Let’s turn the party music up, break out the food and drink and have some fun, shall we? That is what many of your customers are waiting for you to do! It seems like so many retailers simply have one boring sale event after another to the point that big store sales are no longer effective.
The big question I often get from other jewelers is, “What works to get customers in the door?” Simple, instead of throwing another “Sale,” how about throwing a party? OK, I’m not referring to a beer bash (I can see some of you snickering now), but to having an event/party that has nothing to do with price!
What??? You’re thinking I’ve lost my mind. OK, OK, hold on a minute! One recent weekend we invited some of our best clients into our store to preview some new jewelry lines. That in and of itself didn’t stand out, but the other things we did caused this to be a talked about event!
Our clients enjoyed music from a local keyboardist who was playing light jazz music. They also got to enjoy great finger foods and drink while they looked around at several new items/lines that we’d brought in. While doing so, we asked their opinions on the new lines, what they’d like to see and what jewelry they already enjoy. The atmosphere was kept light and no pressure.
Did we do business? You bet we did! Sales were quite brisk and our clients loved having first pick of the new jewelry lines. Even more importantly, we planted seeds for the future and our clients left many items on their Wish Lists.
Perhaps the thing I’d like to get across is this – independent jewelers need to be thinking about what makes their stores fun! You see most stores either don’t do sales or the sales they have are the same type every other retail jeweler is doing.
Yes, fun in your marketing is what cuts thru all the clutter. Fun is what makes you stand out in the crowd. Fun is what gets your store talked about in the local community. Having fun in your store is what makes for a healthier, longer career and happy employees. The Bible says, “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.” That’s pretty good medicine for each of us if I do say so myself.
By the way, I’ll be giving a seminar at the SJTA Atlanta Jewelry Show on Saturday, August 3rd at 1:45pm. The title of the seminar is “How To Find Riches In The Niches Of Your Jewelry Store’s Mailing List.” I’d love to meet each of you as we learn about how to do better direct mail marketing. See you there!
Bill Warren is president of The Gold Mine Fine Jewelry & Gifts, Inc., a successful jewelry store in the Hudson, NC. He recently formed Warren Marketing Systems, a company dedicated to helping small to medium size jewelers achieve success through innovative marketing. He regularly speaks at jewelry shows and conventions and also is a member of the Marketing Wizards Alliance. If you would like to receive more money making ideas like those in this article, consider subscribing to the Marketing Wizards Alliance Newsletter. To do so or to contact Bill, call 828-729-1020 or e-mail goldman86@bellsouth.net.
