October 8, 2022 – MG Retail Consulting

A Christmas Survival Guide

Surviving Christmas means different things to different people and their respective businesses.
Christmas could be the most critical time of the year, and you only have a very narrow window of opportunity.
Or.
Christmas is your quietest time, and the sales from the summer carry you through the winter period.
Either way, Christmas this year will be different, albeit not as stark as last year; with the backdrop of Covid19, we have new challenges to consider. Maximising the opportunity of Christmas means throwing the kitchen sink at it, using everything at your disposal to get customers in.
But here’s the thing lots of businesses overlook the simple things, the free things.

Website Your website is the online face of your business. Is it ready for Christmas? Have you removed the remnants of old offers and refreshed them? Have you made customers aware of your upcoming events for the holiday season and reminded them to buy from you? Do the links on the site still work and go to the right place? Here is a Website checklist to make it easier. Here is a Website checklist to make it easier.

Google my business Your business page on Google has a whole host of information and features that many business owners are unaware of. Some minor tweaks and updates will raise your business profile on Google, the results of which you will see in the search results and activity. Google My Business is completely free, but millions of businesses have not yet claimed their list despite this. Many, many more who, although they have claimed Google My Business listing, have done little or nothing to optimise it. Big mistake.
Here is a Google My Business checklist to save you some time

Reviews Consumer opinion travels faster and further than ever before.
.88% of people trust online reviews as much as a personal recommendation.
90% of people read business reviews online before they visit a business.
Customers are more likely to spend 31% more with a business.
Reviews don’t just happen, and businesses can do more to get more of the correct feedback.

Reviews don’t just happen, and businesses can do more to get more of the correct feedback. What other people say about you is many times more potent than what you say about yourself!
A well-managed strategy that builds you a steady flow of positive reviews online, on the websites that matter most to your potential customers, is one of, if not the, most helpful thing you can do.

Facebook ads As a local business, you can reach more people than ever before at a fraction of the cost of TV, newspapers or other traditional media. However, over 95% of businesses don’t use Facebook ads, which is daft when you see what you can do. Using Facebook to tell more people what you do is a brilliant thing to do, and you probably only need one campaign to work!
We don’t know how Christmas will turn out with the supply challenges, rising infection rates, rising prices and the apparent shortage of labour. But, if we control what we can, we make the best of the opportunities that pop up in front of us. The Business Inspector list will highlight some quick wins for you, but if you want to know more and thrive in 2023, click the link for a discovery call.

Have you had a mini business service?

Many of you may drive a car and have it serviced regularly as per the manufacturer’s recommendation. And the reason you do that is to ensure that it remains reliable and works when you want it to.

Why is it then that things can go unchecked when it comes to our business, break down, and we don’t notice?
Or perhaps the set-up was wrong in the first place, and it’s never worked to full efficiency.

Your digital footprint and the way in which customers interact online will be the difference for many businesses.
Most customers start their search online when looking for products, services and solutions to a problem.

Before 2020, most searches were done using Google, and the volumes of searches grew massively throughout the year.

This is why today, more than ever before, is it important that your business is well represented on the internet. And that you have a system in place to focus on the key activities that drive your business.

The Mini Business Service will give you an overview of your digital footprint and how customers find you. It will also make some recommendations.

HOW IT WORKS
To help you get customers regularly and retain them best is by following a system, that works.

Getting the most out of any system needs all the right components to be in place doing their job.

The Mini Business Service will give you an unbiased overview of your digital footprint and how customers currently find you online. It will highlight opportunities available to most small businesses before spending on ads.

1 We first need to understand what your gap is.
You may want to have more regular customers and be able to anticipate customer flow better.

2 Then we take a look at your current marketing and marketing assets
You may have a website and Facebook that give you an online presence but no vehicle for information gathering.

3 Fix your marketing – your business promotion may have relied on word of mouth and some local advertising that has grown your business considerably. However, it would be best if you had a regular marketing plan that works in the background.

4 Knowing the score – here, we measure what works best and the results so that they may be repeated again and again. Also, we help you to look at an evergreen campaign and promotional ones.

If you have a small business and haven’t taken the time to take a look under the bonnet of your sales engine, then perhaps you should take a look at the Mini Business Service.

To take a closer look at your sales engine contact info@mgretailconsulting.co.uk or tel 01256 213020.

Which is the best card machine for my business?

Since the global pandemic, the shift towards payments for goods by card has been massive.
With so many different machines, which card machine is best for your business?

Credit card machines are called card terminals; how they work for small businesses is that they allow customers to purchase by card without needing cash.
The credit card company processes this transaction for a small fee which can be a combination of charges.

The cost of card machines can vary depending upon the type and makeup of your agreement. Monthly charges for devices can be as high as £30 a month.
Also, there are some machines you can purchase outright; however, the trade-off here is much higher transaction charges.

Other things to consider are flexibility for epos integrations and mobile purchases away from the shop bar or restaurant.

The plus of integration cuts down on mis-keying transactions and can save your business thousands within the year. Integration saves time with no double keying of transactions and end of day reconciliation.

Consider a monthly rental agreement if you currently process more than £10,000 per month. Not only will you save on lower transaction fees, but you will also have online and local support.

If your turnover is below £10k per month, consider Zettle, Square and SumUp; however, if your monthly turnover is above £10k, then Dojo and World Pay are complete offerings.

What’s the best Epos system for my business

Epos, or POS as it is now commonly known, has been around for nearly fifty years and was initially created to cut down a retailer’s stock inventory, which it still does very effectively. It is no longer out of reach for small retailers concerning cost and is nowhere near as cumbersome as previously used technology. There are several different types of a point-of-sale systems depending upon your industry. How do epos systems work?
The system, in most cases, can be customised to help small businesses with day-to-day operations such as staffing, accounting, stock management and marketing. Most of it is automated, saving the company many hours of repetitive tasks. The benefit is that teams can spend more time engaging with customers. Barcodes are primarily used to track stock sales orders, pricing promotions, and more
. How much does an Epos system cost?
The system requires hardware which usually consists of a screen, barcode scanner, receipt printer, cash drawer and a card machine. The cost for a system could start from as little as £25 a month. Which epos system is best will depend upon the industry that you are in and the functionality that you want from it. Also, consider the level of integration you want with your accounting software and payment system. Some systems to consider for Retail are Revel, Eposnow and Square. For Restaurants Lightspeed, Touch Bistro, Revel, and Good Till. For Bars and Pubs, Zettle, Eposnow, Lightspeed, Food Till and Nobly. Source AAT Business Finance

Day: 8 October 2022