The 4th Quarter is typically a critical time for most retail, and some service based businesses.  The whole concept of "Black Friday" was once a reference to many retailers operating "in the red" for a majority of the year before strong holiday sales pushed their ledgers into "the black".  As the celebrations towards the end of November have multiplied, some businesses struggle to target the individual consumers that are attached to each specific activity.  Let's cover some of the expanded holiday market opportunities that present themselves towards the end of November, and what you need to do to prepare:

1. Thanksgiving Eve- Most people forget that we have a lot of people that come back to town right before Thanksgiving.  College students, extended family, and commuting workers are here and looking for things to do (and shopping lists to fill).  Entertainment venues, grocery stores, those that sell gourmet items, liquor stores, kitchen gadget emporiums, and anywhere that can act as a gathering place for friends/family have the potential to be busier this Thanksgiving Eve.  The day before Thanksgiving has traditionally been one of the biggest days of the year for "take-out" food.  Thanksgiving Eve success requires that businesses create top of mind awareness, and that they contextualize the potential consumer patronage.  If someone is going to think about your category of business (groceries, for example), you want to generate enough repetition in your marketing that they think about your business first.  For contextualized marketing, you need to clearly communicate that your business is the place to do a certain thing (looking for the spot where all your friends are meeting up when they come back to town for the holidays?  Come to XYZ spot!)  Photos, videos, and links to value added information is important to drive traffic prior to Thanksgiving.  Convenience and expedited  service is critical to the Thanksgiving Eve "take out" customer.

2. Thanksgiving-  Thanksgiving is the major holiday where a lot of family planning is conducted.  Investments, wills, medical decisions, accounting directives, housing and more are often discussed once families get together.  Making sure people have solid access to information that adds value to family discussions and highlights your business is important.  Thanksgiving is also the day that many families create their "battle plan" for shopping ( or avoiding shopping).  This is a time where small businesses can band together to talk about ALL the things people can do in an area.  Referring to other businesses in close proximity is critical, because once people leave town, they are gone.

3. Black Friday-  Black Friday is a day of bombastic activity for many retailers and restaurants, but mom and pops can pick up a thing or two from watching how businesses interact with customers the day after Thanksgiving.  Most retailers don't focus on the whole store, instead highlighting a select item ( or a handful of items) priced to draw consumers in.  Once in the store, businesses try to add more items to the sale to make up for a lead pricing strategy.  Secondly, stores often have time sensitive activities throughout the day to generate repeat and circulating traffic.  For those businesses that have a sitting area, battling shopping fatigue can provide additional consumer contact and sales opportunities.  Many Black Friday participants are families that are looking for local shopping venues, or people from surrounding communities who want to travel to a place with their well defined shopping list in hand.  Black Friday shoppers are on a mission, and your business needs to clearly communicate how you can help consumers complete that mission.

4. Small Business Saturday-  Many consumers are starting to understand the impact of their spending, and many gift recipients appreciate items that are unique (or from an independent business).  A lot of local businesses have their Small Business Saturday Swag from American Express available for select customers, and Emporia Main Street has our first ever "Elf Hunt" to promote local shopping the Saturday after Thanksgiving.  So far, we have thirteen local businesses that have signed up for in-store drawings, with passports that encourage customers to collect the names of elves from each business.  A completed passport enters participants into a grand prize drawing for gift certificates (and more local shopping).  Small Business Saturday shoppers are looking for authentic experiences that allow them to interact with small businesses ( and their owners ).  Instead of the "big box turn style" type feel of Black Friday, you should seek connections and information so you can continue a shopping relationship.  Marketing Small Business Saturday shouldn't feel like a guilt trip for consumers, it should feel like a holistic experience  with varied shopping and dining opportunities for everyone on your shopping list.  It's a community get together that allows you to check off your shopping list in a fun and engaging way.

5. Cyber Monday- The Monday following Thanksgiving is one of the biggest on-line shopping days of the year. Most retailers should have an on-line shopping option.  Collecting e-mails and social media followers throughout the year allows you to communicate sales opportunities to those that prefer an on-line shopping experience.  A bustling holiday storefront can be terrifying to an introvert, so providing alternatives can enhance sales.  Generating wish lists that allow you to link specific items to individual consumers, and then send that list to potential buyers, is an effective Cyber Monday strategy.  For customers in rural areas, or former top customers that have moved away, on-line sales platforms can maintain store connections and improve loyalty.  Youth are particularly adept at online shopping (a large percentage enjoy on-line shopping more than a physical store experience), and small businesses need to make up some ground with youth markets before they are lost.  Your Cyber Monday shoppers are found on-line, through targeted ads, social media, and emails.  HOWEVER, if you simply start reaching out on Cyber Monday, you are probably behind the customer acquisition  curve.  Start with your data collection and wish lists NOW, so you can take advantage of the data later.

6. Traffic/exposure events-  You can't simply expect people to wander in your door this holiday season.  Businesses are actively competing for consumer dollars, and you must have an effective competitive strategy to generate a successful holiday season.  Most of your strategy will focus inward (things that are unique to your internal store market, like a holiday open house), but savvy businesses will take advantage of cooperative traffic drivers in their immediate area.  Quarter Mania, First Friday, Moonlight Madness, Seasonal Celebration, Horse Drawn Carriage Rides, and other activities can draw specific consumer types to areas adjacent to your business.  Understanding when local events are occurring  , where they are specifically happening, and who the events are targeting, should allow your business to market your offerings to a specific market.  Not all events have the same impact for all businesses, but activities that encourage consumer movement throughout an area can generate foot traffic that you can convert into sales, with the right plan.

Businesses need to make every opportunity count this holiday season.  Take a look through the days/events listed above and have a conversation with your staff.  Contact your advertising representatives.  Look through your daily consumer interaction strategies.  Determine how you can more effectively take advantage of market trends to draw more customers into your business more frequently, and convert lookers into buyers.  When the holidays are over, we see that the "Sell by Date" has often passed for businesses and their products.  An extra push heading into the busiest part of the holidays can freshen up your approach. 

Last week, we conducted multiple site assessments  for potential business locations/developments in downtown, hosted a joint Cinco de Mayo/Glass Blown Open meeting to talk through some logistics for May's event, held multiple auction related meetings, worked with volunteers to decorate our windows, hosted a Board of Directors meeting, met with a business partnership concerning a planned expansion, hosted a sewer project meeting, participated in two Start Your Own Business classes, began processing two business loans (one start up, one transition), answered A LOT of veterans banner questions, and assisted in a HUGE Freedom Fest event! It was a BUSY week , and that means  great questions from all of you!

1. "How was Freedom Fest?" From a few different messages.  It was literally the nicest weather we've had in the history of the event.  We had approximately 300 athletes participate, a great spectator group, an expanded military presence, good food, and great entertainment.  If we could clone this year for future Freedom Fest events, we would all be ecstatic.  With folks from Gravel City Adventure and Supply/The Dirty Kanza organizing a lot of the bike race and timing elements, Dynamic Discs staff putting together a fun disc golf event, local military officials working through the spur challenge, and Emporia Main Street ( specifically Jessica Buchholz and a lot of wonderful Main Street volunteers) in charge of logistics, it was a massive undertaking.  It was great to see partnerships form between so many different groups coordinating their efforts towards a common goal.  The Freedom Fest activity provides monetary support for upgrades of the local All Veterans Memorial, scholarships for the children of area active duty and veteran personnel, and serves as the kick off point for soldier care packages.  KVOE helped with on-site announcements and pre-event messaging all day, and we had people travel from a significant distance to participate in some of the new unique challenges.  Thank you to everyone that helped make this year's Freedom Fest a great event, and thank you to Steve Harmon for leading the charge again this year.

2. "What is your favorite part about the auction ?" From a long time volunteer.   I love that the auction builds something tangible.  Most fundraising efforts go into a pool for the "greater good", but the Public Improvement Auction picks a specific funding initiative, and then uses dollars raised for the public good.  You donate items, or bid on items at the auction, and then you get to see (or hear) the fruits of your fundraising efforts.

3.  "What do our soldiers want in their care packages?" From a few people that stopped by the donation table at Freedom Fest.  Food, spices/sauces, hygiene related items, games, reading material, letters from home, items that appeal to people doing a lot of work/athletic endeavors in a hot environment, etc.  Soldiers like unique things that remind them of home.  We are accepting items now at the Emporia Main Street office, and we always take cash donations to help offset shipping costs.  The US Military has improved access to a variety of items to our service men and women in foreign lands, but the holiday season can be a little tough on our soldiers.  Local folks back from deployment can tell you how much it means to them when a shipment of items from "back home" comes in, and the smiling faces of our local heroes makes this one of our favorite service projects.

4.  "How does the on-line bidding (for veterans banners) work?" From a social media query.   We have two veterans banner spots (they will each fly for four years), and two Dirty Kanza banners (signed by former champions) that we decided to test in a hybrid on-line, and in-auction format.  Lance Fullerton is a fantastic auctioneer at United Country- Great Plains Auction and Real Estate.  Lance's company includes software that allows for on-line bids on different items.  We decided to test on-line additions to the traditional auction format this year, with Lance's help.  So, people can bid on banners from now until 2:00 p.m. on the day of the Public Improvement Auction (Thursday of this week).  The ending on-line bid will set the floor for bidding this year at the auction.  If no one out bids the online bid, the winning on-line bidder will receive the item at the bid price.  We have a lot of people that support Emporia Main Street, are fans of the Dirty Kanza, and/or want a veterans banner that live a significant distance from Emporia.  The on-line format can allow them to get involved, while still preserving the fun of auction night.

5. "What is one thing most businesses could invest in to get more bang for their buck?" From a walk in question.   Heading into the busiest time of the year (for many businesses), with a low unemployment rate, one thing that is often skipped in holiday planning is employee engagement.  You can have glitzy ads, cool merchandise, and a great physical atmosphere, but if your employees aren't feeling it, your customers won't be either.  A lot of retail and service based students are in school, and the end of the semester if full of stress.  The holiday's often come with hits to the personal budget, which increases stress.  Let's be honest here; interacting with more of the public can increase stress.  Family gatherings, comparing yourself to everyone on Instagram, decreases in natural light exposure, the weather...  A lot of different things can add to holiday difficulties for your staff.  Your staff is made of people, and if you don't effectively motivate your people than the rest of your initiatives simply won't happen.  So, talk to your staff individually about their motivators (not just money).  Sometimes, simply knowing that they did something well, or that they are appreciated, can lift the spirits of an entire shift.  Small rewards, socializing time, recognition for things staff does outside of the business, and promoting team goals can help your staff gain some positive energy this season.  Again, I'm not saying that all of your strategic thinking about your business is a bad thing, but your brilliant branding initiative will never be effective if your employees don't care.

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