07/ 01/ 2004
by Vicki Gerson
As a small-business owner it is important that you employ measures to let your customers gain knowledge about your business. There are a variety of creative ways to communicate with the public and advertise your business without bringing out the big bucks.
Consumer Rating Service
A consumer rating service is a good outside authority that you can use to your advantage. A consumer rating service makes reliable judgments that are objective and independent of your control concerning the quality of your product. Let’s say you have a business that sells a particular brand of tires, and the consumer rating service rates these tires as the very best. You can make sure your customers know about this rating by putting up a banner in you shop that says: XYZ rates ABC tires as the best for SUVs.
Use the Media
Another way to impart information is through a reliable media outlet. For instance, your business has been evaluated favorably in a trustworthy magazine known for its objective ratings. What do you do with this information? The first thing you want to do is post a framed copy of the article at your place of business. Prominently place it where your customers will see such as they walk in the door. If you have table space in the waiting room or on the counter, purchase reprints of this article so customers can take them with them.
Pay Attention to Government Standards
If you have a business where you can use the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) minimum daily nutrition requirement information, do so. If you are selling food products, you could list the FDA requirements side by side with the contents of some of your food products. This let’s your customers judge whether your products meet or exceed FDA standards.
Now that summer is here, gardeners and homeowners are purchasing numerous products for their flowers, vegetable gardens and lawns. Because the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has listed several pesticides as being dangerous, help your customers by posting this notice. Then direct them to products you stock that are safe for their children and pets, but will accomplish the same purpose.
Keep an Eye on Health Reports
It is also important that as a business owner you pay attention to health reports from ongoing studies, various think tanks and well-respected magazines and newspapers. You can piggy-back off these reports to point out products you carry that are recommended in these studies. Keep your eye open for articles that pertain to your business and use them. For instance, if there is an article on the attributes of down bedding, make sure your customers know about it and know you offer it.
Educate the Customers
Educating your customers is always important. If you can bring in someone to teach a workshop or class, you have a great advantage. For example, let’s say you own an art store that sells art and framing supplies. You may want to bring in a speaker to discuss how to select the right frame. Or, if your store sells kitchen fixtures, get an expert in to talk about what to consider when remodeling your kitchen. If this person has a newspaper column, is often quoted in the media or has a book, this is an excellent person for your business.
Charts are also beneficial to your customers. If you have a mid-size grocery store, this chart can change weekly comparing the price of a product or two against the two or three major grocery chains. You can show how your prices are cheaper.
Get Feedback
Another way to allow customers to evaluate your business is to have customers fill out a questionnaire. Then you can summarize the answers in this questionnaire to show how customers rate your business.
