IT’S COMING !
Check out the date on your calendar. Yes, it says July 25th. Now do the math and count forward…BINGO! You just came to the realization that Christmas is only 5 months away! So what does that mean and how can we make it work? Follow the lead from the big box craft stores who have fall and Christmas merchandise hitting the shelves on a weekly basis. Too early you say? Visit your local Hallmark store to see all the ornaments that are being shown AND purchased now.
The season between mid November and the end of the year for many retailers is one of the busiest times of the year. It is not uncommon to do 28 – 40 % of the total year’s business in those short 6 weeks of time! That is an amazing amount of business potential to take advantage of. Plus, mix in all the personal commitments, family activities and social demands and it makes you want to run away right now, or, for the savvy retailer it makes you want to get a start on holiday preparations today so you and the other staff persons will be ready to run the holiday marathon of production. So you ask yourself, “Where do I begin”? The answer is simple. Look backward to move forward.
That translates to pulling last year’s sales history to see what where your best sellers and which items did not move as quickly. When considering best sellers, keep in mind that service is part of this equation. That can mean home installations or business decorating too. While we do not want to live in the past, it will be a good guideline to help make future decisions. The economy was a bit on the rebound last season and is continuing a slow but strong increase as time moves on. This may have an effect on your holiday sales. Look to see if there is potential to increase your existing commercial sales with those companies that did business with you last year. Then, move to make a plan to contact those companies you have done business with in years past, but maybe were not clients last year. After those opportunities have been explored, make a plan to contact new opportunities this year. Commercial customers are a good base to have especially during the holidays as the sales are generally stronger and in multiple. Do keeping mind that their payment terms often do not match your payment terms, so be prepared to see 45 – 60 days before you see your return on investment. That is why it is important to have a good balance of commercial accounts and residential accounts to off set each other. One is large and slower to pay while the others are smaller and quicker to pay. Be prepared to ‘sell your service’ at a fair and reasonable price. Selling the wreaths, trees and other décor is only part of the sale. Installation and tear down is another service that you are selling so you will want to know how much time you are planning to use to do the job correctly. Also, figure if there are one, two or multiple persons needed to do the installations. You will want to keep a calendar on hand to record your bookings so you don’t over extend yourself and staffing. No one needs the extra stress of poor planning during an already stressful time. You might even consider offering a discount on installation if booked in August, a lesser discount for services booked in September, and a minimal s=discount for those customers booking in October. This will encourage pre-planning on your customer’s part and it will allow you time to secure goods and labor to match the demand.
This is also a great time to figure out what in house features you will be offering for the holidays and get the prototypes made and photographed for your web site. With the availability of most traditional holiday flowers, there is really no reason to wait to get this taken care of. Also, while you have your invoices available why not go ahead and give your account manager your holiday order. It just makes sense to move tasks to the done column versus waiting to do something you know is going to happen. This is also a good time to visit your local hard goods supplier to place orders for ribbons, containers, vases, etc during their slower times to garner the personal attention they can afford to extend while they are not busy.
The holiday season rewards those who have prepared in advance with both revenue and time. Both are valuable! Take advantage of the luxury of time now to be able to enjoy your holiday season. The calendar countdown has begun – 5 months from today!
