Tag: tools

business tips, customer experience, decoration tips

Tales From the (Unprecedented) Trenches: These Shops Survived and Thrived

Last spring during the middle of COVID-19, a lightning strike hit Say It In Stitches in Fort Lauderdale, FL. Unfortunately, the bolt from the blue took out the contract embroidery shop’s commercial surge protector and two of its four 15-head machines. “This happened just as our state was opening up and customer demand was firming up,” says Alex Fernandez, president of Say It In Stitches.

The shop’s domestic machine parts supplier sent Fernandez a long list of parts, like circuit boards, encoders, servo motors and more, so they could identify and fix the problems. “It took us two months, along with a team of local and remote technical experts, to isolate the issues on each machine and to source the hard-to-find replacement parts,” Fernandez says. “We even had to go as far as South America to get a needed part from a used machine.”

In the meantime, the Say It In Stitches team didn’t miss a beat. Fernandez’s staff turned out jobs intended for 15-head machines on four-heads and even single-heads. “They worked all kinds of crazy overtime hours and weekends so our clients wouldn’t be affected by this event,” he says. “This is a testimonial to the lengths we’ll go not to let our clients down, especially during a pandemic.”

If the post-pandemic’s here and now has got your head spinning, you’re not alone. That’s why we asked embroidery and print shops that survived and thrived during the past year to share their success stories. 

You’re about to be inspired by their lessons learned around ecommerce, switching niches, online selling print on demand, and more—and how you can use these strategies and tactics to be more successful this year.

Continue reading “Tales From the (Unprecedented) Trenches: These Shops Survived and Thrived” →

business tips, customer experience, trend watch

Yes, You Can Hit #NewRevenueGoals With Virtual Selling

2020 might have been the year of the #ZoomCall, but smart decorators are making 2021 the year of #VirtualSelling. Did you know that 62% of salespeople say it’s a challenge for them to sell virtually? Since online selling isn’t going anywhere fast, it’s time to learn the ins and outs of apparel and hard goods selling in cyber space like a pro.

When buyers interact with salespeople in a virtual space, there are four factors that have the biggest sway, the RAIN Group reports, on whether they purchase or not:

  • Leading a comprehensive discovery of their concerns, wants and needs (71%)
  • Showing what’s possible or how to solve a problem (68%)
  • Simply listening (68%)
  • Making the ROI on their purchase crystal clear (68%)

“A big part of virtual selling is building trust,” says Satya Purna, CEO of ZAG Studios. “Take time at the start of the meeting to build rapport, understand what’s going on in their life and build a personal connection—before talking about business.”

Continue reading “Yes, You Can Hit #NewRevenueGoals With Virtual Selling” →

business tips, customer experience, social media strategy

Here’s How to Create an Exceptional Customer Experience

Did you know that 90% of Americans use customer service as a  deciding factor in whether or not they continue to do business with your company? There’s no better time than right now to take a look at how customers experience your shop—and whether they order on repeat, and refer others to you.

The good news is that 73% of companies with “above average” customer experiences perform better financially than their competitors, the Temkin Group says. 

Need one more reason to take a closer look at your customer service inner workings? On average, companies that invest in their customer experience also report an improvement in employee engagement by about 20 percent.

As you review the way your shop interacts with customers, here are six questions to brainstorm with your team.

Continue reading “Here’s How to Create an Exceptional Customer Experience” →