My next month of being open was January and there was no history of the store to compare to. Sales can drop a lot after Christmas. The week between Christmas and New Years was busy but mostly lottery tickets from Christmas gifts being turned in. I have decided I may take vacation this time each year if summer months are alot busier since kids are out of school anyway. The weeks that followed became slower. We did not have a harsh winter here this year so weather was not a problem. I guess everyone was just recovering from the holidays.
I did maintain day to day customers but not the volume as before Christmas. I had to get another load of fuel oil and that took my any income I would have made that month. Thankful again for warm days so I didn't use as much fuel oil this winter. I did make a plan to buy some all summer so the tank would be full for next year and I can control when the payment is due. Also I can use a payment plan now that I am returning customer with fuel company. Getting established enough to have credit takes time since so many businesses open and close quickly. I did make a plan to go for the long haul, my uncle reminded me when I first opened that no one opens a business and makes a back up plan to close if it doesn't work out. Dream big and go for the long haul, so I continue on.
With the slower days, I started to do some marketing research and make a marketing plan to use for the new year. At this time, I started a book which was very helpful for motivation. It is called Up, Down, or Sideways by Mark Sanborn and it was free download on Kindle. It talked a lot about barriers in life, like not knowing how, knowing but not believing, believing you can't, you know and do it, and you know and make it second nature. Business is alot like that. Other great points and it helps you understand your self so you can move the business the direction you want to. You measure things by, results like money, recognition like awards, recreation like time off, and relationships like interacting with customers. This helps you be clear about what is important to you and find your niche. The book is also about the economy being up, down, or sideways and how to adjust yourself to the market.
I began to look at all ways I can bring in more customers or reach more people. Before this plan I was using basic newspapers, flyers, signage, and word of mouth. All of the media I mentioned are ways of marketing and great things but you still . I did have a few websites that picked up the store but nothing major on the web. I wrote my marketing plan much like a business plan and researched estimates on cost of investment and expected returns.
"Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds that you plant" Robert Louis Stevenson
My next segment I will go over my seeds I planted and results.
