The controversy between the cheap route and brand route of stainless steel decoration materials
Affordable stores, as the name suggests, are more practical and affordable stores. There are no franchised brands and there is no uniform standard for store decoration. However, they have cheap and affordable products and give consumers cheaper products.
Let’s discuss the characteristics and disadvantages of stainless steel cheap stores.
The price is cheap, there is no minimum to sell several brands at the same time
Compared with brand stores, the biggest advantage of cheap stores is their low prices.
Unlike other industries, the stainless steel industry has its particularities, price volatility, stainless steel materials that are difficult to distinguish with the naked eye, low entry requirements, serious homogeneity, and many other problems.
In addition, the operating costs of affordable stores are relatively low, and the overall input costs are much lower than that of brand stores. Moreover, the flexibility of store operations is greater, and you can switch to which brand to sell at any time which brand is good for sale.
This is also a headache for brand stores because the prices of cheap stores are confused and the products are mixed, which has a certain impact on their normal sales. Especially for customers who have no common sense of stainless steel, they must feel that where is cheaper to choose.
In-store marketing strategy, relying on contacts to drive business
Three days of fishing and two days of drying the net is the most common way of operating cheap stores, and this method is undoubtedly a development bottleneck for bosses who want to grow bigger.
As a bargain store, sales often have little to do with the brand, but with the person who runs it.
Most of the operators have been engaged in stainless steel for many years, most of which start from the processing master and have a certain network of contacts.
Through the operation of these connections, stainless steel sales can be brought about.
Doing acquaintance business is currently the sales routine of most stainless steel bargain shops.
There is a saying: “Spiders can sit back and enjoy their achievements, rely on this web.” Similarly, whether stainless steel cheap stores can smoothly tide over the difficult period of the market, they also need to rely on that network of contacts.
Small profits but quick turnover, relying on word-of-mouth maintenance to expand on credit, etc.
The long-lasting and lasting guarantee for this traditional customer expansion model in affordable stores is to build a reputation with honesty.
Because cheap stores do not give consumers a more secure feeling like brand stores, this kind of product quality commitment with customers must rely on personal operating principles to ensure that the requirements for the operators themselves are relatively higher, and only let Customers trust the person who sells the product, and the customer will be more assured to buy the product that this person sells.
This is the so-called business, first be a person, then do things.
These cheap stores sell cheap products that ordinary people can afford, and most of them follow the most traditional customer expansion model.
In order to fight against the brand store, most of the owners also cheated on the disadvantage of credit.
Although we can receive a lot of orders, there is a big crisis behind this condition. Once there are any bad numbers that can’t be collected or the turbulent economic situation, we will immediately close the door and leave.
In fact, this phenomenon of arrears is an early overdraft of credit, which not only increases a lot of risks but also affects the healthy development of the stainless steel industry.
Two obstacles in the development of affordable stores
Low profit, lagging service
The advantages of affordable stores have contributed to its vigorous development, but because of relatively low profits, the service has obviously not kept up.
Many bosses said frankly that because of the uniform price of stainless steel in brand stores, profits are relatively high.
However, low-price stores are relatively low-profit. If more services are added, the store will not continue to operate. The failure of service to keep up also directly affects product sales.
Even if some customers buy the products in the store, if the after-sales problems can not be dealt with, it will directly affect the reputation of the operators. Then the loss of customers is inevitable. After all, cheap stores have meager profits and it is difficult to provide services. Do it a bit.
Customers nowadays are different from before. They want to save the trouble and worry about all products they buy. Service is indeed very important.
Narrow channels, difficult to cover high-end customers
On the whole, the sales channels are relatively single, and the ability to resist risks is also weak.
Low-price stores generally adopt the form of front store and back warehouse, which can save expenses on the one hand, and also have a place for display on the other hand.
These stores have relatively poor anti-risk capabilities. The biggest reason is that the sales channels are too single, there are many uncertainties, and most of the merchants are still in the “business” stage, and there is no professional talent and team to help the store. developing.
This also makes it difficult to expand the customer profile covered by cheap stores, because high-end customers pay more attention to whether the quality of the product matches the hard power and soft power of the brand.
Therefore, such customers are more willing to go to brand stores to buy products.
Where is the future of stainless steel cheap stores?
Upgrade to a brand store
In the process of continuous development of the market, dealers gradually realized some of the problems existing in cheap stores and continued to explore the path of transformation and upgrading.
Under the general environment of China, the ultimate way out is to be a brand. The way to do parity and volume will definitely become narrower. Cheap stores will always gradually transition to flat brand stores, because China’s consumption is rising, and brand awareness is also rising. With continuous improvement, cheap stores must follow the brand’s ideas to find a way out.
Choose a good brand, enjoy the coolness under the big tree, ride the wind and waves with the manufacturer, and win-win together. Personal risks are greatly reduced. As long as you manage with your heart, you can surely make a steady profit.
Pack the storefront to attract customers
The decoration of the store is more beautiful, in addition to stabilizing the existing customers, it can also attract new natural customers!
No matter what kind of customers, they will first choose a beautiful and tidy storefront to take a look at.
The store image affects the customer’s first impression of the brand or product. At the front of the store, or simply placing the product at will, the customer will think that the product is low-end, and the price of the product is naturally difficult to sell.
Any product emphasizes packaging, and customers’ views on the product are often reflected through their impression of the store.
Set up a sales team to improve sales skills
Stainless steel is a basic material for decoration, and the probability of a second purchase or replacement is very low. Therefore, it is normal for consumers to be cautious when purchasing.
Through the visits, we learned that in stores with better market reputation and better sales, they must have their advantages.
For example, regular internal training is conducted, and the training content includes product knowledge, that is, product characteristics, product application scope, etc., and exchanges and shares sales insights and experience with manufacturers.
In addition, regular training will also be conducted on the solution of after-sales problems to improve the overall sales level.
For general stores, due to the small size of the store, some are husband-and-wife stalls or partnership stalls, there is often only two business personnel at most, and there is generally no formal training. Even if there is training, it becomes relatively simple, and the simplicity of this training Unfixedness restricts the development of affordable stores.
Only by constantly meeting the requirements of brand stores, regularly arranging training, learning sales skills, and regularly summarizing and analyzing market conditions, can store sales have room for improvement.
Find the right promotion time to deepen the brand impression
In addition to the influence of store image, sales team, and other factors on sales, in the “no promotion, no sales” market, middle and low-end stores can also actively learn retail promotion methods.
End consumers generally have consumer psychology to take advantage of the small price. Big brands use media promotion and large-scale promotional activities to attract customers, and low-end stores can also hold small-scale promotional activities.
The prices of these products themselves are very low. Generally, few merchants do activities to reduce prices, and they are basically at wholesale prices.
In terms of marketing strategy, we can always keep up with the pace of big brands. On the one hand, promotional activities can attract more customers.
On the other hand, you can expand your influence and increase customers’ impression of the store.
After-sales value-added services enhance word-of-mouth
Of course, some merchants have already begun to adjust their thinking, changing from selling products to selling services, and services are getting more and more attention from merchants.
In addition to big promotions, some dealers choose to improve their services to retain potential customers or give back to old customers to enhance their reputation.
Sales are not just about selling products, but also paying attention to after-sales service for customers.
Once the product is sold, it is the potential spread of the brand, enhancing customer satisfaction, and word of mouth will slowly rise.