WHFA, NHFA Announce Vegas Seminars

July 10, 2012  by in UnCategorized   

By Home Furnishings Business in Las Vegas on July 11, 2012

The Western Home Furnishings and National Home Furnishings associations have set their Summer Las Vegas Furniture Market educational seminar schedule.

Sponsored by Furniture Wizard Software, the sessions take place in the Retailer Resource Center, located in World Market Center-C496.These complimentary workshops are designed to motivate, educate and accommodate busy buyer schedules while still providing a wealth of quality information. Sessions feature topics such as sales and sales management, social media, design, operations, promotions and more.

A complete listing of the dates and times of WHFA seminars follows:

Sessions on Monday, July 30 include:
* "How to Sell Value Instead of Price," 9-10 a.m., presented by Philip Gutsell, GutSELL & Associates. With and without the advent of social media shopping, competing on price is increasingly becoming a race to the bottom. Most salespeople are ill equipped to deal with these challenges, especially the average to below-average performers. They end up competing only on price instead of establishing value. If they understood Phil Gutsell€™s Value Creation Formula offered in this seminar, they would close more often with larger average tickets. The net result: more volume, more margin and most importantly, more enduring customer relationships.
* "What the Bleep do I Say on Facebook?" 10:30-11:30 a.m., presented by Crystal Viklaitis, SnapRetail. Does Facebook have you feeling lost? Frustrated over what to say to your customers? SnapRetail is here to help. In this session you€™ll learn what content to post and the best time to post it in order to get the most engagement on your page. Worried you don€™t have time in your busy schedule for Facebook? We€™ve got that covered too, with some time saving tips you can use daily.
* "Delegate unto Others or They will Delegate unto You," 12:30-1:30 p.m., presented by Joe Milevsky, JRM Sales & Management. What are the secrets as to why some companies do not achieve the level of success to which they aspire while other companies are able to excel? How do you get everybody in the company on the same page? How do you develop and have everyone respect your lines of communication? Why is it important to have appropriate job descriptions and what should they look like? How do you communicate employee performance and develop their skill sets? Why is it critically important to develop conflict resolution strategies? How can you improve your teams€™ effectiveness in problem resolution? How do you ensure that task completion dates are met?
* "Stop Whining & Step it up!" 2-3 p.m., presented by Brad Huisken, IAS Training. Furniture retailers can no longer sit back and wait for things to happen. With the competition increasing from the mass merchandisers, other retailers, the Internet, catalogs, and other areas where customers can spend their disposable income, retailers today have to learn how to sell themselves and the store. Attend this session and learn the 25 most powerful ways to maximize your sales. Details on how salespeople can help €œbrand€ the store, telephone campaigns, the three responsibilities of a salesperson, handling objections, company stories, customer follow-up, analyzing lost sales and more.
* "Building a Successful CRM for Your Retail Business," 3:30-4:30 p.m., presented by Stu Greene, Storis Management Systems. Customer Relationship Marketing (CRM) has played a significant role in reaching the next generation of consumers and providing the best shopping experience. Building relationships by offering incentives while obtaining referrals can go a long way. With so many channels available, such as eCommerce, coupons, sales events, target mailings, etc., it is important to properly manage and execute efficient CRM with the correct technology in place. Join us in a discussion of how to manage customers effectively by tracking sales and lead follow-up activity. We will also explore how the Internet provides the best channel to reach your customer base, while understanding what your customers really want.

Sessions on Tuesday, July 31, include:
* "New Trends in Store Design€”Capturing the Interest of the Savvy Consumer," 9-10 a.m., presented by Martin Roberts, Martin Roberts Design LLC. Store design has become an important factor in customer satisfaction. Internet savvy customers are a different breed of consumers. With less time for leisurely shopping and easy access to information, customers want to find what they are looking for easily. The opportunity to create one-of-a-kind customized designs can provide a memorable in-store experience that will keep the customer coming back; unique merchandise, moneysaving packages, new concepts like €œdrive-thru€ sales, personal face-to-face attention and virtual imaging are opportunities that online retailers cannot offer. Martin will share stories and €œbefore and after€ photos from completed projects as well as some currently in progress.
* "Are you in the Driver€™s Seat? Directing Traffic to Your Retail Site with Search Engine Marketing (SEM)," 10:30-11:30 a.m., presented by Meghan Wier, MicroD Inc. Why is my Web site not on the first page? What is SEM? What is Google+ Local, and do I really need analytics? These questions and more will be answered in this not-to-be-missed one-hour SEM seminar. This presentation will include general terminology, benefits and the basics of search engine marketing and optimization for the furniture retailer. Focus will be on the core elements of a great Web site strategy including title tags, description, content, link building, blogging and social media. Attendees will walk away with real-life action items they can use today to get their sites found with first-page placement on Google.
* Don€™t Sell, Help them Buy!, 12:30-1:30 p.m., presented by John Egger, Profitability Consulting Group. He who talks the most buys. This seminar will show you how the million dollar writers do it every year. Egger, CEO of Profitability Consulting, will make this the most profitable hour of your time at market.
* "Special Event Campaigns," 2-3 p.m., presented by Ron Cooper, Profit Management Promotions. Many retailers rely on running special events throughout the year to draw the traffic that brings steady sales volume. If you want to get in on the action and start incorporating special events into your advertising campaign, or if you just need fresh ideas, join us for 45 minutes and learn how you can double or triple your sales this year.
* "Building Business through Social Media," 3:30-4:30 p.m., presented by Nicole Johnson, GE Capital. Recent consumer research by GE Capital reveals furniture shoppers spend 89 days on average researching their purchase and visit five unique retailers (three online and two retail stores), totaling seven interactions before they buy. Join us for a conversation with a panel of furniture retailers to learn how they are building business through social media and using online channels to communicate with their customers and drive traffic to their store. We€™ll also share the latest feedback from GE Capital€™s Virtual Consumer Research Community on why they follow specific retailers today. Join the event conversation on Twitter @GoGECapital, #GEBuildsBusiness.

Sessions on Wednesday, August 1, include:
* "Everything Social for Brick-and-Mortar Retailers & the Brands They Carry," 9-10 a.m., presented by Bill Napier, Social4Retail. Our local brick-and-mortar stores are facing some tough challenges, as are the brands they support. We must adapt to what consumers want, where they want it, and how they want to engage with content. Having a Web site is no longer good enough. Retailers must engage the consumer with content€”where they want it, when they want it and how they want it.
With this presentation we will address all the €œrelevant social platforms€ to help retailers and brands engage consumers €œeverywhere relevant€ in this ever-changing retail environment.
* "A Perfect Match: Integrating Social Media & Email Marketing to Increase Foot Traffic," 10:30-11:30 a.m., presented by Crystal Vilkaitis, SnapRetail. We will teach you how to create a cohesive marketing plan using email and social media to drive feet from the street€”and into your store. Find out how to catch casual browsers€™ eyes and make the connection that could lead to you gaining a lifelong customer.
* "How Can We Turn the World Wide Web Price War into the Full Service, Full Margin Local Store Web?" 12:30-1:30 p.m., presented by Andy Bernstein, FurnitureDealer.net. It€™s no secret that the World Wide Web has become a worldwide price war. Anyone with a Web site can now hire a shipping company and do business in your market€”against you. Local stores have higher overhead. Can you turn your showroom, inventory, sales staff, and community involvement into competitive weapons, or will the extra overhead drive you out of business? We will talk about strategies for local stores to compete and win in the new world we operate in. The seminar will share case studies and examples from FurnitureDealer.net€™s relationships with its clients, and will show the new, free DoBizBuzz Furnishing Network.
* "Calculating Actual Delivery Costs," 2-3 p.m., presented by Kevin Truett, Speedy Delivery. Do you know what you€™re spending on deliveries? Let us help. This seminar is completely interactive. As you complete our cost analysis exercise during the seminar, you€™ll go away with real numbers and a good look at what you spend to offer delivery to your customers.
* "Literally Improve Your Bottom Line Overnight," 3:30-4:30 p.m., presented by Dr. Samantha Kurtz, PeopleLution. Forget standard furniture industry practices about how to attract new customers and grow your home furnishings business. Dr. Samantha Kurtz explains how a revolutionary twist on an old idea will better expose your full business potential and maximize your competitive advantage in the marketplace. This radical departure from conventional thinking supplies all the information you will need to develop a multi-year organizational and marketing strategic plan which will easily result in a 25 percent boost to your bottom line. And, all that can be accomplished in one night, in one hour, in your store. Escape ordinary thinking and discover the joy of extraordinary outcomes.

Sessions on Thursday, August 2, include:
* "Perfect Delivery Every Time," 9-10 a.m., presented by John McCloskey, Profitability Consulting Group. The sale is not complete until the delivery is done. This seminar will focus on how to achieve 99 percent plus perfect deliveries. Learn how to delight your customers and lower your costs. With today€™s fuel and labor prices, you cannot afford to miss this seminar.
* "Merchandising Your Store in Today€™s Ever Changing Business Climate," 10:30-11:30 a.m., presented by Bob Moorman, JRM Sales & Management. Does your merchandising engage customers through a better understanding of their preferences and behaviors? How should your merchandise lineups be structured? What does the first 500 square feet near the entrance of your store tell the customer? How are you merchandising your floor; what€™s new? Your product tagging strategy; is it customer friendly? Your customers; what demographics are you merchandising to? Merchandising must enhance the customer experience and create environments that make customers want to buy furniture. They are looking for a connection with someone and something. Do you know your story? Does your staff? How are you connecting with the customer before, during and after the sale? You can no longer just sit back and wait for customers to come to you. How are you engaging with this new consumer, and how are you sharing your unique story to capture that loyal business? The main responsibility of a sales manager is to give his/her people the help, training, and guidance that they need in order to achieve success. Don€™t miss this exciting seminar and learn how to share stories, share success, and stimulate your business and your staff.

For more information about WHFA€™s Retailer Resource Center or the seminar series, please visit www.WHFA.org or call 800.422.3778.