Manager's To Do

Pledge to Be a Better Boss … and More To-Do’s for January

Published

7 years ago

December 28, 2017

INSTORE Staff Instore January 2018 Issue

Pledge to Be a Better Boss … and More To-Do’s for January

Jan. 1-6

MARKETING Here it is, your second bite at the Christmas cake, a.k.a. gift-card-redemption season. Ensure you’re stocked with fast sellers and good coffee, and that your add-on strategy is in place. Urge cardholders to come grab a cup and redeem those cards.

WORK/LIFE BALANCE Over the holiday season it’s not unusual to run up a huge sleep deficit. Remedy that by getting an extra hour of zzzz’s every day for the next two weeks.

FINANCES You’re currently cash-rich; don’t wait to start paying off your vendor accounts or credit lines from your bank. Make a payment this week. It’s scary how that money can disappear by the time bills arrive.

STAFF Pledge to be a better boss in 2017. Add your employees’ birthday dates to our “ultimate calendar” from this issue and those of their children as well. (Any gifts or similar gestures will win over hearts and minds.)

Jan. 8-13

INVENTORY Get your inventory in order in 2018. Start by putting 10 rings in front of you and then make a decision what to do with them: remake, melt down, re-price or exchange. Do this daily with all your jewelry.

MARKETING Social media interactions should sound spontaneous and casual but be well planned. Start plotting a social media calendar; schedule blogs, Pinterest boards and Facebook support for your events.

Jan. 15-20

OPERATIONS Review the Christmas period with staff. Go over your ads, inventory and other marketing campaigns. Analyze what worked, what didn’t, what you learned. Be sure to highlight unclosed sales, missed opportunities and missed targets. Discuss what other retailers did and how you can do it better.

STRATEGY Commit yourself to running a big experiment this year— change your operating hours, amend your policy on jewelry test-drives, give staff more power to make discount decisions, get rid of an underperforming category of jewelry … there really is no limit for the bold.

MARKETING Set up a “clienteling” program to keep in touch with your best customers. Jewelers with good customer records can call their clients to remind them that they have “just the thing” for an upcoming life cycle event. Consider a preferred customer program.

Jan. 22-27

MANAGEMENT If one of your resolutions was to shed a few pounds, keep going! A study from the Center for Creative Leadership found lean equals “leaderly.” “Executives with larger waistlines and higher body-mass-index readings tend to be perceived as less effective in the workplace,” it said.

DISPLAYS Decorate your store and reorganize your cases for Valentine’s Day. Aim for fun, not schlocky.

INSTORE Staff

Since launching in 2002, INSTORE has won 89 international journalism awards for its publication and website. Contact INSTORE's editors at editor@instoremag.com.

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