The Big Yellow Banner

As I was returning to my office from one of my regular networking events, I passed a shopping center that caught my eye. I had passed this center many times without ever noticing anything or going into it but this morning it was screaming with activity.

So, I pulled in and drove to the source of the activity where I found people waiting in a line outside a novelty store. 

Fascinated by the amount of people, I parked and walked over.  Now, this was not a store I would ever think to visit. Most of the merchandise was curios, candles, seasonal decorations, cards and other knick-knacks that people give as gifts to relatives they really don’t know that well.

But today, this place could have been selling the new iPad! On a huge yellow vinyl banner across the store over head was the words 'Going Out Of Business--Everything Must Go.'

As the line moved inside the store I slipped in and asked the woman at the desk if the owner was around. She pointed to an elderly man standing to the side watching the madness unfold.

By the time I arrived, there had been considerable damage done to the shelves throughout the store, and most were empty. I went over and asked the owner why he was going out of business. He said sales were down and they couldn’t keep the store open any longer. I asked him how long this problem had existed and he said with a sigh, "We’ve been having trouble for years and with the economy, it was time to quit."

I asked the owner what he thought of the activity in his store and he shook his head. He said, “I can’t believe we’ve sold this much. We did not reduce anything higher than 40 percent and people are buying everything.”

I asked him what kind of advertising he had done previously and he said, “Nothing. We figured that people knew where we were so they’d come visit us.  I’ve been doing business this way for 22 years!” 

Why is it that some business owners wait until they’re going out of business before getting serious about marketing what they have to sell?

The marketplace and the consumer act very differently today. Things that worked last year aren’t working now, much less what worked 20 years ago. Small business growth is not something that just happens. It’s something you have to work at. 

If you’re facing closure or are thinking about this because everything you’ve tried isn’t working, get help from a small business advisor or business coach specializing in growth. Sales and marketing is the life’s blood of your business and having a strategy that focuses on your niche and ideal client is the only way to grow, regardless of the economy we’re in. 

Don’t wait until it’s too late to hang that big yellow banner!