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It’s that time of the Year again!
And as we anticipate the fun festivities of Christmas, and New Year celebrations if you are an Employer are you ready, ready for what can be a very silly season for some.
Records show that it is a time of increased risk of health and safety misadventure caused by alcohol and recreational drug indulgence, too many ‘party’ late nights, and resulting fatigue that can affect performance and behaviour.
Now is the time to prepare and act! By taking some simple steps you can help avoid the silly season becoming a headache or hangover!
In relation to your Staff, start planning now on how to ‘best’ manage this season so that everyone gets to enjoy the occasion. Do this by developing strategies, policy and clear guidelines concerning attendance, behaviour and general ‘frivolity’ during this coming period.
The following are my 8 BEST Tips for staff management during the ‘silly season’
- Establish clear guidelines, codes of conduct, for what is acceptable and unacceptable behaviour in the workplace. Importantly ensure these are communicated directly to all employers so there is no misunderstanding or confusion about behaviour at both the workplace and work-related functions.
- HR Policies, Health & Safety. Now is a good to visit all your HR policies to ensure they are current. Update as needed and adopt and implement any gaps. For example, most of society are now engaged in social media activity that can come into the workplace. There needs to be clear policy set around this.
- In advance, actively promote and communicate your HR policies to all employers, raising awareness of sick leave, drug and alcohol policies. Conduct Information sessions and refresher training courses.
Are you about to embark on a marketing campaign offering ‘mega discounts’?
Yes,
then keep reading to gain value tips on what DISCOUNTNG is all about, importantly what it takes to make it a successful campaign!
Simply put, the Do’s and Don’t's!
- DO your planning, develop your Discounting Strategies
- DON’T ‘jump in, cutting prices without prior preparation.
What's it all about!
In a nutshell, the aim of ‘discounting’ is to drive sales by reducing the original price of goods but it takes careful planning to achieve the results you want.
‘Discounting strategy’ is the planning on how to offer discounts and specials and still make a profit! For example, short-term discounts can motivate potential consumers to make an immediate decision to buy.
Discounting is a strategy used for a number of purposes such as;
- to attract, persuade, motivate new, potential and inactive clients.
- to help move ‘slow or old’ stock
- to achieve sales targets during a down or slow period
- most importantly, to improve cash flow.
To help, here are 5 Discounting Strategy Tips:
- Discounting methods
- Is discounting worth it?
- Types of Discounting Strategies
- Timing your Strategies
- Does discounting affect your sales targets
1. Discounting methods include:
- Cash: discount for cash payment instead of credit
- Loyalty: discount for loyal, frequent customers/clients
- Trade: discounts for trading in a similar product
- Quantity: encourages purchase of more of the same product
2. Is Discounting worth it?
Discounting requires careful planning. It can attract more customers but before offering ‘cut’ sales prices you need to consider the following;
- Determine, calculate the best discount price that still provides a profit
- Establish your current profit margin, markup and break-even point
- Know what your competitors are offering and doing
- Decide the ‘sales price’ period, time
- Develop a Marketing Plan targeting current, potential and past customers
3. Types of Discounting Strategies
The type, such as examples below, will depend on your Business type and customer base. It is essential to know your customers, to have an understanding what strategy method is likely to attract them.
- Special deal, offer or price
- Package/ Bundle
- Valued added
- Seasonal, Occasion
- Quantity purchase
4. Timing Your Strategies
Don’t have a ‘willy-nilly’ approach. It’s all in the timing, it's been said before! Different strategies work better at different times. This is about planning in sync with specific events, milestones etc. For example, seasonal sales, Festive celebrations, Easter holidays, school term breaks.
5. Does discounting affect your sales targets?
Do your homework. Before embarking on a discounting promotion it is essential to understand the workings of your pricing structure. That means, if changing the sales price and markup of your products you need to understand how it will affect your profit margins and sales targets.
Do your sums. You need to know your gross margin, markup ad breakeven figures to conduct a sale without making a loss. That is calculate, to work out how the discounted price will affect your profit margin. In other words, the sales increase needed to counter the effect of discounts on your gross margin.
Use these Tips to develop your Discount Strategies that will allow you to offer discounts and specials while still making a profit!
You are ready now to start your CAMPAIGN!
Are you a Retailer?
YES!
then act now,
plan, prepare and promote your Black Friday Sales and Marketing campaign.
Don't miss out on the chance to be part of what is a growing retail activity for shoppers and bargain-hunters everywhere. And with rising costs more and more consumers are looking for the best ever deal and price!
What can, will you offer them!
Here are our 7 Top Tips to planning your SUCCESSFUL campaign:
1. Plan, prepare and promote your Marketing strategy, NOW! Identify your deals and align with stock, supply, resources, budget etc.
- Consumers buying habits have changed and where possible smart Businesses now engage in retail sales both Instore and Online. Bargain hunters are keen, and eager to get ‘early-bird’ specials.
- Get your Business ‘house’ in order. Instore make sure your premises are ready and equipped for more customer traffic. Ensure you have sufficient and suitably trained staff. Online/digital make sure all systems are up to date, in working order and ready to go! Do a ‘test run’! Have a backup system, plan!
- Embrace Social E-commerce. Adopt all marketing mechanisms to get full exposure, such as; social media, display advertising, newsletters, and Instore promotions. Maximise sales opportunities with ‘Click and Buy’ purchase options. More direct simple methods mean less time and hassle for customers. Explore new marketing tools and seek expert technical help if needed.
- Use the power of social media. Craft clever emails, tailor and personalize to regular customers, re-engage with past and target potential ones. Be authentic, honest and offer ‘can’t refuse’ incentives.
- Plan your ‘sales’ pitch. Be savvy! Develop your product deals and offers wisely to get the best results. Motivate customers, make offers both attractive and irresistible! Remember your (USP) unique selling point. Consider if possible, offering free delivery, bundled offers bonuses and gifts. Explore ‘upsell and cross-sell' methods.
- Delivery methods. Critical to have delivery systems in place for Online shoppers. Check your providers/arrangements are reliable and ready to go to deliver orders as promised.
Is your Business ready?
YES OR NO,
start your Black Friday sales campaign now!
Time and Opportunity wait for no-one!
If you are a Retailer and wanting to ‘crank-up’ your sales activity and boost revenue, and who doesn’t!
READ ON
Online, Instore, OR BOTH, don’t miss the opportunity to be part of the sales phenomenon that is ‘Black Friday’.
A time of shopping, with promotional offers, huge discounts and big sales! From fashion and beauty to electronics and household goods there are bargain hunters out there just waiting to grab a deal, save money and get that best ever price.
What can your Business offer!
2022, Black Friday begins on Friday 25th November, with sales usually beginning at midnight.
Cyber Monday is the follow-on event traditionally offering ‘Online only’ sales. 2022 Monday 28th November.
But be flexible, choose what best suits your Business and customer's needs to maximize the shopping opportunities and experience for both parties.
What’s this all about!
Black Friday began in the USA, emerging in the 1980’s as a major shopping holiday post- Thanksgiving. a time of celebration and holidays.
And, the ‘shopping event’ has morphed globally into a sales bonanza offering special deals to entice consumers, to stock up, indulge themselves, including on grabbing Christmas bargains.
Aussies have embraced the retail event smashing records in 2021 with sales totaling $8 billion during the 4 day period.
It’s popular! Figures indicate November is stealing the limelight from December as the time of peak sales, so makes sense to get on board and be part of the phenomenon! As a Retailer you can't afford not to.
If you don’t get onboard this opportunity you may be left behind. As consumers traditional shopping period has changed. This may have a significant impact on your sales performance.
2022. As households experience rising cost of living expenses, they are looking for savings across all purchases. Whether everyday items or Christmas present shopping everyone is becoming a bargain hunter, chasing the best price and deal!
Key Takeaways:
- Black Friday and Cyber Monday makeup this four-day sales event BUT choose the time period that best suits your Business and customers
- Start planning, preparing and promoting now
- Offer Instore and Online buys
- Offer your best ever deals
Financial Literacy, a subject often avoided, clouded in mystery or misunderstood.
True! and a fact for many!
A recent survey found 46% of people confirmed these feelings of finding financial information hard to understand.
Is that you!!
In a time of rising prices across most essential items, interest rates rapidly increasing and a booming buy now pay later market, it is critical to have some understanding of how money works. Basic financial literacy is a must.
Let's chat!
We begin with the premise that for most of us saving and budgeting are essential to financial wellbeing and the ‘smarter’ we are with our money the better we are, and the better we sleep!
The foundation of this thinking is understanding how your money works, or doesn’t. For example, what are the fundamentals of borrowing, the intrici's of home loan and credit arrangements and how to survive financially to retirement!
Simply, how money works and how, when to build, grow, your assets and gain some extra dollars to make that money work harder for you.
To help you with these questions there are resources available, such as: Moneysmart.gov.au
Basic literacy includes knowing the:
- Fundamentals of how home loan rates work
- Credit card rates
- Power of compounding interest
Is this sounding complicated!
Don’t despair, read on, there are ways for improving your literacy!
How to improve your Financial Literacy
In a nutshell, the 4 Principles to building Financial Literacy are:
1. Budgeting
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Your Management Accounting Partner
Your Expansion Engineer
Your Special Projects Partner