Fast Company Blog: Customer Engagement – Why All Companies Could Use a Little MOO

What do you do to make your customers happy that they forked over their hard-earned cash to buy your product or service? I mean beyond the fancy marketing pitch and slick packaging that you used to encourage them to actually buy what you’re selling, what do you do after the sale to make them feel good (or even ecstatic) about their purchase?

Add a little punch to your communication process

MOO.com, producers of high quality ecofriendly business cards, took what would normally be a bland, matter-of-fact order confirmation email and made it fun–something that’s much more engaging for customers.

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What makes a great in-store display?

My local Giant Eagle is at it again. This time, they’ve created a massive wall (and I mean wall) of Pepsi just in time for March Madness. But the sheer size of their in-store promotion is only part of what makes it a source of creative inspiration for entrepreneurs and small business owners.

What else can we take away that could help drive sales and engage customers? Let’s take a look at following four key elements:

Location. Giant Eagle’s display is located just inside of their front entryway—space most other retailers waste by using it as storage for hundreds of empty shopping carts. By using their entryway, every customer will see their display on the way in and on the way out.

Theme. The Pepsi display incorporated both their hometown Pittsburgh Panther’s men’s basketball team and the NCAA basketball tournament which establishes a local connection to a major sporting event–something that might sound obvious but that many business owners fail to do with marketing campaigns focusing on a local audience.

Potential “add on” sales. What goes better with Pepsi than chips? At the edges of their display, Giant Eagle did a great job of incorporating complementary items–a key element of any effective sales strategy.

Value or potential savings. It’s one thing to say an item is on sale, but it’s another to really drive that message home by highlighting value or how much money your customers could save.

You don’t have to be a big grocery store to use in-store displays and visual merchandising to drive sales and engage with your customers. Don’t be afraid to incorporate any or all of the elements mentioned above to see what resonates best with your target audience.

How to establish pricing for your first startup

You’ve decided to start your own business. You identify your product, create a fancy new website, and you’re chomping at the bit to reach out to potential customers or clients. But before you do, you have to decide how much you are going to charge for your services.

Pricing starts with self-confidence.

Winning new business requires being able to convince a potential customer 1) that you have the expertise or skill set to help them solve a problem or fulfill a need and 2) your price is worth what you bring to the table. Simple, right? Not if you’ve never had that discussion before. You don’t have a book of business to call on as a point of reference. You think you’ll do a great job, but you don’t know. And that’s when you can find yourself grappling with self-doubt—wondering if your rates are too high or if you even should be charging someone at all. If you have what it takes to do the job, be confident in yourself and your abilities.

Don’t forget to keep the lights on.

Once you have your self-confidence dialed in, the next factor to consider is how much you need to make to stay afloat. How much is your time really worth? And at that rate, what’s the minimum number of clients you’ll have to secure each and every day to be able to keep a roof over your head, eat, and make a living? This part of the pricing equation is critically important—if you’re running on thin margins, you’re going to need a lot of customers. If you’re running on high margins, you’re going to need a smaller group of customers who are willing to pay what you’re asking.

A little benchmarking never hurts.

When you’re starting a new business, it’s always hard to tell what the market will bear. You don’t want to overcharge for your products and services and price yourself out but you also don’t want to undercharge and leave money on the table. Big companies do this all of the time—that’s why you don’t see any national fast food chains with a $3.00 “value” menu. They all seem to hoover right around $1.00 (give or take a penny). So look around. Find a few potential competitors and try to find out what they’re charging for similar products or services.

Customers vote with their wallet (or debit card).

Every time you speaking with a potential customer about pricing, you’ll gain invaluable feedback. Listen to what they say—how they react when you mention a price. Do they wince? Does their jaw drop? Do they roll their eyes? If they do, you might be a tad high. And when that happens, you have to either decide to drop your prices, focus on a different customer segment, or do a better job of convincing them of the value of your product or service.

Calibrating pricing can take time.

Don’t expect to have everything completely hammered out from day one. If you put some thought into your pricing and benchmark against your key competitors, you should already be in the pricing ballpark. But you still might find you need to tweak the way you package and price your goods and services…and that’s okay. The more your business grows, the more data you’ll have on whether your pricing strategy is working or it isn’t.

So what do you think? Share your comments.

Fast Company Blog: Will Barnes & Noble’s New Retail Strategy Help Save the Day?

Borders files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Local and regional booksellers continue to consolidate stores or close their doors all together. For many, it’s already too late to change direction on a rudderless ship that has been left in the wake of the rapid decline in hard copy book sales. One national retailer, on the other hand, is using a change in strategy to help weather the storm.

It had been a few weeks since I’d last visited my local Barnes & Noble. As I walked through the front door over the weekend, the first thing I noticed was a fully staffed Nook station located no more than 10 feet inside the store–strategically placed so it would be almost impossible to miss. In addition to the fancy NOOK color, they also had an extensive assortment of NOOK accessories. Complementing the kiosk, their in-store displays and signage also do a good job of highlighting a mix of both their print and digital book offerings.

But eReaders are only one aspect of their strategic shift.

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New FedEx Office more small business friendly

A few months ago, I ran into my local FedEx Kinko’s only to find myself in the middle of a major construction zone complete with guys on ladders, missing ceiling tile, and torn up carpet—a total mess and totally disruptive for business.

Smash cut to today. FedEx Kinko’s is now FedEx Office. Rebranding and remodeling are complete and, I have to say, I really like what they’ve done with the place and think the remodel makes the store much more small business friendly.

The first thing I noticed was new laminate flooring that helps to create a welcoming, clearly defined path straight from the front door to the service counter (think airport runway)—a great example of using flooring (and your floor plan) to influence customer flow.

Throughout the store, they also used paint schemes that not only add some punch to what had been overly drab “institutional beige” walls but also help small business customers quickly navigate the store based on their needs (shipping, signage, copying, etc.).

Along the perimeter near their large outside windows, they created individual work stations where you can either connect your laptop or rent time on one of theirs to print or scan documents—a nice touch and a useful work space for entrepreneurs on the go.

Beyond the major remodel, they’ve also added a few new features including a smartphone app that allows you to print to many FedEx Office locations—definitely something that could come in handy when you’re traveling.

If you’re a small business owner and you’re not at the point where you can justify buying a fancy “all in one” laser printer, or you’re an entrepreneur looking for a little space to set up camp in a pinch, you might want to check out your local FedEx Office.