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Manager's To-Do: September 2010

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Last Updated on Monday, 30 August 2010 06:12 Written by INSTORE Monday, 30 August 2010 01:56

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Week 1

Aug. 30-Sept. 4

  • INVENTORY eBay shoppers typically start buying holiday gifts earlier than most other consumers. It’s a good channel if you want to clear case space before the real holiday action starts.

  • MARKETING Design a postcard for Grandparents’ Day (Sept. 12).

  • STAFF Do second round of employee reviews. With the economy picking up, review and re-align job descriptions.

  • HOLIDAY prep Establish sales goals and set projections. Update client records and create target lists.

  • OPERATIONS Fall trunk shows are coming. Vendors should be booked; now follow up and confirm details.

    • Week 2

    Week 2 Sept. 6-11

  • DISPLAYS Labor Day (Sept. 6) is the unofficial end of summer, so change that old window display. In fact, make a vow to change your windows monthly.

  • STAFFING Start the search for holiday hires, so you’ll have time for training  and to see if they’re going to work out.

  • FINANCING Explore new financing options — debit cards, layaway, and other systems that have appeared in the last year (although come November, we suspect the American consumer will no doubt reach for his credit card again).

    • Week 3

    Sept. 13-18

  • INVENTORY Review shipment due dates and confirm/change as needed. Go over fast turners and “never outs.”

  • PACKAGING Assess supplies of boxes, ribbon and wrapping paper.

  • INTERNET Start sending out regular e-mails to keep customers up to date on new lines and specials. Begin to mention the holidays. A long-term conversation is far superior to a mad  spamming campaign in the 10 days before Christmas.

  • MARKETING Brainstorm ways to get wish lists into your customers’ hands. Theme should be that gift budgets are not wasted on unwanted presents this year. Offer to discuss gift ideas.



    • Week 4

    Sept. 20-25

  • HOLIDAY PREP Finalize your holiday event planning. What will it be? A ladies’ night? A men’s night? A charity event? Secure all dates and ensure there are no conflicts with any community or school calendars. According to event planners, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday are the best days for a party and 5-7 p.m. the best hours.

  • OUTREACH Look to see if there’s a holiday gift show in your area. It’s a good way to pump up your early-holiday season sales. Google “holiday gift show” to see if there’s one nearby.



    • Week 5

    Sept. 27-Oct. 2

  • MARKETING Planning some Halloween fun? Start thinking about how you can dress up your website to get people in the mood.

  • REFRESHMENTS Here’s an employee favorite: The annual cookie- and coffee-testing session. What goodies will you offer customers this year?

    • This story is from the September 2010 edition of INSTORE

     

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