Surprise Your Customers with a Direct Mailer, and More Manager’s-To-Do Items for August

August 1—7

DIRECT MAIL Switch it up and send a direct mailer to your customers. They’ll be surprised when they see something other than a bill or junk.

MARKETING Update your in-store DVD loop. Promotional videos should be freshened every four to six months. Seek out material from designers and industry organizations.

August 8—14

TRAINING Train your staff to give first-time clients a tour of your facilities. This is a good way to break the ice and make newcomers feel welcome.

MARKETING People defer to authority (it allows them to think less about decisions requiring specialized information). Don’t assume your expertise is self-evident. Get those credentials up on the wall and on your website with a brief explanation on your About Us page explaining what it takes to attain them.

August 15—21

INTERNET Need tech help? Learn how to integrate the tools on Google Docs so you can easily share store information (training tips, store manual, rosters) among staff.

MANAGEMENT This is a good time of year to consider your employees’ salaries, specifically your female employees’ salaries (see above). According to a study by Dale Carnegie Training, 26 percent of engaged employees would leave their current job for just a 5 percent increase in pay. Don’t lose great people because you’re underpaying them, especially in the current, tight market.

August 22—28

STAFF Get a three-month review from new hires. Sit down with your new employees at about the three-month point. But don’t give them a performance review — have them give your operation a performance review. After three months, their eyes are still fresh enough that they’ll be able to see things you’re missing. And they’ll have been on the job long enough to know how things work.

MARKETING Hire a pro to take new photos of your business and staff. These are valuable marketing tools you can use when meeting new vendors at trade events, dealing with local press, or even being featured in your favorite industry publication (hint, hint!)