I mentioned preparing for Black Friday and my guest on this latest This Week in Small Business video, John “Colderice” Lawson, was ready to go.
So, without further adieu, here are John Lawson’s top tips for preparing for Black Friday …
Don’t Run Out of Inventory
“You do not want to run out of inventory,” he says. “It sounds obvious but a lot of us don’t take the time to look back to last year and see what our #1 selling items were and the things that we may have lost inventory on because a lost sale is just straight up lost money. You’ve got to make sure you have everything stocked.”
A Case of the Mondays
OK, I need to set this up. John says that the Monday after Cyber Monday will actually be a bigger Monday than Cyber Monday. And the same can be said for the Monday after that … all after Black Friday, of course.
“All the way up to something that’s called Green Monday,” he says, “which is usually two weeks of Mondays before the Christmas holiday. Green Monday … that was made up by ebay, but people have gotten used to shopping on that day.”
Why are we already talking Black Friday? Well, there were two posts this week on Small Business Trends on the best deals your small business can get on Black Friday and Cyber Monday and another on preparing for two of the biggest shopping days of the year.
So, we had to talk about this. And to find out when John thinks is the best time to roll out your best deal and the rest of our conversation, check out the latest This Week in Small Business video above. Get future updates on new video by subscribing to the Small Business Trends YouTube channel today.
And for the rest of the week in small business headlines, check out our news roundup below:
Economy
Prices on Small Businesses Reach a 10 Year High, Report Says
The Third Quarter 2018 Insight Report from BizBuySell.com reveals yet another record when it comes to the selling price of small businesses. BizBuySell Q3 2018 Insight Report According to the report, this has allowed small business owners to ask and receive a record amount of money.
Finance
Stripe Teams with Twilio Making it Easier for Small Businesses to Take Payments Over the Phone
Stripe, an online payment processing service, and Twilio, a cloud communications platform, have announced a partnership they say will make it easier for small businesses to take payments over the phone. That partnership has taken the form of new payment service from Twilio called <Pay>.
Management
Average American Works 38.8 Hours Per Week, How Does this Compare to Most Entrepreneurs?
Americans work more hours than other industrial nations, but which states in the country work the longest hours? A new research from Business.org has revealed the states that put in the most and least hours on the job every week. The hours between the most and least hours is just a little over four hours, which brings the national average to 38.8 hours per week.
Small Business Loans
First Small Business Truth-in-Lending Act Passed in California
If we told you a new law now requires lenders to tell small business loan applicants the annualized rate they’d pay for financing, you might be surprised that it wasn’t already standard practice. That new law came from a bill known as CA SB 1235 which received overwhelming bipartisan support.
Small Business Operations
Attention: 2018 Holiday Shipping Deadlines for Your Small Business
The 2018 holiday shopping season is upon us, and for businesses, it means keeping a close eye on the holiday shipping deadlines. Not knowing the shipping deadlines for the USPS, UPS, and FedEx could be a costly mistake.
Social Media
Facebook Seeks Acquisition of Cybersecurity Firm, Will This Make Your Business Page Safer?
Sources inside Facebook say the company is currently in acquisition talks with more than one major — but unnamed — cyber-security company, according to a report from The Information. Reporters spoke with four anonymous sources who refused to name specific companies but claimed that a deal could be struck as early as the end of 2018, The Information reported Sunday.
Shoppable Ads Give Ecommerce Businesses a New Way to Promote on Snapchat
Snapchat (NYSE: SNAP) has introduced a feature potentially of great interest to small business marketers — in particularly online sellers. The Shoppable Snap Ads feature is a new way to promote products on the social channel and is already making a difference for some ecommerce businesses.
Technology Trends
For Creative Businesses, Adobe Upgrades Photoshop CC for iPads, Launches Premiere Rush CC
Adobe Max is the premier conference for creatives. And with Max 2018, Adobe (NASDAQ: ADBE) didn’t disappoint as the company revealed new products and services for improving the way creatives work across different mediums.
When I Work App Unveils New Service Called Hire
Hiring for the holiday season has already begun, which makes the unveiling of a new service called Hire from workforce scheduling app When I Work a timely solution for small businesses. When I Work Hire The company says businesses with hourly workers can now hire and onboard their next candidate on their mobile device.
LG’s New Smartphone Has an Impressive 5 Cameras for Influencers — Including Your Business?
Why are smartphone manufacturers putting so much emphasis on cameras? Because videos and images have become the medium of communication in today’s digital ecosystem, especially social media. This explains why the LG V40 ThinQ has five cameras, yes 5! According to LG, the V40 ThinQ has been designed from the ground up with an all-encompassing smartphone camera experience.
Fiverr Introduces Online Courses with New Learn Feature
The variety of services freelancers provide is growing, and with the addition of Fiverr Learn they will be able to provide e-learning to a global user base on the Fiverr platform too. Introducing Fiverr Learn With Fiverr Learn, the company will allow a new set of freelancers to deliver lessons for in-demand upskilling along with freelance training.
New Google Pixel 3 Smartphone Delivers AI Features But May Be Pricey for Small Businesses
After a number of leaks and much speculation, there were few surprises about the appearance of the new Google Pixel 3 when the company finally unveiled it recently. But as with previous versions, the new Pixel really shines on the inside. The question is whether it is worth the investment for small businesses.
Verizon Makes a Hologram Call with 5G, How Might Your Business Benefit?
In a move designed to remind everyone 5G is almost upon us, Verizon (NYSE: VZ) allowed its network to be used for making the world’s first holographic communication at the annual Mobile World Congress Americas.
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