12 Volt Advice For Slow Times

By James Chevrette

With many retailers such as Home Depot, Walmart and Best Buy reporting or forecasting a slowdown in sales, what should car audio specialists do in tough times?  We sought answers from some established retailers who have each weathered at least six economic slowdowns over the past 40 years. Here they offer seven suggestions to newer retail store owners.

1. Get a new skill or certification. A veteran retailer on the East Coast got an NEMA certification for marine installations. For one week,  the retailer was trained in an installation standard to install and maintain marine electronics.  Then he landed a $20,000 order to install a radar system for law enforcement. The client told him the local marine certified shop had not even responded to law enforcement with a quote in over four weeks.
2. Leverage your hobbies and relationships. If you’re part of the local Yacht Club, Car Club, Building Association or School PAC, make sure these organizations know what services you provide.  It’s easier to sell to people who like and trust you!
3. With social media, if an issue arises, deal with it right away. If your shop is slower than normal, negative comments or reviews will slow it down even more.  Veteran retailers suggest reaching out to every customer after every installation/sale and asking for feedback on their experience. And ask for a review on Google, Facebook etc.
4. Respect a customer that has come into your store. Go out to their car, ask them questions about why they came INTO the store. Have an amazing product demonstration ready. Show them you are better than online sources for information and really get a feel for the customer.
5. Make sure you have inventory on hand. Long-established dealers said this is the real reason they are successful. If you tell the customer, it’s 3-5 days away, they will take your information and buy elsewhere.
6. Work with your sales representatives to balance your inventory. This doesn’t mean ship all your inventory back; I am referring to sending back overstocked items so you can devote those funds toward holes in your inventory or new products. I cannot state enough, if you have it in stock, it increases your chance of closing a sale by 10X, said one retailer.
7. Don’t automatically rush to take advantage of government loans or bridge loans from lenders. It might help in the short term, but it can really affect you in the long run. You might need an injection of cash flow now, but the interest and loan maturity dates might hurt you more if business remains slow.

I really enjoyed speaking to these five retailers.  I found myself amazed on the different ways retailers have overcome the slow times. The most important takeaway of this experience was how NONE of them complained about business, they just found ways to keep moving their business forward regardless of the current economic climate.

I chose to keep the retailers’ names private, but if you have any questions for them, I will forward your questions or comments.

James Chevrette (pictured above)

James Chevrette has been a territory manager for over 8 years with Trends Electronics, a Canadian electronics distributor, but he never forgets his roots.  He has worked in an installation bay, in R&D in manufacturing, and personally trained thousands of people across Canada. Through his dealing with national accounts, regional chain stores, and relationships with brick and mortar independent retailers, he offers a unique perspective about business growth opportunities. He started a non-profit blog in 2015 to educate people within and outside his industry. It has since reached across North America and into Europe with over a million posts read.