For retail establishments, involvement may be a no brainer--Small Business Saturday actions bring in customers and counteract the Black Friday/Cyber Monday madness at "big box" stores and online retailers. But how can independent restaurants and taverns make the most of the "shop local" craze on November 30?
1. Attract and retain new customers
Consumers will be out in full strength on Small Business Saturday, and they will get hungry and thirsty during an extended day of shopping. According to a 2012 poll by American Express (where the Small Business Saturday campaign originated), 59 percent of consumers planned on eating in an area eatery to mark the occasion.
In case you want to pull those shoppers to and/or dine drink with you, try using a clever slogan in-store, out front or on social networking, or provide a special menu item or promotion. For instance, American Express cardholders get a $10 credit when spending $10 or more at the Boston eatery Porters Bar & Grill. Porters has been boosting the special on their Facebook page for weeks, for instance, creative touch of utilizing the Store Small symbol as their profile image. The National Restaurant Association recently offered suggestions for members to take advantage of Small Business Saturday, like offering limited-time specials that clients can cash in after November 30 and using the #SmallBizSat hashtag on Twitter and Instagram.
Remember to keep track of what these attempts discounts, and cost--you'll want to have accurate documentation of everything you spent on your Small Business Saturday promotion, including expenditures for supplies, staff time. (You can also take great advantage of the free promotional materials that American Express supplies.) This will help you to determine the return on your investment and strategy for a much more successful promotion next year. Alternatives like Swipely make promotion success easy to measure, not only on Small Business Saturday but for any marketing campaign you run, to Restaurant Week from Burger Night.
As customers take advantage of your Small Business Saturday offer (or any special), it is a terrific time to promote your loyalty program! This can be a great strategy to bring those new customers back and make sure your company stays at The buzz around the fourth annual Small Business Saturday is reaching a fever pitch with Thanksgiving fast approaching. of their minds.
2. Use free tools to promote your offer
There is certainly no lack of materials out there to help you promote Small Business Saturday. It is user friendly the large number of welcome mats, printable signage, marketing materials, and social media and e-mail templates available. They are free, and the settlement for several minutes spent checking them outside might just surprise you.
Restaurants and pubs also have a great possibility to maximize the $10 incentive by offering a bonus deal that AMEX offers cardholders. Take $5 off the cost of gift certificates on November 30 and you'll be able to boost it as $15 off (your $5 discount AMEX's $10 back = $15 overall savings for customers). Now there is a holiday promotion for you the offer to entice customers, at no added cost to your business. Check out Butter Lane in NYC is applying this benefit to sweeten the deal for their clients and raise both cupcake pre-orders enrollment and for their cupcake classes.
You can also use information out of your social networking accounts along with other data-gathering programs during and after the function that will help you learn your promotions were and which sorts of customers they attracted. Putting these details together with anecdotal reports from your staff, comments from your personal specialist observations, and customers will paint a clearer image of your success.
3. Team up with neighbors and your local business association
Businesses that stick together tend to grow together. You are surrounded by a community of fellow entrepreneurs, so it's worth a few minutes and several calls on the web to see who you might team up with on November 30.
American Express is rolling out a new tool for retailers: Locality Circles this season. Browse the site to discover others locally participating in Small Business Saturday, or start a Neighborhood Circle of your own, encouraging other company owners to join forces in promoting the function in your town. This really is a good starting point for developing a local network of support.
While you are in the process of supporting your community, give something back by offering a chance for your fellow business owners to unwind after what could be their busiest sales day of the entire year. They'll appreciate the gesture also it will not go undetected. Try offering a modified "business night" specific--a new cocktail or menu item for local retailers as a day-of promotion. Ensure that you share the particular in your Neighborhood Group a couple of days in advance.
4. Get staff involved
Small Business Saturday has some major advertising power behind it already, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't place your own spin on promoting the day--the holiday season is here, and customers are almost swimming in places to spend their "eating and drinking dollars," so make sure your company stands out.
On November 30, ensure your staff is as prepared and excited as you are. Support them to help with planning your promotions--you could hold a staff competition to name a distinctive sandwich or cocktail that you'll offer that day. Encourage them to add a holiday playlist and ideas, in decorating your dining room, participate, or give their creative abilities to social or signage media.
Naturally, they'll be on the front lines as well, interacting with guests about your special promotions, reminding them that it is an excellent time to create a gift card purchase, or maybe bookings for one of the upcoming holidays. This proactive strategy not only permits you to make a brand new sale, it helps drive new guests back into your establishment well into the brand new year. Make sure to keep track of who is returning--the most valuable customer you will get from a promotion is a person who becomes a routine!
5. Extend Small Business Saturday into December
This past year, American Express released some notable numbers on consumer spending. The impact on sales may be even greater in 2013, with Experian calling an 11 percent increase in holiday spending.
But you don't have to cease capitalizing on this opportunity when you close your doors on. Look for strategies to expand the holiday by boosting other holiday gift ideas along with gift cards with in-store signage and mentions from your servers. You'll not just drive sales you'll also get the opportunity to impress more diners who come in to use their gift cards following the brand new year. This lengthy increase running a business is a precious payoff on your promotion. Use the available tools--your business management program, point-of-sale system, or other technology--to keep track of the number of new customers your campaign brought in, in addition to just how many of them continue to come back after Small Business Saturday.
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