“Keeping your business fresh” means you are continuously developing new products or services to offer your customers.
New product or service development is important for your business in two ways:
1) it will interest and encourage repeat customers; and
2) it will keep YOU interested in your business. Let’s explore these ideas in more detail…
One business goal is to entice new customers to your shop, studio, bed & breakfast, or restaurant. New customers mean higher sales. It is just as important to your business bottom-line, however, to encourage those new customers to return to your establishment again and again and again. Providing new customers with a wonderful experience the first time they step through your doors goes a long way toward enticing them back for a second and third visit. Offering them something new on their return visits ensures they will continue to return (and bring their friends with them!) You might be thinking, “I don’t have the time or the money to develop new products/services!” New product/service development isn’t necessarily costly or time-consuming. Small changes can make a big impact.
Some of the easiest changes can take place in the area of customer service:
- implement a gift registry system during the holiday season or for weddings or baby showers.
- offer gift wrapping (attractive, low-cost gift bags and tissue work great)
- offer a complimentary beverage and refreshment
- change your displays often to make your retail space look different
to customers each
time they visit. - add artists’ stories to your displays to help personalize their work.
- place fresh flowers in guest rooms
- add candles/incense/potpourri so sales areas smell delicious (avoid
overpowering
- change a label on one of your products, perhaps adding more information
about how the
product may be used or how you make it, or make the label more colorful. - add a different appetizer, entrée, or dessert to your menu
- offer the same product in a different color (or scent or size).
Check out your competition to see what they are doing.
Think seasonally. Colors, textures, forms, and scents change with the seasons. At first, coordinate product development with your selling cycle, introducing products during the times when your sales are healthy. For example, my sales volume is highest during the holiday season. So several years ago, I developed a holiday candle and soap, scented with spices. This year (in order to keep the line fresh), I've added two new holiday scents. My choice of scents was informed by my research of competing soap and candle makers' product lines. I also contacted makers of fragrance oils, asking them to identify their best selling fragrances for the holiday season. Then, take a hard look at your slow selling times and develop products or services that might boost your sales during these slow times. For example, January and February are very slow months at my studio, so I developed products with a Valentine's Day theme. Because Midway (where my studio is located) is slow at this time, I market these products to retailers in more populated areas.
This strategy has paid off for me over the last two years.
New products and services also give you an opportunity for marketing since you will want to announce the new product or service. You can send postcards to your customer base, announcing the new product or service. In some cases, local media outlets might be interested in featuring your business. Write a press release describing your business and what is new and send it to media outlets.
For instructions on writing an effective press release, visit www.lunareclipse.net/pressrelease.htm.
Finally, continually "tweaking" your product or service offerings will heighten your excitement about your business. We must avoid getting into a business rut, doing the same thing over and over again. Moms Mabley once said, "If you keep doing what you've done, you'll keep getting what you've got." I encourage you to "think outside the box" and put some creative energy into your business. I am a member of the Platinum 10 product development initiative sponsored by the Kentucky Craft Marketing program. During our meetings, we brainstormed new product ideas for our own and other members' businesses. After each meeting, I was re-energized and excited about the possibilities for my business.
So, gather together a few friends, family, and business and brainstorm ideas for your business. Some ideas will be farfetched, but other ideas will have real potential. Have fun with them!