You have just made the decision that it’s time to close your retail business. In most cases some of the primary reasons you have made that decision is that business is declining, your customer count is way down, your advertising is not working or you have decided now is the time to retire. So, how are you going to sell your entire inventory and fixtures in just 60 to 90 days.
You need to have a concise, well thought out marketing plan that is not only going to get them in the door the first time, but keep them coming back throughout the sale. And you have to do it as inexpensively as possible. Most Store Closing Sales require a budget of 3% – 5% of estimated sales.
Below are some of the marketing tools that I use when developing an effective marketing plan for my clients that have decided to run a Store Closing or Retirement Sale.
Exterior Sale Signs – often creates more traffic than any other means, depending on location
Email Marketing – least expensive way to reach your customer
Direct Mail – letters or postcards, used for initial and follow-up marketing
Social Media – continues to grow as an effective way to reach existing customers as well as new customers
Prize Drawing or Contest – incentive to come in initially/captures contact information for follow-up marketing
Newspaper Ads– weekly paper that covers primarily local news usually produces best results
Press Releases – the best free advertising you can get
During the next several weeks I will cover each of these tools in a separate blog. The balance & timing of using these tools vary by each stores unique situation and not every tool is used for every sale. If you want to discuss your situation – call me at 520-305-9693
Chuck Haug
CCH Consulting, LLC
520-305-9693