You've probably seen a t-shirt, car magnet or meme with the phrase "Always Be Yourself unless you can be _______, then always be ________." Sometimes the blank is filled in with the name of a superhero other times it's a mythical creature. Regardless the sentiment is the same, always be yourself unless you can be someone way cooler than you. That's a fine idea for a t-shirt but it's a bad idea for your small business.
Recently, I received a catalog in the mail. It was printed on heavy card stock with a matte finish. It featured page after page of beautifully designed rooms full of products. Each room was decorated in neutral tones with lots of natural accents. Take a moment to consider what store you think might have produced this catalog. You're likely thinking of a higher end home store. Perhaps one of those places at the mall. You'd be wrong. The catalog came from one of the discount big box stores. You know, the one that you run in when you need bandaids or milk or cheap sweatpants.
While I applaud their attempt to improve their brand image I find some fault with their strategy. Their beautifully designed catalog in no way reflects the store it was meant to represent. Sure, they made me want to shop in the store that the catalog presented but that's not the shopping experience I will have if I actually go to their store. They did showcase products that they actually sell but they won't be artistically displayed in the store. They will be stacked floor to ceiling on metal shelves with no thought to visual appeal or atmosphere at all. In short, they are offering something they can only deliver on paper.
In previous blog posts we've talked a lot about ways to improve your business. We know that the competition is tough for small businesses and often you're looking for any competitive advantage that you can find. We would caution against trying to be someone you're not. You want your customers to be pleased when they visit your business, not disappointed. You don't want to promise an experience that you can't actually provide. For more branding and marketing tips, check out these two previous posts.
Stockpile | Small Business Inventory Solution
As we said above, part of making your customers happy is providing what they want. To be able to do that, you need to have a handle on your inventory. Without good inventory management you can end up overstocked on items that aren't selling and worse, running out of the products that your customers need. Luckily for you, there's Stockpile. Stockpile is the small business inventory solution that you need. Designed for small businesses, Stockpile is easy to use and fully customizable. We understand that your business is unique and we believe that your inventory management solution should be as well. That's why we let you choose the fields that you include in your item records. The information that is important to one business may not matter at all to another. Only include the information that you want and need. Adding items is quick and easy and once your data is entered you'll be able to track items within a single location or across multiple locations. Don't worry about outgrowing Stockpile. Our small business inventory solution grows with your business.
Stockpile is also mobile compatible. That means that you can access your inventory data anytime, from anywhere. Running reports is quick and easy as well. Don't work hard when it comes to managing your inventory, choose a small business inventory solution that works hard for you. Try Stockpile today!
