Will You Be Prepared?

In my last few updates, I talked about how continuing to hire throughout the holiday season can help you STAY in CONTROL of your business.

Next up, I am going to talk about how continuing to hire can create REAL opportunities for additional revenue, and profit.

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In my last update, I told you how in my first season running my cart, I stopped hiring at the beginning of December, thinking I was set with my staff.

Then the ‘Holiday rush’ hit….the two weeks before Christmas.

I had HEARD from others how the BUYING mentality changes in the last two weeks, but I hadn’t experienced it yet.

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Anyway, what happened was that my BEST salesperson, Emily, had to leave during the last week before Christmas.

Because I stopped hiring at the beginning of December, I didn’t have anyone to step in and replace Emily.

As a result, probably lost out on five thousand dollars in sales.

If you missed that update, you can catch up at the following
link:

http://www.kioskexpert.com/count_on_111605.htm

But I’ll tell you…..there is an even BIGGER price I paid for my decision to not hire all the way up through Christmas.

You see, I found that during that last two weeks, there were SO  MANY extra people in the mall – people LOOKING for things to buy as gifts…..

…..that I could have had ANOTHER three or four people working AT ALL TIMES and kept them busy.

I mean, if I could have added just a FEW more salespeople, we’d have made another TEN or TWENTY thousand dollars in sales – whether Emily was there or not!

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I’d stopped hiring, and it was then too late! Keep in mind, I ALREADY had a staff of about thirty people. At our peak that holiday season, we had thirteen people working on our cart – ALL AT ONCE.

It wasn’t like I didn’t have people working with me.

But once the rush hit…..we could have had more….and I’d have made much more money!

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You better believe the following season I continued hiring ALL the way through December!

I DID add extra salespeople during that last two weeks rush period, DID make nearly an extra twenty thousand dollars in sales as a result!

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So… the choice is yours. Will YOU be prepared for the Holiday RUSH?

Keep hiring! Get some extra staff ready to throw on you cart during that last two weeks.

And see if you can’t add an additional ten or twenty thousand dollars in sales as well!

Brady Flower 
The Kiosk Expert

How to Stay in Control!

Yesterday I told you about my visit to the Mall of America this past summer.

As I left you, I had walked by a cart that was ’staffed’ by a young man whose idea of ‘working’ was leaning back in a chair and falling asleep.

I promised to give you a simple suggestion that can help YOU avoid a circumstance like this on YOUR cart.

If you missed yesterday’s update, you can catch up at the following link:

http://www.kioskexpert.com/look_familiar_111405.htm

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Before I go forward, I want to say that I have found having an staff person like this is a typical cart operator’s fear.

Especially if you can’t BE at your cart, and this staff person is your only option.

It can be frustrating, and nerve-wracking to have someone at your cart who is not working because you know sales will come to screeching halt. Would-be customers walk right by. Folks that DO stop are not properly helped.

So how do you remain in CONTROL in a situation like this?

#1 Suggestion: Keep Hiring.

A lot of cart and kiosk operators will stop looking for staff members the moment they feel they are ’set.’

The problem comes in when a staff person doesn’t work out. Someone doesn’t show up on time. They don’t work hard. They leave the cart…..

If you don’t have anyone ELSE to step in at that moment, you’re stuck. You have turned over all your POWER to this temporary employee.

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Now suppose you DO keep hiring, and one of your current staff members steps out of line?

You’ve done your best to train and motivate them, and they still don’t shape up.

You simply replace them. Or reduce their hours.

But you HAVE TO have someone READY to step in. Otherwise that staff person KNOWS you don’t have any other options. If you keep hiring, and have someone ready, you are in CONTROL.

And, it’s a much better feeling to be in control of a situation like this.

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Another benefit of continuing to hire: The good employees you have….the ones that LIKE their job, and generally tend to DO a good job….

…will work even HARDER if they know you have someone to replace them, if necessary.

They care about their job, and don’t want to lose it.

So, even if you have a generally good staff, it pays to continue hiring…..if only to motivate your good ones.

But more on this tomorrow!

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The lesson for the day. Keep Hiring! And stay in CONTROL!

Brady Flower

Brady Flower
The Kiosk Expert

P.S. For more tips on managing your sales staff, check out the latest copy of Specialty Retail Report. There is a GREAT article on how to get the most from your PT staff.

You can subscribe at the following link, and you will get latest copy rushed out to you:

http://www.kioskexpert.com/srr.htm

Does This Look Familiar?

This summer I was walking through the Mall of America. I live in the Minneapolis area a quick train ride away from the Mall.

I actually went there to pick up a couple of accessories for my cell phone.

I knew there was a cart at the mall that sold what I wanted. That’s why I took the trip.

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When I got to the mall, I scooted up to the third floor on my way to the cart. When I got close, I saw a kid about 16 or 17 ‘working’ there, wearing some ripped up jeans, and wrinkled old t-shirt.

Now when I say ‘working’, what I REALLY mean is that he was leaning back in a chair… with his feet propped up on the cart… and a baseball cap tipped over his eyes, as if he was sleeping.

Now, I don’t know how he COULD have been 1 sleeping… because it looked like it would take someone with the balance of an Olympic gymnast to stay in that position without falling!

I don’t really know if he WAS sleeping because I just walked RIGHT BY.

He certainly didn’t look like he wanted to be working… and didn’t seem like the kind of person who wanted to help me.

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Does a situation like this sound familiar? Have you seen something like this on OTHER carts?

If you do, or you have seen it….you are seeing a situation that is going to kill sales at ANY cart. I find that many cart operators are worried about a situation like this happening with their staff.

The good news is that there are some simple steps you can take to stay in CONTROL of your employees.

I don’t know if the owner of THIS cart knew how ‘hard’ his employee was working. I am sure they wouldn’t have approved. And YOU shouldn’t either.

THIS owner of the cart had lost CONTROL of the situation.

He lost my sale, and I am sure a bunch of others.

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Tomorrow, I’ll show a simple step YOU can take to stay in CONTROL of your employee situation…

… so YOU don’t end up with someone like the young man I mentioned earlier in this update working at YOUR cart…

… and so you can make the sales to me and others like me.

Brady Flower
The Kiosk Expert
http://www.kioskexpert.com

P.S. For more tips on how to run a successful mall cart or kiosk, subscribe to the Specialty Retail Report at:

http://www.kioskexpert.com/srr.htm