This morning, the headline inflation is at a 40-year high hit me before my coffee did. If you’re like me, and millions of other businesses, you’re probably caught between the idea of raising your prices to cover the increase in your own costs and providing your loyal customers with good value. 

It’s difficult these days. I see many business owners apologizing for raising prices, but it can’t be helped. You need to make a profit to remain in business, yet your customers are likely struggling too. That’s why now, more than ever, you need to communicate the value behind your products and services. 

Here’s how:

Communicating Value to Your Customers: 6 Solid Ways

Talk About What They’re Getting

When Little Caesars Pizza® recently raised their prices, they didn’t focus on the 11% price increase, nor did they justify the increase by marketing the message of how many years their price had remained the same (since they began in 1997).… Read the rest

When you run your own business, you’re the person deciding on the direction. You’re in control of start dates and marketing promos. You’re the one who must hold yourself back from the shiny object syndrome. 

And yet, so many of us fail on that last one and it’s easy to understand why.

Open your social media feeds or search on the internet for business advice and you’ll find dozens of articles that tell you what you need to be doing for your business this year—things you need to implement, apps you need to download, widgets needed on your website, and a host of other projects you would be remiss not to implement immediately.

And they all sound so wonderful. Things your audience will love, will drive more sales, help you become better known. … Read the rest

If you’re like me—and almost everyone else in this country—the end of the year is a time to look back and assess. I enjoy the nostalgia and reminiscing that occurs at this time of year, but it can also be a time of dread. It’s a time to realize you either hit the mark or you didn’t. And if you did, you may be apprehensive about being able to do it again in the new year.

So, we make resolutions.

We tell ourselves we’re going to do X differently this year. And most of us fall short of X because we forget about it, or we fall back into old routines because they are easy and we know how they work.… Read the rest

This holiday season, we are supporting shop small. We want to celebrate the uniqueness of small business as well as the treasures and exquisite services that can be found in our backyard. But small businesses have challenges as they take on larger, national competitors. The perception that the giants have better deals, more attractive hours, and more selection, can be strong. That’s why it takes a creative approach to capture more of the holiday dollars. Cross promotion can be a very effective way for small business to stand out during the holiday season.

Why Cross Promotion?

Small businesses have the agility to do some creative things when it comes to promotion both within their own businesses and in partnerships with others.… Read the rest