Shows
Retail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorNavigating Retail Challenges with Bob Phibbs LIVEJoin Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doc, for an insightful live session on November 10th. Bob addresses various challenges faced by retailers, offering his expert advice from over 30 years of experience in the industry. From the effective use of QR codes to engaging customers and preventing shoplifting, Bob shares practical tips to enhance your retail operations.
Bob also tackles questions on managing staff, including handling sensitive issues like body odor and making tough decisions about payroll cuts. He emphasizes the importance of creating a welcoming environment and maintaining a positive outlook, regardless of external challenges.
With...
2024-11-1026 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorThe Retail Refresh with Bob Phibbs: Special Guest April SabralBob Phibbs hosts April Sabral to discuss key retail challenges. Topics include: overcoming the stigma of retail careers, motivating employees, managing accountability, acquiring new customers, and balancing manager-employee relationships. The experts share practical tips for small business owners and retail managers on leadership, customer service, and driving sales. Includes Q&A addressing common retail management issues.
2024-08-2522 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorQuestion and Answer with Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor 10-1-23How to effectively merchandise products in a small space? What to do with major disruption of your parking in your shopping district? And more with your questions answered LIVE by Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor
2023-10-0129 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorAsk Me Anything with Bob Phibbs the Retail Doctor
Your questions about selling, marketing, theft and more answered LIVE with Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doc. Visit RetailDoc.com to learn more about his services.
2023-07-2625 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorQ + A With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor April 2, 2023How do you handle an employee that doesn't take correction or work well with others? How do you win back a customer? How to introduce higher price points for your merchandise? And answers to your questions LIVE with the Retail Doctor. Tune in for expert advice, interviews and Q&A sessions. Join us every Tuesday at 7pm EST on admin5.podbean.com to learn the answers to these questions and more!
It's time you get the help you need when it comes to managing your retail business! On admin5.podbean.com,
GET...
2023-04-0222 min
Tell Me Something Good About RetailTom Sullivan: Be The Company Where You Want to WorkBe the company you want to work at. Bob Phibbs interviewed Tom Sullivan, founder of Lumber Liquidators about going public, about his first steps at founding the largest specialty flooring company in the nation, and what bugs him - and me - about brick and mortar stores. About our guest: Tom Sullivan, the founder of Lumber Liquidators, owner of Gracious Home, founder of Cabinets To Go and a serial entrepreneur.
2021-11-0428 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail Doctor3 Steps Every Retail Must Take This Holiday Season | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail DoctorHoliday retail spending is projected to be 1.5% higher than 2019, a remarkable statistic given the utter chaos our world is still facing due to after effects of COVID-19. In this episode of Retail Today with Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor, you will see three key steps every retailer must take to make the most of this holiday season. Recorded LIVE November of 2020 these tips can still be used in 2021
---
We are now living in a post-pandemic marketplace. You can keep losing market share...or you can win now with SalesRX, the #1 online retail sales training p...
2020-11-1928 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorTrump's Out, Biden's In - What's It Mean for Retailers | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail DoctorHey everybody. It's Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doc. Thanks for joining me this afternoon. You know, the big news was that the election is over and now, what for retail? I've been answering that question all day and I thought I would quickly share some of my thoughts with you, because particularly in the U.S. we have had an awful lot of interest from both sides and the news media, trying to get us to guess what's going to happen and what's next, and has gone back and forth for days now. But honestly, for months we have...
2020-11-1210 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorIs Amazon Killing In-Person Grocery Shopping to Make Us Buy Online? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail DoctorAmazon acquired Whole Foods several years ago and many felt they would add their technology and transform Whole Foods into the grocery store of the future. The reality is a different story as they open their Amazon fresh stores. What does that portend for grocery and shopping in-store?
---
If you love what you heard on Retail Today, connect with Bob by visiting retaildoc.com or send a message to bob@retaildoc.com. Thanks for listening!
2020-11-0508 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorLevi's Versus GAP: Leading or Running Away | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail DoctorGAP made news this week closing up to 80% of their mall stores. Meanwhile Levi's is opening 100. What's the difference and what clues should other retailers take from the comparison? Join me for this episode of Retail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail Doctor.
---
If you love what you heard on Retail Today, connect with Bob by visiting retaildoc.com or send a message to bob@retaildoc.com. Thanks for listening!
2020-10-2813 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorAre You Approaching Customers With Dollar Signs in Your Eyes? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor---
If you love what you heard on Retail Today, connect with Bob by visiting retaildoc.com or send a message to bob@retaildoc.com. Thanks for listening!
2020-10-2112 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow to Get Your Retail Stores Ready for the Holidays | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor---
If you love what you heard on Retail Today, connect with Bob by visiting retaildoc.com or send a message to bob@retaildoc.com. Thanks for listening!
2020-10-1204 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorRalph Lauren's CEO Can Teach Us About Leadership In Retail During COVID-19 | Retail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail Doctor---
If you love what you heard on Retail Today, connect with Bob by visiting retaildoc.com or send a message to bob@retaildoc.com. Thanks for listening!
2020-10-0809 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorNeiman Marcus Is Closing Their Hudson Yard Store -- I Doubt It's Because of the Pandemic | Retail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail Doctor---
If you love what you heard on Retail Today, connect with Bob by visiting retaildoc.com or send a message to bob@retaildoc.com. Thanks for listening!
2020-09-3022 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorReaching Out to Your Retail Customers Through Social Media | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, The Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingNow that you have more time than you might have liked, take the time to research your top 10 or 20 customers on their LinkedIn or Facebook profiles and see what charities they support, or in their social posts, and then send a note or a video thank you for their business. Then, add a line, "I was looking online and you know what I discovered about you? You like..." and then fill in whatever that is, and then share something you have in common before you sign off with your thanks. That's one way to show your customers that they...
2020-04-0101 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow Do I Staying Connected With My Employees as a Retailer During Coronavirus? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, The Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingStaying connected is really tough at this time in our retail lives. So what I want you think about today is if you have employees you’re paying to stay home right now don't forget that you should still be checking in with him every day. Make it a schedule and expect them to be on Zoom on time, dressed, and ready for work. If they are not being paid but they’re home, maybe you’ve laid them off, don't forget that you still want to hold on to these people so they come back to you.
So o...
2020-03-2701 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow Do I Use Email to Stay Connected With My Customers as a Retailer During the Covid-19 Crisis? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, The Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingA lot of your customers are sitting in front of their computers a lot more these days so a great way to reach them is to email. If you don't have a regular monthly newsletter or you haven't communicated, now is a perfect time to start. If you have a monthly newsletter, I encourage you to make that a weekly newsletter.
Start off with a compelling subject line like “What to Do When You're Working from Home” or “It’s Too Early for Wine - What Can I Do to Lighten My Mood?” You decide. You can write to t...
2020-03-2601 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorWhat Type of Retailer Are You In a Crisis? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, The Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingYesterday I told you about a sewing machine retailer with change their Facebook banner and end up getting a sale and today I thought I wanted to just unpack for you that they're really kind of three types of retailers when we are in a situation like we are today. The first one is "There's nothing I could do. I just have to hunker down and endure it," and some people, that's where they're at. Other people are saying, "It doesn't matter. I can do anything. This could be a challenge and I could do it," and the third o...
2020-03-2401 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorMaking the Most of the Coronavirus Crisis as a Retailer | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, The Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingIf you love what you heard on Retail Today, connect with Bob by visiting retaildoc.com or send a message to bob@retaildoc.com. Thanks for listening!
2020-03-2301 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow Do I Keep Paying Employees as a Retailer through the Coronavirus Shutdown? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, The Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingOne of the things retailers are asking me now in this time of stress is “How can I pay my employees?” And one thi I would encourage to consider is the share-the-burden idea, which is maybe staggering employee shifts and hours.
So, instead of someone working 25 hours a week they work 15 hours a week, but you’re able to maintain them on the schedule. Another way is to maybe have someone be on one week or another person be on the following week or giving someone two weeks of unpaid vacation.
There’s an awful lot of m...
2020-03-2001 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorThe $1T Bailout, Bridge Loans, and Temporarily Closing Down as a Retailer Because of the Coronavirus | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingWell, the good news is they’re considering a one-trillion-dollar ($1T) bailout for small businesses. How fast that will be doled out and how that will be implemented is still days and probably weeks away, but the good news is people are looking at how to help small businesses like you listening.
The other question comes up is "Do I close my store?" and I think you have to think about the advantages to both. Obviously, the #1 concern is the health of your employees and your community. We're being told in New York that all non-essential businesses sho...
2020-03-1904 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorNostalgia Marketing and Connecting During Coronavirus Quarantine | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingToday is Wednesday, March 18th, and today I want you to be thinking about nostalgia marketing. You know, during this time of crisis, it’s easy for us to feel bad about the future.
One thing that I think can help your customers feel normal with their circumstances is to ask them to share their favorite memory of shopping at your store. You can start off by doing a Facebook Live video talking about how your store has been around for generations, some of its heritage, and then invite them to share their favorite memories of a sp...
2020-03-1801 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHelp Flatten the Curve and Stop the Spread of Coronavirus as a Retailer | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingToday is Tuesday March 17. St. Patrick’s day. We learned yesterday that new guidelines advise no gatherings of 10 or more people, the fed has slashed interest rates to 0, and Wall Street had another horrible day. While interest is coalescing around helping restaurants and small business, there are no firm plans yet.
America is split as to how leadership is doing on the virus; some cities are ghost towns while others are partying away. One thing is clear: we need to avoid going out in public to flatten the curve of virus spread. One less trip you make to...
2020-03-1704 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorThe Coronavirus Is Closing Down Malls - Now What? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingToday is Monday, March 16th. I'm going to change things around today. You know, we're in a new retail environment. This last Thursday when Disneyland announced they were closing and all of the major sports franchises decided they were postponing indefinitely, and then on Friday came New York deciding that all Broadway theaters would close. And then Sunday, yesterday, I realized that the American Dream Mall, one of the newest malls in America, has decided to close for the next two weeks. And what that said to me was, we're in a new normal. So if you have decided...
2020-03-1601 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow Do I Sell Expensive Merchandise as a Retailer? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingAre you a salesperson in a retail store? Well, today I'm talking about how do you feel about selling your more expensive merchandise.
A lot of times that when I'm doing sales consulting, or I'm doing a training with a group of stores, I find that there's a lot of people who actually feel like they're being a fraud. They know how much something costs, and they feel bad about going through and charging as much money they do.
The problem is that when you feel that something is too expensive, you're going to go...
2020-03-1501 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorWhich Buying Option Should You Present First as a Retailer? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingYou know, if you're trying to close a sale, one of the hardest things is just presenting too many options. You know it yourself, if you get overwhelmed, suddenly work is what shopping feels like and you shut down. You're like, oh, I've seen too much. I just have to leave. I'll come back. Except you don't come back. You'll probably go to some other retailer who doesn't make it feel that way. What I want you to do today is to look at curating down your products to a good, better, and best. Because too many choices leads...
2020-03-1401 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorWhat Does Your Product Do For Your Retail Customer? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingYesterday I was talking about employees and associates who just want to vomit useless fact after useless fact on people. They're typically kind of, an engineer or an analytical background and they think that the facts are what is going to make the sale.
And today's tip for you is, that you always want to lead with what the product does for the customer after you've talked to them. You don't want to talk about how much it cost, or just the facts.
Nobody buys based on just what the facts of what the product...
2020-03-1301 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow Do I Manage Different Personality Styles as a Retail Sales Leader? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingHave you ever met somebody that you just can't get along with, whether they're interviewing for a job or a shopper or even a colleague? We all have, and there's other people that really do well with you and really like them. We've all had that as well. Well, I think that there is an awful lot to personality styles. In fact, today I want you to Google my personality quiz, so Retail Doctor personality quiz. You can take it and find out that there are people that are not like you. And the reason that's so important is...
2020-03-1201 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorDo Thank-You Notes Still Work for Retailers? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingHave you ever been thanked by a vendor or by a store that you did business with? It's pretty powerful. I have a pond that I had cleaned out a while ago and they sent me a handwritten thank you and told me how great the pond was and made one more suggestion of something we could do, maybe next year when we have it cleaned out. And that really stuck with me, because I go back to them over and over again. And so today I want you to think about the power of sending thank yous because...
2020-03-1101 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow Do I Sell More Units Per Sale as a Retailer? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingDo you ever wonder how valuable your employees are to you? A lot of people do. They don't really know exactly what the metrics are, and I always say, "Look at the units per sales." That's the #1 way I look at it. That's the tip I'm talking about today because add-ons are the most cost-effective ways to lift your retail sales, means you sell the first item, and then the employee shows something that's complimentary that helps the person get more out of that first purchase.
It's a matter of looking at getting numbers of basket items...
2020-03-1001 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow Do I Get Shoppers to Give Me a Review? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingDo you ever go to a movie without looking at a review? I don't. I always want to know that and shoppers are no different now. They're looking at all kinds of reviews whether it's product reviews, brand reviews or even in your individual store. Whether you're big or small, you need to get those reviews and you need to be timely in talking to people. So today, I'm just talking about making the time to set aside one morning a week and monitor your public reviews. Going through and being able to comment. If somebody's saying something bad...
2020-03-0901 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorWhat's the Best Way to Greet Shoppers as a Retailer? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingYou know, over on my blog, retaildoc.com/blog, I probably have a thousand articles, and a lot of times they're in response to people asking me, "How do I greet a customer?" and "What's the best way to approach a customer?"
And I'm always surprised by that because if you just looked at what's going on, you wouldn't do those bad habits. "Hi, can I help you find something? You have a budget? Looking for anything particular?", all that other garbage. You know when shoppers say no, it's usually your fault, not them.
So...
2020-03-0801 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorAdjusting Your Time for a Busy Store | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingI love a busy store, don't you? Time just goes by. Everything works well. But one of the challenges we have is some of our employees don't know how to make it faster or shorter depending on the number of people. And what I'm talking about today is that the length of time with a shopper has to diminish the busier the store is. So what I want you to think about, today, is role play with one of your employees, a scenario of somebody that's looking at one of your best sellers and you want them to give...
2020-03-0701 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorSales Employees Need Reviews | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingCan you imagine if you were in school and you turned in a big term paper and you got it back with no grade or comments? How would you feel? Kind of deflated, right? Well, that's what happens with an awful lot of employees. They never hear that they did anything good or bad because we've gotten rid of employee reviews. Most employees, especially millennials, want to know how they're doing. It isn't just about money. My tip for you today is do an employee review one-on-one today. Not really just a conversation, but it's making sure that you...
2020-03-0600 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorWhat’s Your Conversion Rate as a Retailer? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingAs the Retail Doctor, people often ask me, "How can I get more people into my store? How do I attract more shoppers?" And while it's good to attract shoppers, you better know your conversion rate, because just getting more people in the door isn't the begin all and end all. It's how do you convert those lookers into buyers? When you look around at how different types of businesses have made a difference, I think it always comes down to framing the entrance to your store.
Now let me explain. Probably 20 years ago, I think it...
2020-03-0501 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow Do I Have a Better Return Policy as a Retailer? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingYou know, returns are at an all-time high in online and it doesn't look like they're going away. In fact, online shoppers, I think, can return up to 30, 40, even 50% depending on your category. But what about in your own stores? What's your return policy? If you have one that's archaic and you have it up at the register, and it's like, "No returns without this, this, this, and this," then it's a "Got you!" moment for a shopper.
So, my tip for you today is if you have a liberal return policy, make sure that your crew...
2020-03-0401 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow to Close the Sale in Retail by Reframing the Product | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingYou know, people often hire me as a sales coach to train their crews or to train their brand boutiques. And people often say, "How do I close the deal? How do I get that customer to buy it now and hand over the money?" Well, it's really simple. You have to go through and spend enough time to build rapport that they're going to tell you everything they want from a product. And so, to close the sale you have to reframe how your product does more than they were expecting.
So what I usually do...
2020-03-0301 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorVirtual Training | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingDo you hate training employees? I know most people do. They feel like it's a time suck, or I have to say the same thing over and over again. Or worse, they have somebody trained who really didn't like retail or sales training and then they have somebody else that they trained, trained somebody else, and now you've got a copy of a copy from people who didn't really like training.
One way to get around that is to use online retail sales training. That way everybody gets the exact same message in bite-size forms and you...
2020-03-0201 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorDo Your People Look Engaged? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingDo you know what good customer service looks like? You know, a lot of times when I walk around in various retail stores, I see managers who are managing tasks, but I don't think they really understand what great customer service looks like. And it's really quite simple: Do your people look engaged? Does the shopper look engaged? What does their body posture look like? And the other part of that is: Understand that customer service should have an end where the shopper takes action. Maybe they buy something or leave their information, but you just don't want people...
2020-03-0100 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow Do I Give Employee Feedback as a Retailer? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingWe've talked a lot this month about retail sales training and holding employees accountable. One of the biggest skills that I think people miss is “How do I give feedback?” Because ultimately you would need to be able to give feedback that's both good and bad, right? So I always suggest first off that it's private. You don't ever want to get feedback like in front of other employees or customers. You want to do it somewhere off from everybody else to hear and then use the Oreo principle, which is start off with something good, then you've got some...
2020-02-2901 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorCompare and Contrast for Better Results as a Retailer | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingI talk a lot about retail sales training and one of the things I find that really impacts is getting the right people into your store to begin with. A lot of us ask very nebulous questions, “What are your goals in five years?” All of that is in the future. What I always say is go back and find something they did in the past. One of the questions I like to ask when I'm interviewing somebody is “I want you to think back to the last retail job you have had. And I want you to think about...
2020-02-2801 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow to Use Your Customer List as a Retailer | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingDo you have a loyalty program or an app or something like that? I hope so because people who have joined your list voluntarily, whether they're a customer or someone's that familiar with you, is the cheapest way and cheapest group to whom you can advertise. But a lot of times we forget about it. We might have an email list, but maybe it's on your website and we don't really think about it.
So you want to think today about how you're going to grow that list because that list is your most valuable source of...
2020-02-2701 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow Do I Reward Hours to Good Employees as a Retailer? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingWhen it comes to scheduling your employees, do you reward people who are able to get higher units per transaction, who are able to sell more per hour? I hope so because if you're just putting whoever can fill the shift, the chances are you're putting somebody like a race horse in the middle of a pasture, right? If it's not that busy and you have a great salesperson, you're squandering that. Likewise, if you have someone who's untrained or really just a clerk and you've got them on at your highest traffic times, they're probably costing you money...
2020-02-2601 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorFocus on the Project, Not the Product as a Retailer | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingAre you looking to get higher sales? Then get out of the bad habit of asking somebody, “What can I help you find?” Because the more you are just like a product, you're just interested in that one product. The more you're basically a warehouse for other people. Look, people go online to buy an item, they go into a store to discover items. So the power is instead of finding out what the product is, they're looking for, what's their project today, what are they working on? You want the customer to tell you everything that they could abou...
2020-02-2501 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow Do I Hold My Employees Accountable as a Retailer? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingHave you ever found yourself accountable for your actions? I know when we watched the Olympics, you know that's probably the ultimate accountability is when we see someone get the gold medal that they did it. They did all the things it took to be a champion, and yet when we come into our brick-and-mortar stores, a lot of times people don't want to hold employees accountable. They want to be their friend. “Let's go out and have a drink. Let's eat.” And the problem with that is, is that you're going to be the same as everybody else, but...
2020-02-2401 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow to Navigate Discounts as a Retailer | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingAre you stuck in a rut and can only sell things that are on sale or have a coupon or maybe you have some time, an endless promotion? We used to call them loss leaders, and while there are some aspects that can get traffic to your store, those days are pretty much gone because there's always somebody cheaper, especially on the web. What you want to do is to limit promotions and coupons because they damage your margins and the more margins are punished, less money you have to reward employees or to buy new stock or to...
2020-02-2301 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow Do I Have the Right Mindset as a Retailer? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingDo you ever hear about the power of positive thinking? It all sounds good and a lot of people ‘poo poo’ it and say, “Oh, it doesn't really matter,” but you know what? There really is something to getting what you put out there and one of the things I always say is it doesn't matter what time of the year, if this is the fall or the winter or whenever when you reach for the door, whether you're going to unlock the store for the first time or you're just going to go in, what's your attitude when you go i...
2020-02-2201 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow to Make Your Retail Employee's Day | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingIf you're a manager and owner of a retail brick-and-mortar store, the most important thing you can do is to make your employee's day and then they'll make your customer's day. So many times we don't give that attitude. We don't have that feeling. We don't have that focus. And so, we pretty much just have your employees go and do tasks, move this from here, pick this order from the web, go over here and clean this, straighten that, etc.
And you know what? That's pretty boring, especially if you're pretty young, because let's face it...
2020-02-2101 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow Do I Set Better Goals as a Retailer? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingDo you set a goal for your crew when you go in today? If so, you're on the track to making more sales. If not, well, you're probably squandering something because goals give us something to look forward to.
For example, if I was to say, “Hey, we're going to go on a cruise to Greece. We’re leaving at 10:55 on the U.S.S. (I don't know, some name of a ship) and we're going to go around from here to London. We're going to debark. We're going to spend a night by Big Ben. We're goin...
2020-02-2001 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorSignage Tips for Retailers | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingIf you're looking to attract more customers to your store, make sure that you don't forget about your parking lot or maybe some windows towards the back that are kind of covered.
You can put up great signs that are inspirational, so “you could be a cook, you can be a cook, you could be the hero,” and with one picture of what it is, but your goal is to not just say it's 20% off this weekend. Customers are immune to that.
What you tap into is when you say you can cook and you show...
2020-02-1901 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorTop-Down Selling | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingToday, I want you to watch how your employees sell your merchandise. Are they starting off at the bottom with whatever's cheapest or on sale? If so, my guess is they're probably also saying, “This is good enough,” or “It's a really good value.” And the problem with that is your more expensive merchandise just sits there until it's marked down.
Your goal, when you're selling merchandise that has several good, better, and best options, is to always present the first option as the best option. That's the one that has the most widgets. It has the most fea...
2020-02-1801 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorThem or You | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingDo you hate working with somebody that just on the schedule today? If so, it's probably time for them to be gone. I know that seems harsh, but you know, that's the first indicator I have that something is wrong in the relationship. And while I certainly counsel people, you want to take this person aside, maybe take them out for a cup of coffee, see what's going on, chicken with them at some point, probably their mind has left and the body doesn't know it.
And the important thing for you to take away is, look...
2020-02-1701 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHappy New Year 2020 from Bob Phibbs | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingHey, thanks for listening in today. It’s January 1st, 2020. It is a day filled with possibilities like a new a hill full of snow and you are in the sled as a five- or six-year-old child. So many possibilities. Did you hit your goal did you miss it for last year? That's fine if you didn’t hit it because I want you to think of the possibilities in 2020. Use your choice muscle today to envision a great 2020. Happy New Year.
If you love what you heard on Retail Today, connect with Bob by visiting retaildoc.com...
2020-01-0100 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorTired of Customer Returns? How to Save the Sale In Retail | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingTired of Customer Returns? How to Save the Sale In Retail | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash Briefing
Well, it's the last Saturday of the year. How exciting is this? Well, you better be prepared for returns cause they're going to happen and this is your last Saturday of the year to get ahead of those. So today what I want you to be thinking about is how do I return every return into a sale? That's right. How do I boomerang it back from I want my money back to getting them to buy...
2019-12-2801 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorTips For Boosting Your Conversion Rate in Retail Sales | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingIt's all about converting lookers to buyers. That's your job. It's called the conversion rate. All that matters is did you convert people who walked in and had an interest in your store to a customer. And when I talk to people and I'll say, "What do you think your conversion rate is?" People are like, "Oh, 90%." They're never 90%. It's like 10 or 15%. There's a lot more business on your floor than you ever understand. And then at the same time as that is how much did you add on to the sale? How many units went out the door...
2019-12-1701 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorWhy You Should Avoid the Price-Matching Trap in Retail | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingPrice matching is not just Amazon anymore. It's going to be Walmart. So at that point, you have to ask yourself, "Okay. So how much time am I going to devote to someone who wants to buy this game, whatever it is, and... Oh, we'll go on. We'll make sure. Well, show us in your phone. Okay. We'll go verify it on our computer, and the item is 40 bucks." I mean, seriously, how much could you be off by? 10 bucks? 5 bucks? In addition to that, are you then stopping everything and doing this for multiple customers?
More...
2019-12-1601 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorWhy Price Tagging Every Item Matters In Retail | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingAll you want to worry about when it comes to tagging and pricing shelves and products is, does the customer know how much this costs? Nothing drives me crazier than going into a brick and mortar store and I have to ask somebody the price, just shoot me. I am not buying from you, I will go from anyone else. Oh, well it's hard for us to price it. Get a price gun, and price it, or do a shelf talker. I walk in there, I just want to know what's the average price of something. I want to...
2019-12-1100 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorWhy You Should Reward Yourself in Retail | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingOn my site, on RetailDoc.com, you can take under, I think it's Retail 101, and you go down and you can see my resource center, and you can take the retail assessment, and one of the first questions is, are you taking money out of the business? And I can't tell you, like 90% of people answer that no. Well, that's silly, because you should take something out as a reward that you are the business owner. I don't care if it's only five bucks a week, I don't care if it's five a month. You have to at least...
2019-12-1001 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorWhat Does American Express Have To Do With Retail Sales? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash Briefing... about to 26, so about a dollar more. So, why is the difference? Well, quite simply they make money on revolving credit. They put it on the consumer. That's where we're going to make our 20, 30%. American Express says you want our card, you're going to have to pay a lot more money, and you have to pay it off. And that's how they make their money. They are making it by charging the merchants a little bit more.
But why would you want to do that? Because American Express holders are the most affluent customers, and you're probably...
2019-12-0900 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow Do You Stay Google Relevant In Retail? | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingGoogle has been doing an awful lot of updates on their websites and they are looking at whether you are relevant to what people are searching for, and if you're not, they're dropping off. So I would encourage you to look at your Google stats and if you don't know what that is, go into Google My Business and then you can have somebody help you with looking at your numbers. But Google has done a big job and there have been two big updates this year that have affected an awful lot of retailers and service providers like...
2019-12-0800 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow Great Training Can Prevent Employee Turnover in Retail | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingWe're coming into the money months, and you have about one more month to figure out how to sell, whether you want to use my sales direct online training, you want to try to read my book, or you're going to wing it, you have about a month left to get those add on sales. And that's a matter of training, and if somebody is not, or won't, or can't, or fill in the blank, won't support you, then now is your time to tune up your crew and give them written warnings.
I'm a big believer...
2019-12-0701 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow to Be A Positive Retail Ambassador For Your Business | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingEverybody loves talking about the retail apocalypse. It's a great clickbait, gets people to look. Please don't be those people doing local stories about how it hurts to be you, and how business is off, and how no one's coming in. That doesn't serve you well at all. That makes you sound like a loser. You're your public voice to anyone who interviews you or wants to do a story is business is great. We're expanding. We're doing these things on social media. We're committed to being in business like we have been for the last 75 years, and that...
2019-12-0600 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorHow To Make the Commitment to New Merchandise in Retail | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingYeah, the one thing that I find, like if you're a hot tub dealer, "Oh, we're going to be in the backyard outdoor space, so we'll put in a barbecue." It's like, let's just have this orphan little barbecue in the middle of all these hot tubs and say we're in the outdoor space. No, you have to commit to it. You have to buy enough that it looks like, "Oh, it's a store within a store. Oh, this is a barbecue place." Then, you have to make it, arrange the merchandise in such a way that it looks...
2019-12-0501 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorGreat Retail Salespeople Are Made, Not Found | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingThis idea that you're going to hire someone who is already trained, and a great salesperson frequently, to me, falls on the floor. Because ultimately, great salespeople are made, not found. You can train anybody. Again, you can use my online system salesrx.com. $195 a month for starting with five users, and I will teach you, I guarantee you, exactly how to create rapport, how to discover the shopper, engage the stranger, and ultimately make the sale. You can have anyone go through that and we can teach them that. You can also pay me several times more than...
2019-12-0401 min
Tell Me Something Good About RetailBob Phibbs on What a Retailer Really Needs to do to Compete with Online Retailers [Episode 308]This episode is devoted to ensuring as retailers you give hope to your customers to keep them coming back and feeling valued. On this episode you’ll also learn how to compete with online retailers and how to succeed in retail.
-----
Key Links
Bob Phibbs LinkedIn Profile
Retail Doc
Field Agent: https://www.fieldagent.net/
-----
How to Compete with Online Retailers
Being hopeful rather than fearful makes all the difference
What Does Retail Do?
Retail sells hope to customers
Mor...
2019-11-2225 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorSetting a Higher Bar For Dress Code in Retail Sales | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingSetting a Higher Bar For Dress Code in Retail Sales | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash Briefing
I was in an apparel shop recently and there was a young woman with a tee-shirt that had stains and some rips in it, and it didn't look like they had bought that way. And she was waiting on a woman who was buying a pretty nice outfit. And I just found myself thinking, "Does anyone have a dress code anymore?" Because frankly, you're supposed to look better in a store than when you wake up or go...
2019-10-1701 minRetail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail DoctorDealing With Bitter Bettys and Bitter Bobs In Retail | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash BriefingI was in Chicago recently at one of my favorite little fast food salad places, and this one woman at the register was just in such a mood. Normally, they would take the salad and they would ask you about the dressing, and they would put the utensils in it, and put it in the bag. And when they rang me up, this young woman just put the bag on the counter, and I said, “Wow, it's such a bad day, you can't even put it in the bag, can you? And she's like, "What do you mean?" And I...
2019-09-1901 minTell Me Something Good About RetailMartin Lindstrom On Why Legacy Brands Are Toast [Episode 221]Bob Phibbs interviews Martin Lindstrom, a Time Magazine Influential 100 Honoree. His books include Buyology - Truth and Lies About Why We Buy, Brandwashed - Tricks Companies Use to Manipulate Our Minds and Persuade Us to Buy and his most recent: Small Data: The Tiny Clues that Uncover Huge Trends. He is the resource for hundreds of brands around the world trying to make their brands memorable.
2019-06-2132 minTell Me Something Good About RetailLuke Kingsnorth, CEO of Charles Tyrwhitt, On Building A Global Brand [Episode 220]Bob Phibbs interviews Luke Kingsnorth, CEO of UK retailer Charles Tyrwhitt on building a family business into a global omnichannel retailer.
2019-06-1423 minTell Me Something Good About RetailAl Gerrie, CEO of Zig Zag, On Retail's Dirty Secret: Returns [Episode 219]Bob Phibbs interviews Al Gerrie, Founder and CEO of ZigZag Global on the challenges of retail returns across the globe, how they vary by country and what his company is doing to make it easier for both consumer and retailer.
2019-06-0718 minTell Me Something Good About RetailBarrie Brown, CEO of Sleep Store, Says Cleanliness Pays Off [Episode 218]On this retail podcast Bob Phibbs interviewed Barrie Brown, CEO Sleep Store about his progress up the ranks to running multiple locations and eventually landing in his own single store selling luxury mattresses from $5,000 to $100,000 in Silicon Valley.
2019-05-3129 minTell Me Something Good About RetailMark Fletcher, Owner of NewsXpress AU. On Finding Out That Sarcasm Can Sell [Episode 217]Bob Phibbs interviewed Mark Fletcher CEO NewsXpress AU on how understanding their Millennial customers led to selling gifts to people who want to make fun of their friends, on franchising and the goal of finding the fun in selling your products in a store.
2019-05-2527 minTell Me Something Good About RetailMark Kilens, VP of Content and Community at Drift, On The Conversations You Have With Customers [Episode 216]Bob Phibbs interviewed Mark Kilens, VP of Content and Community at Drift. Mark talked about his early days working at a college bookstore, how to connect future customers to you in realtime, and how to have more conversations through your website.
2019-05-1724 minTell Me Something Good About RetailNitin Mantani, CEO of PredictSpring, Says It's About Transparency And Convenience [Episode 215]Bob Phibbs interviewed Nitin Mantani, CEO PredictSpring while attending ShopTalk19. Nitin talked about his early days at Google Shopping, how Amazon has mastered commodity commerce, and online customer fatigue.
2019-05-1116 minTell Me Something Good About RetailTammi Ketterman of Ketterman's Jewelers Says Customer Triggers Spark Sales [Episode 213]Bob Phibbs interviewed Tammi Ketterman from Ketterman's Jewelers in Leesburg, Virginia. Tammi talked about the importance of sense triggers, events that produce sales and customer loyalty which in her case includes 326 rum cakes.
2019-05-0326 minTell Me Something Good About RetailChris Bossola, CEO of Need Supply, On The New Luxury Millennial Customer [Episode 214]Bob Phibbs interviewed Chris Bossola with Need Supply while attending ShopTalk19. Chris talked about the new Millennial luxury customer he serves, their buying habits and starting up a new retail business.
2019-04-2410 minTell Me Something Good About RetailRoy Erez, CEO of Loop Commerce, On Uncoupling Gifting From Shipping [Episode 212]Bob Phibbs interviewed Roy Erez, CEO Loop Commerce while attending ShopTalk19. We discussed his experience selling personal computers back in the day and disrupting how commerce thinks about shopping for someone else.
2019-04-1518 minTell Me Something Good About RetailJon and Gila Kurtz, Founders of Dog Is Good, On Building A Brand From An Idea To Product [Episode 211]Bob Phibbs interviewed Jon and Gila Kurtz, founders of Dog Is Good a pet products company based in Los Alamitos, CA. While attending SuiteWorld recently, they discussed taking their brand from concept to product, how they support their brick and mortar retailers, and staying focused on their goals.
2019-04-0532 minTell Me Something Good About RetailApu Gupta, CEO of Curalate, On Social Commerce Mistakes and Opportunities [Episode 210]Bob Phibbs interviewed Apu Gupta, CEO of Curalate who unpacks the breadth of social commerce activities you need to engage in, the core need of understanding what is the problem that your social post is solving for your consumer, and the dangers of looking at shopping through the lens of last click attribution.
2019-03-3126 minTell Me Something Good About RetailJoey Pointer, CEO of Fleet Feet, On Getting Everybody Onboard [Episode 209]Bob Phibbs interviewed Joey Pointer, CEO of Fleet Feet who shares an inspiring story what he found one day on a run in the rain and how their technology partner Volumental has given Fleet Feet's 176 stores an unprecedented ability to fit and sell shoes. He also shares what it takes to change the culture of a retailer.
2019-03-2230 minTell Me Something Good About RetailGreg Petro, CEO of First Insight, On Going To Market Smarter [Episode 208]Bob Phibbs interviewed Greg Petro, CEO, First Insight at Shoptalk in Las Vegas. Greg talks about how his company helps entrepreneurs go to market quicker - especially with HENRYS - as well as his early days in retail as a buyer, and how racing cars helps him focus.
2019-03-1615 minTell Me Something Good About RetailJonathan Treiber, CEO and Co-Founder of RevTrax, On Getting People Into Stores [Episode 207]Bob Phibbs interviews Jonathan Treiber, CEO and Co-Founder, RevTrax . Jonathan talks about how his company gets bodies into stores to make purchases and how he learned at an early age, it's about somebody other than me first.
2019-03-0920 minTell Me Something Good About RetailRalph Simons, CEO of Tane, Says Clients Buy With Their Eyes, Then Their Wallets [Episode 206]Bob Phibbs interviews Ralph Simons, CEO Tane luxury jewelry in Mexico. Ralph talks about the need for story telling - especially when selling luxury goods, how selling luxury is different and how much the salesperson can determine the client's buying choices.
2019-03-0114 minTell Me Something Good About RetailHilary Blair, CEO of Articulate Real and Clear, On The Shifts In Conversation [Episode 123]Bob Phibbs interviewed Hilary Blair, CEO Articulate Real And Clear on how to prevent misunderstandings with subordinates, how breath and consonants make a big difference when talking with younger co-workers and much more.
2018-11-2530 minTell Me Something Good About RetailGeorganne Bender & Rich Kizer Say Retail Is A Comparison Game [Episode 121]Bob Phibbs interviewed Georganne Bender & Rich Kizer, principals of Kizer & Bender, retail consumer anthropologists on the power of events, merchandising and changes in retail.
2018-11-0928 minTell Me Something Good About RetailJamie Bettencourt, SVP of Mood Media On Using The Senses To Bring Stores To Life [Episode 120]Bob Phibbs interviewed Jamie Bettencourt with Mood Media as she shares how music and scent can help create the right mood in a brick and mortar store.
2018-11-0219 minTell Me Something Good About RetailDean Shulman, SVP of Brother, On Creating A Passionate Network Of Dealers [Episode 119]Bob Phibbs interviewed Dean Shulman CEO of Brother as he shares how observing his customers helped him have aha moments, the need to partner with your dealer network if you want to be successful and which reviews he always reads and why.
2018-10-2425 minTell Me Something Good About RetailColby Williams of Parengo Coffee On Small Town Retail Rewards [Episode 118]Latest episode of Bob Phibbs, The Retail Doctor interviewing Colby Williams found of Parengo Coffee as he shares why smaller rural retailers are successful, why he chose to not carry a staple in the south, the power of online reviews and more.
2018-10-0922 minTell Me Something Good About RetailBecky Tyre, Founder of Retail Details On A Love For Independent Retail [Episode 117]Bob Phibbs interviewed Becky Tyre, Founder and editor of the Retail Details blog and a Contributing Editor at Gifts & Decorative Accessories magazine. She is a shop local advocate and specializes in visual merchandising. She talks about merchandising a pocket of your store that is Instagramable, clutter comes not just from poor buying but also poor fixtures and your need to collaborate with local makers or national companies for unique items that drive margin.
2018-09-1527 minTell Me Something Good About RetailBob Phibbs Says When The Mind Goes, So Should You [Episode 116]Bob Phibbs interviews himself about knowing when it is time to change, his background in retail and why he does what he does.
2018-09-0919 minTell Me Something Good About RetailPaula Rosenblum On Cracks In Amazon's Grip [Episode 115]Bob Phibbs interviews Paula Rosenblum Managing Partner and co-founder of Retail Systems Research. She is well known for her pragmatic approach to retail and talks about shiny object syndrome, possible cracks in Amazon's model and how retail continues to evolve.
2018-08-3124 minTell Me Something Good About RetailWhitney Morgan of Collage On Being Socially Responsible [Episode 114]Bob Phibbs interviewed Whitney Morgan, Owner of Collage in York, Pennsylvania who just received the REA Socially Responsible Retailer Category award. She shares her ideas that you can always purchase more so feel free to wait, retail is a lot of time spent figuring things out and being socially responsible is the best way to show your community support.
2018-08-1722 minTell Me Something Good About RetailTodd Gill, Former Director of Retail for Calphalon, Says You Can't Over-Communicate [Episode 113]Bob Phibbs interviewed Todd Gill, Southern Regional Director for Rockler Woodworking and former Director of Retail for Calphalon. He shares his tips on managing a diverse workforce across multiple states, how to have difficult discussions and what it takes to compete in brick and mortar retail.
2018-08-1026 minTell Me Something Good About RetailJennifer Grimm, Founder of Lux Beauty Boutique, Says Math Doesn't Lie [Episode 112]Bob Phibbs interviewed Jennifer Grimm, CEO and Founder of Lux Beauty Boutique in Edmonton. She shares her tips on being a small business and how she looks at some retailers who put so much money into a store because they love shoes or clothes or beauty and they don’t realize what they need to love are spreadsheets, systems, and analyzing people.
2018-07-2832 minTell Me Something Good About RetailPatricia Fripp, CEO & Founder of Fripp, Says Work Smarter, Not Harder [Episode 111]Bob Phibbs interviewed Patricia Fripp, past President of the National Speaker's Association,as she shared her journey from in-demand hairstylist in San Francisco and salon owner to speaker, speech coach, and sales trainer. She shared important rules of customer service, owning your own business and saying words that make you sound less-than-professional.
2018-07-2028 minTell Me Something Good About RetailTony Post, Founder & CEO, On Listening To Your Customers [Episode 110]Bob Phibbs interviews Tony Post, CEO and Founder of Topo Athletic shoes near Boston. He talks about his journey in footwear with Rockport and Vibram and on to his founding his own athletic shoe company as well as how any brand should build customers partnering with brick and mortar stores.
2018-07-1330 minTell Me Something Good About RetailMelanie Tillett, Founder of Tillets On Building A Vast Online Following [Episode 109]Bob Phibbs interviewed Melanie Tillett who, along with her two daughters founded Tippett's in the UK just five years ago. Now with a Facebook following of 50,000, she shares how they've added stores and fans across the world.
2018-07-0629 minTell Me Something Good About RetailPaul LaPonte of Quality Sewing On Finding A Way To Say Yes [Episode 108]Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor interviews Paul LaPonte, President, Quality Sewing with 13 stores across the state of Washington. Paul shares his sales philosophy that it is all about finding a way to say 'yes,' how a sale does not have a finite limit, and why one store does better than another.
2018-06-2922 minTell Me Something Good About RetailLaDonna McCarran of Nook & Cranny Says Manage Your Business From Your Customers' Viewpoint [Episode 107]Bob Phibbs, The Retail Doctor, interviews LaDonna McCarran, Co-Owner The Pantry, Nook & Cranny, Rose & Alice Handcrafted Soaps. She talks about how kismet allowed her to grasp opportunities and run with them, trust your instincts when buying, and how to manage your business from your customers' viewpoint.
2018-06-2225 minTell Me Something Good About RetailTony Drockton of Hammit Handbags On The Impact of Knowing Your Customer [Episode 101]Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor, sat down at Netsuite18 with Hammitt Handbags' Chief Cheerleader Tony Drockton to learn what it takes to be a successful small business in retail in 2018.
2018-05-1126 min