Wondering how we made these Eye-clops Sugar Cookies? Simply tint any cookie dough with a few drops of green food coloring and bake them back to life! Once your cookies have cooled, add your candy googly eyes for a spooktacular final look! 👻
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How to quickly view information about the sales reps assigned for your brands.
August 8, 2023
Your Shop Local Store has an updated feature: You can now easily view and manage your sales reps.
The 'My Sales Rep' page allows you to quickly view information about the sales reps assigned for the brands sold by your store. On this page, your store can view contact information for your sales reps. Your store can also edit a sales rep assigned to a brand.
In the example shown, we see the 'My Sales Rep' page for B.C. Clark, a tabletop and jewelry store in Oklahoma.
We're pleased to share that Ricci is joining the Brand Syncing service.
Ricci Argentieri, also known as Ricci Silversmiths, is famous for their flatware and giftware produced in sterling silver, silverplate, goldplate and stainless steel. Ricci is joining in order to support its independent retailers.
Since its founding in 1840, Ricci has grown to become one of the most respected and renowned silversmiths in all of Europe.
We expect Ricci products to be ready for ...
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I have a stack of virtual news clippings that either struck my fancy, taught me something new, or just made me shake my head in bemusement. On their own, they may not be enough for me to make a point, but together they have a thought-provoking synergy (and I'm sure I'll figure out what that is by the end of this column).
Our industry has been negatively affected by the loss of American manufacturing after we entered a long stretch of automation and outsourcing in the late 1970s; every ...
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We were happy to see our partner Vietri in this month’s Garden & Gun magazine.
Vietri, a premium designer of Italian home goods, ran a pretty advertisement in this month’s issue. The ad features 15 dealers throughout the South where one can buy Vietri.
Of the 15 stores listed, 47% (7 stores) use Shop Local's Store to more easily sell Vietri.
How a company's sales and growth can be affected by the message it conveys to customers.
July 18, 2023
Allbirds stock is down 95% since its November 2021 initial public offering. People may say the company launched the wrong products (did you buy one of their puffer jackets?) or tried to grow too quickly. I believe there is a larger reason: you can’t scale a company by leading with an environmental message—which is Allbirds’s pitch. Consumers rank saving the planet as one of their least pressing concerns when making a purchase. The leading factors consumers look for when ...
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We've made a new showroom flyer and display piece for brands and reps in Atlanta. This can be put in an upright display as well as printed and given to retailers.
You are invited to print the attached PDF.
Bonus:
We'll send you $50 for displaying the sheet in an upright display.
We'll send you $20 for printing these materials in order to hand them out in the showroom.
Shop Local analyzed the websites for the top-40 selling brands in the tabletop and giftware industry. We assessed what promotions and discounts, such free shipping, brands offer. Shop Local did this because a product's price, which is impacted by discounts, is often the leading factor when shopping online. 70% of the brands surveyed by Shop Local offer free shipping.
How pre-populating information saves clients time and speeds them along a process.
June 30, 2023
Each April, I scramble to send my tax information to my accountant so I can file my taxes before April 15. Since my friends confide that they do the same, there are likely millions of people like us racing to prepare our taxes. What if there was a way to avoid this painful rush—and even the cost of it? The WSJ shares that Japan, New Zealand, and much of Europe get such relief. The countries prepare tax returns for their citizens using existing data, and the citizen just needs to review it,...
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Next week is the Dallas trade show and next month is the Atlanta show. As you may know, I was a sales rep for 5 years. I owned a retail store, Magnon Jewelers, which was founded in 1890, for 37 years. Due to this, I know that preparing for the trade shows is a daunting task. Was I ever truly ready? :)
Let's help you and your stores make the most of the upcoming trade shows.
During the trade shows, Shop Local will pay you to help your stores. Plus, we'll...
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We're pleased to share that Villeroy & Boch is joining the Brand Syncing service.
Villeroy & Boch, which celebrates its 275th anniversary this year, is joining in order to support its independent retailers,
Since its founding in 1748, Villeroy & Boch has grown into a leading, global, lifestyle brand offering dinnerware, drinkware & barware, flatware and home decor.
We expect Villeroy & Boch products to be ready for Syncing by July ...
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How businesses keep customers coming back after they make a purchase.
June 8, 2023
Six Flags is updating its theme parks to encourage families to spend more time there and visit more often, according to this past weekend’s The Wall St. Journal. The theme park's president, Jeffrey Siebert, says that the nightly fireworks show is what the industry calls a “kiss good night.” After park-goers have spent the day spending, they perceive the show as a free, post-purchase gift with no strings attached. The fireworks thereby help the customer leave fulfilled and...
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We are pleased to announce that JK Adams is joining the Brand Syncing Service.
JK Adams is known for their beautiful handcrafted wooden items that make baking, food preparation, and presentation effortless. The assortment includes unique products that range from cutting boards, rolling pins, coasters, and charcuterie boards to pot racks.
JK Adams products will be ready for syncing by July 3rd.
Stores that are already Shop Local members will be alerted when JK Adam's data is ...
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How we can acquire new prospects by leveraging our existing network of customers.
June 2, 2023
In Andrew Chen’s book The Cold Start Problem, he breaks the network effect into three parts: engagement, acquisition, and economize. At Shop Local, we rely on the network effect and its three parts. I feel that we’re succeeding in terms of engagement but need improvement in acquisition.
Engagement
We use the 64,000 products in our Syncing service to engage 1,200 our retail clients. We email them new intros, price updates, archived items for these synced products. Once they ...
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In this new webinar for sales reps, I share why your retailers are struggling online and underselling your lines. I share how you can help them and boost your commissions by 18%.
Susan Gravely – alongside her sister, Frances, and mother, Lee – founded VIETRI 40 years ago after a serendipitous vacation where they discovered the charms of Italian ceramics. Gravely’s new book, Italy on a Plate, equal parts travelogue/cookbook/memoir, is a culinary delight celebrating four decades of bringing the best of Italy’s tableware to an adoring fan base.
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You and I go back almost to the start of VIETRI in 1983. [Editor&rsquo...
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