ETD: 691 Sky Radio; People sell people; Need Cash Register;
Bite-Size Licensing for Small Businesses; Expectant Retailers Bet On
Mothers-To-Be
E-Tailer's Digest
etd_post@gapent.com
Tue, 03 Jun 2003 07:41:29 -0400
E-Tailer's Digest --- Everything for the Retailer
Issue #0691 June 3, 2003
George Matyjewicz, Moderator mailto:georgem@gapent.com
Published by: GAP Enterprises, Ltd. http://www.etailersdigest.com
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CONTENTS
[1] Greetings
[2] Sky Radio
[3] People sell people
----- ---- --- -- -> Important Offer <- -- --- ---- ---- --
[4] Need Cash Register
[5] Bite-Size Licensing for Small Businesses
[6] Expectant Retailers Bet On Mothers-To-Be
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[1] Greetings.
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Hi All:
We're coming up on issue number 700, just in time for the celebration of
freedom in the US (Independence Day). My how time flies. Any ideas on
what we should do to celebrate? Obviously we could never duplicate that
mighty party we had for issue 100 - the first-ever CyberCelebration
orchestrated by party planner extraordinaire Patty Sachs.
http://etailersdigest.com/celebrate/index.htm
We have some interesting material today, including some advice for all ye
who think you are too small to go for the big ones. And, stay tuned for
some notes from the air - Sky Radio.
I found some interesting stuff on potential markets. Who would think that
expectant mothers would be a new niche? Apparently a lot of top
retailers. What do you think? Have you found a new niche?
What are you doing for sales in the coming months? In the northern
hemisphere we have summer, while the southern hemisphere has winter. How
are we finding the upcoming months for sales?
Now, let's get to everything for the retailer.
Sincerely
Dr. George Matyjewicz
Chief Global Strategist, GAP Enterprises, Ltd.
mailto:georgem@gapent.com
http://www.etailersdigest.com
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[2] Sky Radio
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When you're travelling this fall listen to the Sky Radio programs. We will
be featured in a special in-flight radio program entitled "Spotlight on
Corporate Ethics and the Sarbanes-Oxley Act", which will air worldwide on
United, American and Northwest Airlines for 4 months beginning in September
2003.
This unique radio show will educate and inform millions of executive
business travelers by presenting one-on-one interviews with market
participants, policy makers and academic institutions who focus on the
institutional framework for corporate governance, and the principles and
practices of effective corporate governance. This program explores the
impact of Sarbanes/Oxley and features a cross section of thought leaders,
business experts, ethics and compliance officers, and chairman/CEOs.
We will join other distinguished guests in this exciting forum --
Congressman Michael Oxley - Senator Chuck Grassley - Arthur Leavitt,
Former SEC Chairman - Craig R. Barrett, CEO, Intel Corporation - Charles
King, Korn Ferry International - James Berg, International Paper, Samuel
DiPiazza, Chairman - PricewaterhouseCoopers, Caspar Weinberger- Chairman of
Forbes, Inc., Jeffrey Garton, Dean, Yale School of Management - Dr.
Constantine Papadakis, President, Drexel University - John Sullivan,
Executive Director, Center for International Private Enterprise - Erika
Blaney, Partner, Cooley Godward and others
Our segment will focus on Magique, an integrated, enterprise-wide risk
management and control self-assessment system, designed to help you improve
the accuracy and reliability of your corporate disclosures to comply with
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. First installed in July, 2000 (two years
before SOX), Magique addresses new responsibilities for audit committees,
increased accountability of corporate officers, increased business and
financial disclosures and corporate & criminal fraud accountability.
http://www.sarbanes-oxley2002.com/magique/index.htm
Stay tuned.
George
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[3] People sell people
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With this new venture I'm in, we've been involved with publicly traded
companies who need to comply with the Sarbanes Oxley Act of
2002. Interesting to note how the folks at those companies put their pants
on the same way as we all do - one leg at a time.
Why is that important? Too often we are in awe of power, money, education,
etc., etc. That affects how we deal with people. If we are trying to sell
to a Fortune 50 company we get nervous and believe they have top-level
resources, and we can't do business there. Wrong! As a C-level officer of
one of these companies stated to me recently "We have the same issues as a
smaller company, only worse. We need to go through levels of approval
before a decision is made. And we don't have the staff in all departments
that a smaller company may have - they know their particular niche job and
nothing else. We need to call on corporate resources for some jobs, which
slows down the process"
When my daughters were younger they were in awe of "rich people", whatever
that meant. When I asked them how they felt about a neighbor, they were
very comfortable. Little did they know that that neighbor (and a client)
had a net worth of $100+ million! What we don't know often helps in how we
deal with people.
Last July I wrote a special report "How Do I Sell Large Accounts"
http://etailersdigest.com/resources/Specials/Sell_Large_Accounts.htm
which was also published in Gifts & Dec magazine as "Going For The Big
Ones" in October
http://etailersdigest.com/media/G&DA2002-10.htm
We should add to that article and address the prospects as people. It's
often lonely at the top. It's like the gorgeous girl in school, who really
doesn't have any dates, because the boys are afraid to ask, or they assume
she has so many dates.
Go for the big ones! Ask for the order. And when you get it, you will be
surprised how it opens the doors to so many other larger deals. After all
people are people, and people sell people!
George
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[4] Need Cash Register
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Jim D. wrote...
> We are opening up an Ice Cream Store in CT and we are looking for
> advice on a cash register. We would like to obtain some management
> information.
Jim, we are a dealer for Microsoft which could provide a PC based solution,
but I would recommend a cash register. Today's cash registers are
inexpensive, powerful, fast and will give you the type of information you
need to get started. I am sure you don't want to spend a lot as you are
just opening. A good register will cost about $500 to $900. A Software
based system with a PC, Monitor, Printer, Cash Drawer Report Printer and
Software will be in about the $2000 to $4000 range. Jim our main business
is PC based systems but I don't think you need one. If you have any
question feel free to give me a call @ 281-2652616
Greg Boerner
discount POS
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[5] Bite-Size Licensing for Small Businesses
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For a time, small businesses probably felt like little kids getting bumped
out of line for the ice cream truck. They would jump up and down, money in
hand, trying to catch the attention of software vendors, only to see those
vendors choose to do business with larger, stronger, deeper-pocketed
enterprises time after time.
However, for a host of reasons, the pendulum has swung in a different
direction. Small and medium businesses are now a sought-after segment of
the market. Seeking to recharge slowing growth, software makers have
trotted out a variety of programs aimed at making even the smallest
enterprise feel like a valuable customer.
As a result, small businesses are finding themselves in the driver's seat,
with more leverage to negotiate everything from price to licensing terms,
said attorney John Cummerford of Greenberg Traurig in Phoenix, Arizona,
which helps companies draft such agreements.
"The tech downturn has made everyone -- even the big guys -- more
flexible," Cummerford, a former IBM licensing attorney, told the E-Commerce
Times. "Because competition is fierce, even where there isn't much price
flexibility, there is often flexibility on services and support, response
time commitments or service level, and that can translate into savings for
the licensee."
The advent of the application service provider model also has helped small
businesses, Cummerford added, by enabling them to buy only the number of
licenses or seats they need. "Just as the software companies are looking to
the bottom line, so are their customers, who don't want to buy capacity
they're not using," he said.
In addition to needing revenue, software vendors recognize that today's
small business may be tomorrow's thriving, 1,000-license enterprise.
Details at...
http://www.ecommercetimes.com/perl/story/21607.html
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[6] Expectant Retailers Bet On Mothers-To-Be
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National retailers are wooing mommies-to-be these days.
Target recently introduced a new line of fashionable threads from Liz
Lange, one of the hottest maternity designers, in all of its 1,107 stores.
The $44 billion (2002 sales) retailer currently is touting the new line in
commercials airing across the country. The ads feature Lange promising
fashionable maternity styles at everyday prices. "Every mom should look
like a star, especially when they're pregnant," says Lange in the ads.
Gap too has plans for pregnant women. It recently introduced maternity
clothes, which were previously only available online, in 12 Gap and 52 Old
Navy stores. By year-end, maternity wear will be available in up to 10% of
Old Navy's 800 stores. Even Wal-Mart is paying attention. The world's
largest retailer has been expanding the number of stores offering
maternity, up to approximately 2,400 locations. This week for the first
time, Wal-Mart will list maternity under services available when customers
search specific stores.
Certainly, the maternity market is no mother lode. The number of births in
this country has remained steady at about four million per year for the
past decade, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. The
market is estimated to be just $1.2 billion, according to Mothers Work, the
largest maternity retailer with $453 million in fiscal 2002 sales. Plus it
is a hard market to serve well: The window to reach customers is very small
and retailers must offer large assortments to reach women at different
stages of pregnancy.
Still, it's a market that hasn't been all that well served, which creates
an opportunity. "When I started my business six years ago, there was very
little choice for women who wanted fashionable maternity clothes," says
Lange, who also has three boutiques selling higher-priced styles for
soon-to-be mommies.
Details at...
http://www.forbes.com/2003/05/27/cz_lk_0527maternity.html
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Links to follow
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