How to Choose the Products to Sell in Your Small Retail Store

One of the most difficult decisions you will make when starting and operating a small retail store is picking products to sell to your customers. There are a number of factors that you need to consider when making your selections for your inventory. The last thing you want is to choose items that fail to sell, which in turn will jeopardize your store’s sales and profits at the same time.
When choosing the products to sell in your retail store, there are some questions that you need to ask. Even though subsequent questions can’t keep you from choosing ill-fated products, they will help minimize pricey mistakes.

It is not sufficient that a product sells; it should sell through swiftly enough to avoid getting stale. Your clients will recognize if the exact same items are located on the shelves every time they come. Many will put off their acquisitions until you mark down the item’s price. Other folks may be dissuaded from buying it altogether.
Prior to incorporating an item to your inventory, think about how quickly it will sell. It does not have to be bought by all your customers. But there must be adequate desire to move it off your floors without having to resort to expensive markdowns.

Even if a new item sells swiftly, make sure it provides a profit margin that is high enough to deliver a satisfactory profit. For instance, if your store’s standard profit margin is 50 percent, think carefully before carrying a product that offers a 25 percent margin.
The edges you preserve on each and every product you sell will certainly play an essential part in your store’s long-term achievements. Do not compromise them; do almost everything you can to prevent them from erosion.

Unless you operate a specialty retail enterprise in a very small area of interest, you will probably have competitors selling the exact same items carried by your store. Typically, competition is inevitable. But it’s worth discovering how loaded a market is for an item you happen to be considering adding to your inventory. Too much rivalry, particularly from the big-box retailers, can depress product sales.
There are several ways for self-sufficient retailers to outcompete their bigger rivals; but having the same products at increased costs (due to less volume) is not one of them.

A common mistake committed by small store proprietors is to add new products which have very little in keeping with their areas of focus. For example, a home and garden shop may carry sun glasses; a clothes store may carry jewelry; a hair and beauty supplier may add well-liked films on DVD.
The intention is usually the exact same: to find a way to increase the company’s sales and profits. But the result is that the shop’s stock gradually loses focus on the areas in which it is an expert; before adding a product to your retail store’s floors, make sure it complements your existing assortments.

A fast-selling, high-margin product that matches the rest of your items may make an ideal addition to your shop; but it is essential that the distributor of the merchandise is trustworthy. If demand is high, and you are unable to rejuvenate your inventory when necessary, your clients may grow to be disappointed, and look somewhere else. If this happens, you could find yourself having a going out of business sale.
Conduct a bit of due diligence prior to committing a part of your stock to a new item. Additionally, start with small acquisitions, and raise the quantity as you gain confidence in the supplier’s ability to meet the demand.
Running a small retail company involves a number of critical tasks, such as getting to know your customers, hiring and dealing with employees, and marketing your store. Selecting products is another key factor that influences your achievements

The correct selections may satisfy your customers while enhancing your company’s long-term earnings.
For more information on starting a retail store, visit our section on the Retail Business.

About the Author:
The article was written by James Bulger. Learn more about about going out of business sales at www.gawrightsales.com
How to Choose the Products to Sell in Your Small Retail Store, 1.0 out of 5 based on 1 rating
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Tags: retail business, retail storeCategory: Starting a Business
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Where to Find New Product Ideas

One way to grow your business and increase your profits is to think of new product ideas for your small business. You can offer something totally new, create derivative products from your existing ones, or branch out into something totally different.
But where do you find new product ideas?

According to the article How to Find Ideas to Improve Your Home Business, there are a number of ways you can get inspiration and ideas for your business. You can reach out and get feedback from customers, seek out like-minded entrepreneurs, check out competitors and keep yourself updated by learning and reading.
Another way to find new ideas for your business is to attend industry events, trade shows, conventions, exhibitions, art shows and the like — both in and out of your industry. These events are fertile grounds for generating fresh ideas and allow you to see new products, new concepts and upcoming trends that you can build into your business. You can even get ideas from seeing what your competitors are doing!
Take for example the wholesaler Wuu Jau Company http://www.wuujau.com/, a family business based in Oklahama founded by Ben and Margaret Lu. Started in 1984, the company offers various collector and cutlery items such as swords, daggers, crossbows, pocketknives and throwing knives. One important strategy that Wuu Jau used to grow their business is by constantly rethinking their product offerings to keep ahead of their competitors and respond to what their clients want. Ideas for their new products come from various sources, from listening to their customers’ feedback to seeing what’s out there through trade shows.
One of the best-selling products of Wuu Jau is gift box knives. Margaret Lu got the idea for the product after going to an art show and seeing little artworks placed in a gift box. She rightly thought that the idea will translate well to her own business, and this led her to adding a product line of gift box knives or collectibles.
The company also introduced samurai swords as a result of a visit to a trade show. In an interview with Wholesale Magazine, Michael Lu (the son and currently Vice President of Wuu Jau) explained how attending a trade show gave their dad the idea of offering samurai swords.

“In the late ‘80s, my dad went to a trade show, and at that time, importing from China was just starting. With cutlery like samurai swords, most of them were handmade and really high quality stuff from Japan, and my dad noticed that people really liked them, but the prices were near $1,000 each. So he thought if we imported something like this from China, and it doesn’t have to be as functional, it could be more affordable for the average person who just wants to collect and put it in a display or case. At the time, there wasn’t anybody importing three-piece samurai sword sets, and a couple of the Japanese sword makers were furious, because we were selling it for maybe ten percent of their prices.”

Wuu Jau also gets their product ideas from what the customers say, and how they perceive the products they offer, and what customers are looking for.
The company updated its Live Action Role Playing line, which are swords and axes used by fantasy fans, after analyzing the products being returned, and what condition these products are in when customers return them. They saw an opportunity to improve their products so it would better serve the needs of their target market.

“We’ve been carrying foam weapons for a while, but because people want to fight with them, we were getting returns with the weapons all busted up … We went to China to see if we could come up with a new material to make merchandise that was more durable and lightweight, and we’ve come up with this new material … so it holds up better.”

Opportunities to improve the performance of your business and increase your bottomline are everywhere — you just have to look for them!

Recommended Books on New Product Ideas: 

Grow Your Service Firm
Teach Yourself Successful Market Research in a Week
The Strategy Book: How to Think and Act Strategically to Deliver Outstanding Results (Financial Times Series)



Tags: getting products to marketCategory: Growing Isabel Isidro is the co-founder of PowerHomeBiz.com. A mom of three boys, avid vintage postcard collector, frustrated scrapbooker, she also manages WomenHomeBusiness.com and LearningfromBigBoys.com. Follow her on Twitter and connect with her on Google +
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Interesting Small Business Ideas for Women Entrepreneurs

Women control a huge percentage of total consumer spending. In many households, the moms hold the purse strings and buy for the family. Given the strong presence of female consumers, both big and small businesses continue to meet the needs of women everywhere.

We have listed some unique, interesting, even innovative businesses catering to the female consumers. Some of these businesses are truly unique and groundbreaking; while others focus on a specific niche. Some of these business ideas turn existing concepts upside down, while others improve everyday products and found success through their innovations and improvements.

Here are some unique businesses targeted to female consumers, created by women entrepreneurs themselves:

Wouldn’t it be fun to have different shoes everyday — but without creating a massive hole your wallet? Lindsay Phillips stumbled on the idea of creating flip flops with interchangeable straps and accessories, allowing women to create different looks with their footwear.

Founder of the company that carries her name and creator of Switch Flops, Phillips was just a teenager when she got the idea of switching the straps of her flip flops from a high school art project. Today, the company Lindsay Phillips has grown into a multi-million business. In addition to interchangeable flip flops, her company now offers ballet shoes, wedges, and sandals that women can accessorize differently to create different looks with just one shoe. Read more of Lindsay Phillips’ simple yet highly successful business idea.

Twins Izzy and Coco Tihanyi founded Surf Diva, the surf camp taught for girls, by girls. Founded in 1996 with only $328 in capital and using Izzy’s surfboard collection, Surf Diva has become the world’s #1 surf school for women.

Stacy Struminger and Rachel Teyssier decided to create their own line of fashionable waterproof garment for women who won’t let rain dampen their fashion cred. Called RAINRAP™, its design combines the popular style of the pashmina and wrap. It is designed as waterproof, reversible, light-weight, fast drying, easy to store (folds up to fit in your handbag and/or suitcase), and comes in four colorful combinations. Read how they started their fashionable rain gear clothing line business.

Dan Yang, after seeing her baby’s fascination with her smart phone, looked for a technology toy that will appeal to her baby like her smart phone yet will satisfy her baby’s curiosity. She wanted that would help her baby learn, enhance her play, and satisfy her curious fingers but she couldn’t find one. She saw this as an opportunity and created her own child-friendly gadget herself. Dan Yang is now CEO of Rullingnet and the inventor of their flagship product, VINCI Genius Tablet. Read more about Dan Yang and her VINCI Genuis Tablet.

With a changing body and growing belly, the question of what to wear especially on special occasions have vexed a lot of pregnant women everywhere. Marcelle Costello started RentMaternityWear.com where pregnant women can rent special occasion clothes and dresses – such as baby showers, cocktail parties, weddings, even date nights – without breaking the bank. Read more about maternity wear rentals.

Families are often looking for quality care providers in a moment’s notice. They want someone they can trust, well-recommended and vetted to care for their love ones. Shiela Lirio Marcelo started Care.com, which has grown to become one of the largest online marketplaces for caregivers — including babysitters, senior care givers, pet sitters, even housekeepers. Read how Shiela Lirio started Care.com.

The cell phone has rapidly become an ubiquitous accessory used by people not only to call. It has become a must-bring-anywhere tool, alongside their wallets, keys, credit cards and other essentials. And therein lies the challenge: carrying all the must-bring items can be cumbersome. To make it easy to carry all these essential everyday items, Jamie James created Cellfolio, a cell phone case that also serves as a wallet designed to make carrying cash, cell phone, and credit cards easier and more convenient. Instead of carrying several items in different ways, a person can have all their essentials in one case. Learn how Jamie created Cellfolio.

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Tags: women business, women entrepreneur

Category: Business Ideas

Isabel Isidro is the co-founder of PowerHomeBiz.com. A mom of three boys, avid vintage postcard collector, frustrated scrapbooker, she also manages WomenHomeBusiness.com and LearningfromBigBoys.com. Follow her on Twitter and connect with her on Google +

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How to Write Articles

How to write articles

Article marketing is powerful and effective.

Article marketing can also take many forms. Blogging, submitting articles to other sites, email marketing and writing short reports are all article marketing.

Writing but a few articles a week can lay the foundation for a very powerful, and profitable, online business.

I can think of a dozen well-known marketers who started online exactly that way.

They began with article marketing and discovered an audience who liked them, trusted them and bought from them.

They went on to create their own products and build their online empires. These are names you would know.

If it happened for them I believe it can happen for you too.

But HOW do you write a great and helpful article if you are not a “writer”. That’s the question I get a lot. So I’m going to answer it here.

Here is the formula I use to write articles.

Before we get to the “how to” let me say that this is but one of many proven models for writing articles. I personally rotate between about five article writing models (or templates) to keep things interesting for me and for you, my readers.

Of all those models this one is the easiest to use and the most pleasant for the reader of your article.

This article writing formula helps you help people, and helping people is what article marketing is all about.

When you approach article marketing this way — with a true desire to help —reciprocity will work for you and yiou will be rewarded for your efforts without having to resort to hype or high pressure sales tactics.

Here is the step by step process.

You are going to write a “how to article” that gives the reader three or five steps to take to accomplish a task.

This is a lot like a recipe.

If you can teach your daughter to scramble eggs or teach your grandson to shoot a basketball then you can do this with no problem.

You just need a little practice. When you teach your kids how to do things you break the task down into tiny steps, baby steps, and make sure each step is clear and easy to do.

That is what you will be doing here as well.

By the way, it’s okay with me if boys scramble eggs and girls shoot baskets. I was just giving an example. 

So get in your mind something you can tell a reader to do with three or five simple actions.

If you can’t think of something now no problem. You can come back to this article when you have your idea.

In my next article I'm going to share how to generate an endless stream of ideas so no worries.

Ready? Good.

Your article is going to have the following structure. Let’s look at the structure and then I will share for a moment about each item.

This overview assumes a five point article.

• Paragraph 1 – Define the problem.
• Paragraph 2 – Review possible solutions
• Paragraph 3 – Propose your solution
• Paragraphs 4 – 8 – Your five step solution
• Paragraph 9 – Summarize your argument
• Paragraph 10 – Suggest an action step

That’s it! Simple, clean and effective.

One thing you need to remember is this. When writing for the Internet you need to keep your paragraph length short.

The best model for me is no more than three sentences per paragraph. Two sentences often works better. 

Let me give you a very brief sample.

Very soon I will write an article for you using exactly this formula so you can see it in action. The sample below are my notes, not the finished article. I’ll finish the article in a few days time and send it along for you to see.

Let’s say you want to write an article about how to get more traffic to a website.

And let’s say you are making the case that the reader should buy this super duper traffic course you are promoting.

How do you do that without high pressure selling?

Here’s how.

Remember, what you read next is NOT a finished article. Just notes about how to write an article around that topic. I will send the finished article to you via email. 

Paragraph 1 – Define the problem — We all need traffic but there is so much information out there that it becomes overwhelming and expensive. People are suffering from information overload.

Paragraph 2 – Review possible solutions — You could waste time and money experimenting and you might find something that works. Or you might lose all your money. You could just do pay per click or buy a solo ad or put an ad on Facebook. But there are risks.

Paragraph 3 – Propose your solution — A better way is to model someone who has “been there and done that”. Someone you can trust and who will help you.

Paragraphs 4 – 8 – Your five step solution – Take these steps in researching solutions.

(1) Who are the leaders in the “getting traffic” field.

(2) Can you afford to do what they teach you to do?

(3) Does what they are proposing make sense to you?

(4) Do they have a good reputation online?

(5) Will you take action on what they suggest?

Paragraph 9 – Summarize your argument – If you find someone you can trust who has a proven model for getting traffic and you can afford to use what they suggest and will take action there is every reason to believe it will work for you.

Paragraph 10 – Suggest an action step — Make a list of the different ways to get traffic to a website and choose one that interests you most. Possibly include the list in the article.

I will write THAT article in the next few days and send it along so you can see what the finished product looks like.

For now YOUR action step is this – think about things you can teach people to do in three or five short steps.

It might be getting traffic to a website or it might be baking a cake. Doesn't matter really — the process is what’s important.

Once you learn the process you will be able to write articles quickly from your own experience or from your observations or research.

You will be an article writing machine!

Google friendly and optimal article comes down to 7 things:

• - A writers skill and experience
• - A writers SEO knowledge and skill
• - The writers good use of grammar
• - Good spelling
• - Research and knowledge of the topic
• - Unique content ( make sure to use a service that copyscape tests all submitted content just like Articleteller.com does ) You never want to pay for a copied article.
• - A well written article that grabs the reader's attention.

There you have it. I have written literally over 1000 articles using this very formula. It works for me and I believe it can work for you too.

Article marketing changed my life and helped me build a strong online business that created both financial and time freedom. I want that for you too.

Because freedom is a beautiful thing indeed!

credit: Charlie Page