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Tag: sales and marketing

Making the Most of Operating a Business in a Small Town

There are so many different factors that go into how successful someone’s business becomes. Obviously, the type of business and the demand for the product or service are important. So is marketing. But when it comes to a business in a small town that relies on a brick-and-mortar storefront, location really matters.

Small towns have a lot of charm, but it can be tough to build a thriving business. In the city, rents are higher and there’s more competition, but there’s also a lot more in the way of foot traffic. So, how can you make the most of the opportunities you have as a business owner in a small town? Here are some things to consider.

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Revisit (Or Create) Your Business Plan

Whether you run a bookstore, a coffee shop or a pharmacy, you don’t have to think that far ahead when you’re the only game in town. Chances are, you’ll get a decent amount of local business. However, it’s always smart to look to the future and to have goals for your business.

For a business in a small town, your plan can be a kind of “north star” to help you maintain and grow your business as much as you can. Even in an area with a low population, having a business plan is important and will help you make the most of the market you’re in.

Don’t Ignore Marketing & Data

It’s likely that everyone around knows about your business in a small town. Because of that, you might think that it doesn’t matter if you don’t put any time or money into marketing — that the people who live nearby will come and support your business. Unfortunately, that’s not always true. Unless you stay top-of-mind and give people a reason to frequent your business, they might order online or drive to the nearest big-box store.

Marketing can help you maintain a presence among your current and potential customers. In a small town, a mix of digital marketing online and more traditional methods like putting ads and offers in local publications can be a good way to get strong sales.

You should also start collecting and analyzing marketing data that can help you better understand what’s working and what isn’t. Consumer analytics are powerful for helping you shape your message and bring people through the door.

Offer an Online Store

Depending on the type of business you run or you’re thinking of starting, providing an online shopping option to supplement your brick-and-mortar store can be a smart move. Giving people the opportunity to shop online and pick up in-store, or even offering local delivery and shipping will help to remove barriers for potential customers. In some cases, you might not even need a storefront — many people run businesses from home, very successfully!

Leverage Tourism Traffic

Many small towns get additional traffic and revenue from tourists, especially during the high seasons. Offering products and services that cater to tourists can be a good way to make the most of your business in a small town. Selling souvenirs and travel essentials or adding some local flavor, if you run a restaurant, is a good way to help please the tourists as well as the locals.

Be Involved and Engaged in the Community

In a small town, that sense of community is everything. Everyone knows everyone else and businesses have to stay engaged with the community to be successful. Hosting events, offering sponsorships or raffle items when you can, and helping out people in the community who are struggling are all great ways to stay engaged.

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In addition to building buzz and goodwill, you’ll also have the opportunity to see how the community evolves and constantly re-evaluate your place within it. Small businesses have their own image within a town, and you always need to understand how your brand fits in.

Don’t Stagnate or Get Too Comfortable

When business is good, it’s easy to get comfortable and start stagnating. If you stop making goals and never make changes, however, it will be harder to pivot and succeed when things DO change — and they will. Companies that never change will ultimately become obsolete, from the small mom-and-pop shop to once-dominant corporations like Sears.

Fear can be healthy, as long as you don’t let it take over you and your business. Remember —the market evolves, even in a small town. You need to be ready to evolve along with it if you want your business to survive and even thrive.

 

Andrew Deen HeadshotAndrew Deen has been a consultant for startups in a number of industries from retail to medical devices and everything in between. He implements lean methodology and is currently writing a book about scaling up business.

Why you need to know what ad hominem means

In the last few years, it has occurred to me that if I could eliminate one thing from this earth it might just be ad hominem arguments—perhaps the most common form of logical fallacy. So I’m going to take a step back from marketing and talk about them. Why?

The use of ad hominems strains relationships, stifles debate, and often results in poor decisions. And although marketing copywriters aren’t thought of as being the guardians of truth (I’m not being cynical here; just stating that this is not technically our role), understanding how these tactics work is a crucial defense against them.

What’s an ad hominem? An ad hominem (Latin for “to the person”) argument is an attempt to discredit an argument by labeling or attacking the person making it. Deliberately or otherwise, people resort to them when they don’t want to do the hard work of challenging an idea on its merits.

For instance, many on the left and the right have become increasingly fond of calling one another “angry” or “unhappy.” Thus by implying that the “other side” is simply unreasonable, they spare themselves the effort of honest debate.

It’s true that anger often distorts people’s judgment. But it’s also an appropriate reaction to injustice. As a form of argumentation, it would make just as much sense to try to attack a position because the person making it was happy. Contentedness is an inappropriate response to wrongdoing just like ineffectual, directionless outrage. The question is whether the position is valid, independent of the emotional state of the speaker.

Ad hominem arguments aren’t wrong because they’re mean (this isn’t always the case actually), but because they’re a cop out. People who resort to ad hominem arguments are lazy, spiteful, and therefore always wrong (get it?).

In cahoots: Russell conjugations

Russell conjugations, named for philosopher Bertrand Russel, are often subliminal accomplices to ad hominem arguments. They’re fascinating and maddening. Eric Weinstein, Managing Director of Peter Thiel’s investment firm, explains that the Russel conjugation works because “most words and phrases are actually defined not by a single dictionary description, but rather two distinct attributes: I) The factual content of the word or phrase. II) The emotional content of the construction.”

For instance, the words “conservative” and “right-wing” are basically synonymous as conventional thinking goes. Yet while conservative has a neutral connotation (subject to your own political viewpoint), “right-wing” has a more negative connotation.

Here are some other examples of Russell conjugations:

  • center-left → “left-of-center”
  • defiant → “stubborn”
  • whistleblower → “snitch” or “traitor”
  • humble → “indecisive”
  • indignant → “furious”
  • expert → “elitist”

Of course, none of these words is “wrong” all the time, and sometimes they can honestly go both ways; for instance, “contrarian” and “skeptic.” But like ad hominems, they tend to be abusive.

Unsavory bedfellows

Here are a few examples of ad hominem arguments coupled with Russell conjugations:

  • So-and-so has argued for reopening schools in spite of the pandemic, but you can’t trust him because he works for a right-wing think tank.
  • She says we should wear masks, but you can’t trust her because she’s a leftist academic.

Sound familiar? Damn right.

The whims of a person making an argument aren’t always irrelevant—especially when there’s conjecture or hearsay involved. Still, we should evaluate positions on their merits. You shouldn’t take stock in something a known liar says, but that doesn’t mean everything he says is wrong by virtue of his saying it.

The fact that ad hominem arguments frustrate me has little bearing on whether they’re right or wrong. Their effect is the same regardless of how you feel about them: They promote ignorance, contentiousness and social censorship.

We wouldn’t tolerate them in an elementary school cafeteria. We shouldn’t tolerate them in our leaders.