Your Business – May 01, 2018

FOCUS ON Home, Building and Office Services

CREATE YOUR OWN

CURRENCY

This is your store's own parallel cash, or

one that you share with several other

non-competing retailers. To work well,

it needs to be a community effort/local

store marketing effort with numerous

outlets being involved; or with a large

franchise that has outlets across the

country. Give away, say, 'Durbanville

Dollars' as a cash-back incentive that

can only be spent in the local community

at pre-determined retailers. Perhaps

100 Durbanville Dollars equals R1. This

currency could be coins or numbered,

watermarked paper 'money'. The

businesses running this promotion would

place in a trust account the equivalent

in Rands with which to refund the real

money to participating retailers. The

retailer would receive 95c real money

for each Durbanville Dollar redeemed

through their outlet – that is about the

equivalent of a credit-card fee. The

corporate equivalent is incentives like

eBucks etc., but if managed well, this idea

can also be a powerful neighbourhood

marketing opportunity.

In this issue our regular contributor on neighbourhood

marketing tips, Basil O'Hagan, gives some creative food

for thought on how to stand out from the crowd...

To order Basil O'Hagan's book 415

Action-Packed Neighbourhood

Marketing Tips or to have him speak

at your next event, contact 011 467

2358/083 412 4459, email:

[email protected] or visit:

http://www.bohmarketing.co.za.

OUT OF THE BOX

marketing ideas

BOX CLEVER WITH

PROMOTIONAL MATERIAL

Today there is a wealth of point-of-

sale and merchandising material out

there. Thanks to advances in printing

and materials, just about anything can

be branded. So be creative! You could

brand a massive couch, and have some

young ladies chilling on it next to a major

intersection - the possibilities are limitless.

Indoor promotional material includes X

Banners, pop-up banners, Z-Up banners,

hanging banners, demo tables and

branded ottomans. Outdoors, you could

look at gazebos, sharkfin, or teardrop

banners, telescopic banners, double-side,

pop-up A-frames, branded umbrellas,

director's chairs, back-pack banners and

X-banners. If you're a franchisee, your

head office may have these available, but

it's worth investing in branded items of

your own. Just one teardrop banner on a

corner might be enough to lure someone

beyond the stop street and into your shop.

PREMIUM POSITIONING

In many markets, especially in

economically challenged South Africa,

it's best to compete on price. However,

in other segments, it is premium brand

positioning that sets you apart. An Aston

Martin dealership, for instance, will never

try to compete on price against the Toyota

dealership down the road. They quite

proudly price their products at a level

only affordable to the super-rich. This,

combined with the quality of their cars, is

part of what gives their brand its power.

By extension, in every store it is also

worth having some premium offerings. In

your store, you might not want to discount

every item. Sometimes it's good to also

have premium-price products and services

that appeal to customers who want only

the very best.

Here are some examples of premium

options in otherwise affordably priced

stores.

▪ An imported dress

▪ Apple electronic products

▪ Golden-circle concert tickets

▪ Top-end shock absorbers that will last

a lifetime!

▪ Fillet steak

▪ Single-malt whisky

PREMIUM PROMOTION

A good way to encourage customers to

spend more is to institute savings that

only kick in after a certain expenditure.

This is a premium promotion. For

instance, South African beverage vending

equipment company Adapt Group held

a promotion where they gave away an

attractive 12-pack cooler box worth R1

700 for every online purchase that was

greater than R15 000. Better than just

a free gift, this would be a personalised

cooler. The cooler box then also becomes

an exclusive item, not just a freebie.

When your target audience lives in close

proximity to your business, there are a host

of marketing ideas that can work simply

and without too much fuss. Let us know if

you have had any luck implementing some

of our tips so far!

Basil O'Hagan