Business Advice BACK TO SCHOOL RULES

Every day is a school day and we never stop learning are just two of the wellworn adages that suggest we should never take our eyes off the ball in life, nor in business. At this point in the calendar in a ‘normal’ year we’d be priming you for the return of The Photography Show in September, but with the event taking a break for 2023 and re-positioning to March from 2024, Photopia in Hamburg is the nearest equivalent at September’s end should we wish to travel further afield to get our trade show fix. At least this year we don’t have lingering pandemic-related restrictions to deal with regarding travel and exhibitions.

Last issue we looked at tried-and-tested tips that actually work in order to help avoid a summer slowdown. This time we’re looking at getting best prepared for the autumn return, with holidays over, days shortening and Black Friday and Christmas looming as the two big sales opportunities on the calendar.

As ever, the broad advice for retail businesses continues to be to adopt the

‘bricks and clicks’ multi platform / omnichannel sales approach, in order that however the customer chooses to interact with your business and products, there is no barrier placed in the way of making a sale. However there is more we can do to maintain and boost sales than merely being across the right sales channels. Just like getting the kids ready for the first day back at school and making sure their shoes and blazer still fit properly, at retail it’s similarly all about looking the part. As well as sounding it. Knowledge won over many years of trading is power; especially when dedicated photographic products have become more specialised, higher priced and arguably more niche with it. The reality is that customers ‘buy people not products’. Think about it: if you find two identical products at similar prices, then who do you buy from? You’d buy from the person you like, who may not necessarily be the cheapest. Customers want to feel reassured that they’re not being sold a pup, that a product will work as described, and that they can ask questions and get suitable answers back without being made to feel stupid.

Once it was possible to dial a store and speak to an expert on the shop floor, but more often now we get to speak to a call centre and hope that the staff member taking our call knows what the product is, let alone how it works.

Face-to-face interaction is increasingly rare – but that also makes it valuable.

However increasingly in many businesses staff are dressed down in trainers, black jeans and black polo shirts or T-shirts. While they may be trying to ape the relaxed air of an Apple Store, the problem is that the only thing that marks out someone as a member of staff, there to help the customer, is their name badge – and often that’s not as obvious as it could be. Perhaps in such cases the brand has been forced to box shift and cheapen itself. But while ties and pinstripe suits may remain optional (unless we’re talking about a gentleman tailors), investing in some form of ‘uniform’ for your staff – even if it’s only tops branded

Got your own ideas about how the photo industry can counter the challenges arising from the cost of living crisis, with your store logo – can help create a sense of identity and impart an air of professionalism to your customers.

The lesson here for the trade is very simple. Know the product, know the customer, treat them as you’d like to be treated yourself and offer the best price and service possible, but also look the part with it, and you’ll be head and shoulders above the rest. Essentially, give customers a reason to buy from you rather than just treat your shop as an exhibition space.

But to do this means having – and keeping – the best staff possible; those with years of experience, whom customers can place their confidence and trust in. While everyone should be treated equally, there is a case for particularly keeping hold of those staff members with more years under their belt than fingers and toes. Experience and knowledge take time to accumulate – and can be expensive to replace. Consider agency fees, advertising costs, HR and management time, and the possibility of hiring temps before the new staff start in the role.

Beyond that, an employee’s departure can have an effect on morale of those that remain, can lead to other departures, and may even result in customers following the departed employee to their new place of work. Customers can be very loyal.

Put simply, the suggestion is that each time a key employee quits, a large chunk of business profitability leaves and won’t be seen again. However by deploying ‘velvet handcuffs’ it’s possible to make employees think that a business is so attractive that they don’t want to move on elsewhere.

Most employees – those who aren’t direct stakeholders in the business –will be constantly running a mental calculation of the merits of staying or leaving. Of course, each will be using different metrics, but no doubt factors influencing their decision will be a combination of money, environment, people, culture, perks, career progression, management style and personal factors.

The first crucial task for a business is to hire correctly in the first place. The fit between employee and job(s) and the business culture must be right. If this isn’t attended to, then either the employee will leave, or will stay and create problems within the business until they’re fired. This isn’t good for anyone. Whatever happens, a bad fit is expensive no matter how it’s looked at.

Just as time is spent in hiring a member of staff, so time should equally be spent inducting them into the company. Whether it’s a few hours or few weeks (depending on the company size and the role), being properly introduced and shown around rather than being thrown into the deep end is the right thing to do. It’s important

Advice for retail businesses continues to be to adopt the ‘bricks and clicks’ multi platform / omni-channel sales approach, in order that however the customer chooses to interact with your business and products, there is no barrier placed in the way of making a sale.” to not lose sight that that induction is where an employee learns about the policies and procedures of the business.

VELVET GOLDMINE?

In terms of a velvet handcuff – the retaining mechanism, for which there is no ‘one size fits all’ solution – people have different motivating factors when running the go/no-go calculation. All an employer can ever hope to do is create a number of options from which employees can draw solace, comfort and value. Remember, velvet handcuffs are a metaphorical way of locking valued staff into the business. So what form can such gentle ‘handcuffs’ take?

Money. Let’s face it; unless there is private wealth involved, we all work for money. But that won’t maintain interest for long, as staff become used to what they receive or find that they lose too much in tax. The reality is that pay should be fair and competitive considering the person and the job they’re being asked to do. Correctly set pay won’t stop departures, but it could be one reason less to move if it’s good. Career. Few want to stay static at work as that can become monotonous very quickly. They’ll invariably want to see some way to rise through the ranks. This might mean moving from assistant to supervisor to manager or learning new skills – IT, finance, negotiation and so on. These options should be on the horizon for employees. If they see nowhere to go, then a move elsewhere is inevitable. One potentially shortterm solution could be to send staff to trade shows or events to glean wider information that will help the business. Flexibility. Flexible working for most is necessity and something we’ve got used to post pandemic. Employees need time for the doctor, childcare, or other personal and private matters. Just a little flexibility – via flexi time, better holidays or a job share – can result in an employer being much more valued by an employee. And best of all for the business, if flexibility is offered and managed correctly, it needn’t cost very much at all. Recognition. This costs little but can mean so much; everyone likes to receive praise and recognition… the feeling that they count and are noticed. Many retail firms run ‘employee of the month’ type schemes which give an opportunity for every employee to have a deserved 15 minutes in the spotlight. Managers should be actively looking for opportunities to praise employees for a job well done; it’s surprising the difference acknowledgement can make to staff morale. And it’s especially important to reward positive comments from customers. or care to share what’s working for you (without giving away trade secrets)? Then do get in touch direct via info@bpinews.co.uk

Ultimately, no matter the challenges facing our industry and the retail and manufacturing sectors in general, independents have a future. But they need to not only look after the customer, but also one of their biggest assets: their staff. Or it really is ‘back to school’.