The ground-breaking retail makeover of JCPenney engineered by former Apple Store executive Ron Johnson has been rooted in the concept of everyday low prices. Instead of inflating original prices that’ll inevitably be drastically …
Sales
Tips for Effective Website Landing Pages
No matter what business you’re in, if you’re serious about entrepreneurial success, you need to have a website. And that website must have compelling landing pages, which are Web pages designed to promote or sell a product or a service, or to provide a navigational path to products or services. A landing page’s goal is usually to convert …
Why JCPenney’s ‘No More Coupons’ Experiment Is Failing
The new JCPenney sounds so appealing on paper. Earlier this year, the retailer announced that “fake prices”—inflated big time to make markdowns seem more tempting—would disappear, to be replaced with a “fair and square” …
What a 9-Year-Old Can Teach You About Selling
If you want your conversations to have a real impact, you need to simplify your message.
Millennials Are Biggest Suckers for Selfish Impulse Buys
Members of Gen Y—the “millennials” born roughly between 1980 and 1995—are perhaps the most studied demographic in history. We know everything from how often they post on Facebook and Twitter, to what degree they really want to be able to wear jeans at work. Here’s one more factoid about this group that retailers are sure to take note …
When ‘Black Friday’ Sales Don’t Happen on Black Friday—or Any Friday
Considering that Black Friday is a totally made-up event meant to stir up retail sales during the peak winter holiday shopping season, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that stores are loosey-goosey with what “Black Friday” means, …
Hope You Didn’t Buy a 3D TV Last Year
Last year, prices on 3D TVs plummeted by 33%. But anyone who bought one in 2011 thinking they’d scored the deal of a lifetime should probably stop reading now: One prominent bargain-tracking website says 3D TVs have already …
Some Stores Finally Decide It’s a Bad Idea to Spam Customers
Got an in-box clogged with ads from retailers? You’re not alone. In recent months, many stores have been sending customers promotional e-mails at a pace of more than one per day. Spam-happy retailers such as Neiman Marcus deluged …
Buying a New Car? Let a Website Handle the Haggling
The new car purchase is easily one of the most painful and confusing of all shopping experiences. Most business relationships are built on trust, yet there’s good reason to distrust nearly everything seen or heard at a car dealership, from complex financing terms, to claims that a certain figure is their “absolute best price,” to the …
In Major Shakeup, J.C. Penney Promises No More ‘Fake Prices’
Less than 1% of J.C. Penney’s revenues come from items bought at full price. By contrast, nearly three-quarters of merchandise sold by the department store chain is discounted by at least 50% off. What this tells shoppers is that …
Mild Winter Could Mean Best-Ever Deals on Winter Coats and Cold-Weather Gear
There aren’t many people who are complaining that this winter has been too warm, too storm-free, and altogether too comfortable. But there is one group griping the weather just isn’t cold or snowy enough: retailers that sell …
Most Car Shoppers Are Waiting for Year-End Sales Before Buying
It’s no mystery why consumers in the market for new wheels have been in no hurry to purchase cars: Prices for new and used vehicles remained unusually high throughout the summer—even during Labor Day weekend, which is normally …
