3 Sales Tools to Increase Seasonal Margins
To say the retail industry is competitive is, well, an understatement. Therefore, retailers are finding it more and more difficult to provide value, particularly during the busy holiday season.
Margins are obviously important, so how can retailers increase them during the hectic holiday hustle? Whether you’re selling consumer electronics, furniture or home appliances, here are three additional sales tips that can give your seasonal numbers a bump and make your holidays a little jollier:
1. Offer consumer financing. The holidays can be expensive, and consumer financing can be a great option for many of your customers. Allowing them pay to off purchases in smaller chunks can lessen pain in consumer pocketbooks and help your business sell more. And with a variety of payment options, consumer financing often makes buyers more comfortable with larger purchases. They can make large holiday purchases and avoid worry by picking a payment schedule that works with their budget.
2. Complement financing with credit protection products. Credit protection products are a perfect match with consumer financing, and offering personalized options makes them even more appealing to customers. Here are a few credit protection options and how customers can use them:
- Involuntary Unemployment Insurance: covers payments during unemployment.
- Credit Disability Insurance: covers payments during prolonged injury or illness.
- Credit Life Insurance: covers payments in the event of death.
Having these additional coverage options will help ease worry and let your customers feel secure. Plus, you won’t have defaulted loans to worry about because your customers are covered.
3. Boost consumer confidence with identity theft support. Identity theft is stressful any time of the year, but especially during heavy holiday spending. Therefore, why not offer identity theft support to calm your customers’ nerves and get them back on track for seasonal shopping fun? Credit monitoring can only do so much and, if the unthinkable happens, customers want peace of mind that can diffuse a potentially high-stress situation. Identity theft support can do just that.
With the right preparations, the holidays can be a very jolly time for retailers. Try these three additional purchase options to make the season even merrier for both you and your customers.
Kevin Cundiff is vice president of retail for Fortegra, a subsidiary of Tiptree Financial Inc. Fortegra is a single-source insurance services company that offers a range of consumer protection options.
