Sales at U.S. retailers rose at their fastest pace in three-and-half years last month. This was the biggest monthly advance since January 2006, according to the US Commerce Department. Now that customers are opening their wallets again, smart business owners will be geared up. This is our third blog on preparing for the recovery and each week the economic news has gotten better! It’s now time to accumulate new customers as you stake your share of the expanding marketplace.
Hopefully, you’ve continued your usual advertising programs throughout the recession, but with cash flowing again a big marketing push is a smart idea. Potential customers are making decisions about where they will spend and this opportunity may be the only positive aspect of the economic slump.
There are two imperatives to selling your products and services in the new economy: presence on the internet and offering a good deal. Even if your product isn’t sold from a website, shoppers will go online to get a sense of your company and to research their decision. Make sure they can find you online and that your website gives a good impression. Then, show them you are sensitive to their wounded wallets by offering something better than they will find elsewhere. If lowering your prices or offering a temporary discount isn’t possible, convince your audience that you are giving them the best value for their hard earned money. Be sure to let them know that your price is a considered factor, because even with a recovery at hand, the hard lesson we all learned was that we may suffer in the face of excess but we will all benefit from each others’ careful spending.
