOB NEGEN founded WhizBang! Training after owning an award-winning chain of kite stores for more than two decades. He has spent the last six years teaching other store owners and managers the nuts-and-bolts skills they need to run successful retail businesses. In his work as a speaker, author, and consultant, Bob shares the hard-earned lessons he learned along the way. SUSAN NEGEN is cofounder of WhizBang! Training, where she takes the best of what she learned as an executive for department store giants Bloomingdale’s and Macy’s and applies it to the independent retail store.

• Acknowledgments. Introduction.Who Should Read This Book.Who Are Bob and Susan Negen and Why Should You Listen to Them?The Bad News.The Good News.The New Millennium Merchant.The WhizBang! Marketing System: Four Steps to Higher Sales and Happier Customers.How to Use This Book.Step One: How to Get New Customers without Going Broke.Five Key Concepts for Getting New Customers.Key Concept #1: Be Willing to Pay to Get New Customers.Key Concept #2: Understand the Lifetime Value of a Customer.Key Concept #3: Break Even on the Front End, Break the Bank on the Back End.Key Concept #4: Apply the “Rule of Reciprocity”.Key Concept #5: Leverage the Power of Affinity Marketing.Six Low-Tech Tactics to Get New Customers without Going Broke.New Customer Tactic #1: Give Away Gift Certificates.New Customer Tactic #2: Send Endorsed Mailings.New Customer Tactic #3: Partner with a Charitable Cause.New Customer Tactic #4: Create a Referral System.New Customer Tactic #5: Engage in “Donut Marketing”.New Customer Tactic #6: Generate Publicity.Six High-Tech Tactics to Get New Customers.New Customer Tactic #7: Have a Great Website.New Customer Tactic #8: Seek Out Reciprocal Links.New Customer Tactic #9: Set Up Email Endorsements.New Customer Tactic #10: Ask Customers to Forward to a Friend.New Customer Tactic #11: Online User Groups and Chat Rooms.New Customer Tactic #12: Get Good Search Engine Placement.Special Section: The Traditional Media.Why Advertising Doesn’t Usually Work for Independent Retailers and What You Can Do About It.Special Section: Copywriting for Retailers.Killer Copy: How to Write Messages That Sell.The Ten Commandments of Copywriting for Retailers.Step Two: Turn a First-Time Buyer into a Regular Customer.Two Key Concepts for Turning a First-Time Buyer into a Regular Customer.Key Concept #1: Lifetime Value of a Customer.Key Concept #2: The Big Switch.Three Low-Tech Tactics for Turning a First-Time Buyer into a Regular Customer.Turn Them into a Regular Customer Tactic #1: Give a Great First Experience in Your Store.Turn Them into a Regular Customer Tactic #2: Ask For Their Contact Information.Turn Them into a Regular Customer Tactic #3: Follow Up Immediately.Two High-Tech Tactics for Turning a First-Time Buyer into a Regular Customer.Turn Them into a Regular Customer Tactic #4: Have a Newsletter Sign-Up on Your Website.Turn Them into a Regular Customer Tactic #5: Create Automatic Welcome Emails.Step Three: Get Your Customers to Shop More Often.Two Key Concepts to Get Your Customers to Shop More Often.Key Concept #1: It’s Your Responsibility to Be Remembered, Not Your Customer’s Responsibility to Remember You.Key Concept #2: The Secret Strategy: Become a Broader Resource.Four Low-Tech Tactics to Get Your Customers to Shop More Often.Shop More Often Tactic #1: Have Lots of Promotions.Shop More Often Tactic #2: Have a Big, Bold, Preferred Customer Club.Shop More Often Tactic #3: Send Snail Mail.Shop More Often Tactic #4: Use Bag Stuffers and Bounce Backs.Four High-Tech Tactics to Get Your Customers to Shop More Often.Shop More Often Tactic #5: Manage Your Customer Database.Shop More Often Tactic #6: Use Email Marketing to Stay in Touch with Your Customers.Shop More Often Tactic #7: Make Your Website a Resource for Your Customers.Shop More Often Tactic #8: Use Email Campaigns to Sell Related Products.Step Four: Keep Your Customers for Life.Six Key Concepts to Keep Customers for Life.Key Concept #1: Keep Your Customers for as Many Years as Possible.Key Concept #2: Never Take Your Customers for Granted.Key Concept #3: Be Constant.Key Concept #4: Be Consistent.Key Concept #5: Keep Your Approach to Your Business Fresh and Exciting.Key Concept #6: What’s a Customer Worth? Show Me the Money!Three Terrific Tactics to Keep Customers for Life.Terrific Tactic #1: Build a Marketing Plan.Terrific Tactic #2: Track the Effectiveness of Your Marketing Efforts.Terrific Tactic #3: Fight “Perceived Indifference” Tooth and Nail.Conclusion.Index.