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More Technology Ahead (December 15th, 2009)
Global Language Monitor has named Twitter (www.twitter.com) the Top Word of 2009. (It topped "Obama," "H1N1," and "stimulus.") Two years ago, few people had ever heard of it and now tens of millions of people tweet daily. My, how times change quickly, eh?
Changes are afoot at retail and many of them are technology-based, too. Since the invention of the cash register, retailers have tried to automate and streamline the sales-and-cash-capture process. Less time spent writing up, retrieving and packaging an order means more time and attention left for guiding shoppers through the decision-making process. More, better and easier-to-use point-of-sale equipment leads to better customer experiences and more sales.
Another change is coming in interactive display equipment. We’re going to see increasingly sophisticated shopper assistance tools to help both the clerk and the shopper find what they want. As power solutions get better, costs come down and kiosks become more robust, we’ll see more deployment. Yes, this may mean fewer clerks but, by the same token, it may also mean more accurate and timely information for the shopper. And that will mean more sales.
One less visible technology has already fundamentally changed what we buy: information. In the not-too-distant past, most stores relied on buyers to choose products and then guestimate potential demand. Buyers with a sense of what people want and the ability to predict sales were tough to find so stores often found themselves hamstrung with not enough of what customers wanted and too much of what the buyers thought they wanted. Today, sophisticated forecasting tools, real-time sales data and lean, speedy manufacturing capabilities mean that the products you want to buy are there when you want to buy them. And that means more sales.
Better technology tools arrive in-store every day. It will continue to make the selling/shopping intersection better for everyone with each passing year, lead to greater satisfaction with the shopping experience and, you guessed it, more sales.
Ad Spending Shrinks (December 9th, 2009)
According to the Dec 7, 2009 WSJ (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704825504574582310496271156.html), US ad spending shrank about 15% last year. Due to fewer store openings and general economic activity, my sense is that store fixture and POP display spending also shrank at a double-digit clip in 2009. What does the future hold for all forms of advertising?
The only segment that grew substantially – 11% - was online advertising. The biggest losers were print – newspapers and magazines. Clearly some media buys have shifted from physical media to the metaphysical web media. This historic shift won’t be reversed. Have dollars moved from in-store permanently, too? No. And I’ll tell you why.
Especially during the holiday gift-buying season, there’s much talk of clicks-v-bricks. Though billions will be bought online, many more billions are being bought by people who want to interact with the product literally not virtually. How thick are those chenille mittens? How heavy is that coat? How does the size of that sweater run? The primary point of purchase remains the actual store, the only place where the product, potential purchaser and the cash come in close proximity to one another.
Ad spending shrank last year and may not recover for some years. In-store advertising spending, however, will rebound substantially in 2010 as shoppers seek the best value, marketers seek the best ROI for their money, and retailers employ their growing arsenal of sensory tools to attract, educate and convert shoppers into buyers.
Be Thankful (December 1st, 2009)
With Thanksgiving just past, I hope that each of you took time to consider the things for which you are thankful. I did. Beyond my family, friends, health and the good fortune of being born in America, I thought of several things for which I’m thankful.
I’m thankful for my work. As bad as the economy has been, with cutbacks across the board and clients that have reacted to stress with varying degrees of civility, I very much appreciate that we were called upon to help some of them in special ways. I believe we strengthened some client relationships because, though the volumes weren't there, we were. During this wild ride, Tusco has not lost a single client and has welcomed some wonderful new ones to the fold.
I’m thankful for our associates. I can't decide whether it's scarier being an owner of a manufacturing company or an employee in times like these. Not seeing all the potholes that we’re dodging can help you sleep better. Throughout the bumpy ride, our associates have hung tough. They have accepted the uncertainty of the economy with fearlessness. They have stepped up and performed at an even higher level than before.
I’m thankful for our partners – suppliers, bankers, clients, even competitors. It’s been a tough year for most of them, too. In each case, they’ve stuck with us. We’ve stood with our clients as they’ve weathered their own storms. We’ve collaborated and commiserated with competitors as we each look for the best way through the swampy economy. All of these folks trust that we will overcome the short term challenges and prosper in the long run.
I’m thankful for challenges. If everything we did was easy, everyone would do it. In the challenges, we adapt and grow and lay the foundation for future success. Creating effective merchandising equipment that’s easy to install and stock, equal to the rigors of life in-store, and congruent with the brand image that our client wishes to convey isn’t easy but it is important.
What a blessing it is to have the freedom to tackle our challenges head on, use our experience and other resources to overcome, and work with wonderful clients, associates and partners. We indeed have much for which to give thanks.
Are We There Yet? (November 15th, 2009)
One of the busiest travel times for Americans is Thanksgiving. Since the time of Conestoga wagons crossing the Great Plains and even on the Nina, Pinta & Santa Maria 500+ years ago, I’ll bet parents have heard those four words coming from the back seat. Everyone’s eager to get to where they are going.
The same is true for business. We’ve been slogging through the morass of a deep recession for well over a year and everyone wants to know when we’re safely beyond it. Economists tell us that the official recession has ended and we’re now "growing." Hmmm. Though true, that’s tough to swallow when so many millions – including some of our own – are out of work.
Still, there are reasons for hope. Here are some rays of sunshine:
- Fewer people filing new jobless claims.
- Leaner companies have refocused on what they do best.
- Americans are saving & being more prudent in their spending decisions.
- Retail sales are growing again.
At Tusco, we’ve seen a slow but steady increase in orders over the past several months and see the trend continuing right into the new year. Clients are gearing up after, in some cases, largely sitting out 2009.
It’s really no surprise. The in-store marketing arena often leads the way out of recession because it’s one of the most cost-effective and quickest ways to boost product sales. And Millennials – those folks age 20-30 – are making more decisions in-store than their older siblings and parents, according to a new study by Information Resources just highlighted in Brandweek magazine. (http://www.brandweek.com/bw/content_display/news-and-features/packaged-goods/e3ia626985c88bb68721ddddf06b841b682) "They may be time and money compressed, but they live in this 24-hour 'on' lifestyle, and so, for most Millennials, it’s more about getting it done rather than getting the best deal," Sean Seitzinger, IRI’s SVP of thought leadership said.
Brands and retailers alike face ongoing challenges but they’ll increasingly use resources like Tusco Display to overcome them in 2010 because we know all about "getting it done" in-store.
Culture of Urgency (November 1st, 2009)
One of the things that we pride ourselves on is our nimbleness. What does this mean though? This is not about wild, out-of-control speed which harms our ability to be a reliable partner for our clients. Instead, the goal is speed + results. We have a strong sense of urgency about getting the most important things done immediately.
A recent example is a client who contacted us on one day and visited us from out of state the next day. We engineered a solution for them overnight and they ordered a prototype two days later. We built, tested, personally delivered and installed the solution – it involved steel tubing, wire, acrylic and sheet metal – within days.
Having the right equipment, capacity and processes (e.g., lasercutting, CNC routing, powdercoating, tube forming) allowed us to respond nimbly. But it’s more than that. At Tusco, we understand our client’s urgency and we take it on as our own. Yes, we’re eager to satisfy the client – even delight them. But we understood the need and acted to meet it on our client’s terms. In this case, they had an important retailer meeting and needed to have the final piece – the custom merchandising equipment – on-hand to impress the retailer. And they did.
Owning our clients’ urgency is part of what working with Tusco delivers. It’s also part of our culture. When we take care of our clients, they can become clients for life. And, in some cases, great friends, too.
Rough Seas (October 15th, 2009)
As a long-time industry participant, I have developed relationships with many clients, suppliers and fellow producers of custom displays and store fixtures. I maintain a number of those relationships, giving me a broader view of the at-retail industry than some others may not have.
There has always been an ebb and flow to this industry. Lately, it’s been a lot more "ebb" and a lot less "flow." Consumer confidence has been clobbered by sea changes in the housing market, job markets, retirement accounts and banking. We’ve weathered the longest recession in memory. Americans in particular have begun to save more and spend less – good for the long haul but tough for the retail sector and brand marketers in the near term. As consumers skimp and save, so must the brands and retailers.
Those brand marketers and retailers have pulled their horns in, cut staffs and budgets and generally have been reluctant to move forward boldly in 2009. One exception has been how they have invested in social marketing tools like Facebook and Twitter and are learning how to better connect with consumers beyond the store. Again, this is probably good in the long run but has meant less attention and money to spend on their at-retail presence.
All of this has caused havoc in the advertising, promotion and marketing industries and created sales declines among most point-of-purchase companies. Some have ceased operations and more are likely to follow.
As I walk store aisles, however, I note several clues to the future:
- People still buy most products in-store. About 90% of all spending is still done there.
- Decisions are still made in the aisle. On average, 70% of all purchase decisions are made in the store.
- Shoppers only become buyers when they find what they want. If a product isn’t presented, well, everyone loses: shopper, brand & retailer.
- Retailers want their stores to look good and work well. Permanent fixtures typically trump temporary except for short-term promotions, e.g., Super Bowl.
- Technology is coming. As it becomes more economical and robust, we’ll see more tech used in meeting shoppers’ in-store needs.
In other words, shoppers, brands and retailers still depend on good at-retail experiences to make things happen. Proctor & Gamble calls it the First Moment of Truth. As long as that’s true, there will be a place for companies like Tusco Display. We understand the retail environment, know how to design and cost-effectively produce in-store solutions that are easy to install, inexpensive to maintain and highly shoppable, and we do it all nimbly and reliably right here in Ohio.
The economy remains unsteady and the seas in which we all compete are awash in challenges. We’re working hard to keep the ship on course as we help our clients enjoy successful "aisle" cruises and happy
Hide & Seek(Oct 1st, 2009)
Ever get frustrated while shopping in a store for a specific product that you cannot find? Yep, me too. Actually, some stores purposely redesign their traffic flow every few years so you get thrown off your normal patterns and, hopefully, find new (and more) products to buy. Stores want us comfortable but not so comfortable that we only see and buy what we’ve always bought.
One way to combat the challenge of finding stuff is to ask store personnel. Some stores do this well – but most do not because people costs are their biggest expense. Want to increase profitability? Cut staff and staff hours. But where does that leave the stranded shopper? Most stores provide signs but will that help you find those capers for a new entrée or crushed graham crackers for that banana cream pie you intend to make? Probably not.
A Drury University graduate developed a clever solution: Aisle 411. You call a number, tell what store you’re in, state what product you need, and you’ll get a text message telling you (with 90-95% accuracy) where to find it. http://ozarksfirst.com/common/printerfriendly.php?cid=181481
Honestly, I don’t see this as a likely Store Wars survivor but it’s yet another example of using technology to make shopping easier and better. We’re only going to see more of this as tech applications become more powerful, more dependable, more useful, more universal and less expensive.
Fertile Fields (Sept 15th, 2009)
At least here in Ohio, it’s been a great growing season for many grains – corn, soybeans, wheat. We’ve enjoyed one of the most pleasant summers in memory and so have the crops.
At Tusco, we primarily work the fields of custom fixtures and permanent displays. We plant seeds; water, fertilize and weed the rows; keep predators from eating the crops; and gather the goods as they mature. There’s a natural cycle to this growing process but, increasingly, we see that cycle speeding up. Unlike many others, we’re prepared to cope with the need for speed.
Recessions routinely upend industries. Downturns "are very fertile fields of opportunity," says Nancy Koehn, a business historian and professor at Harvard Business School. Winners are the ones better at "walking into the space vacated by rivals," she says, and at tracking how customers behave in tough times. See her article from the Wall Street Journal
Our brand and retailer clients have been coping with seismic changes in their markets and therefore so have those of us in the display realm. Clients have definitely been behaving differently for the past year. Some of those behaviors – slow decisions, reduced quantities, fewer projects – are now turning into "Yikes, I need them! How soon can I have it?"
We have seen some other farmers in our same fields vacate the business altogether this year. I believe that we’ll see more companies leave because it’s tough to compete unless you’re truly competent. Tusco is.
Women & Shopping (August 31st, 2009)
Women control almost $12 trillion in consumer spending – 65% of the global total. By 2028, according to the Boston Consulting Group (www.bcg.com), they will control 72% of worldwide consumer spending.
Contrary to stereotype, the BCG survey of 12,000+ women in 22 countries found that only 5% say that shopping makes them extremely happy. By contrast, they report that pets (42%), sex (27%) and food (19%) make them extremely happy.
Shopping is not easy. Travel, parking, checkout lines, searching, finding knowledgeable help in-store, spending money – these create stress for many people and keep the shopping experience from rivaling other activities for extreme enjoyment.
That’s why creating the best possible at-retail experience is so important. The brand, the retailer and the merchandising equipment designer and producer are crucial teammates in meeting the needs of shoppers. From wayfinding to product selection, from pricing to product performance, from store operations to customer satisfaction, great point-of-purchase advertising is a difference maker.
Fast Change (August 1st, 2009)
Is it me or is the world changing faster than ever? Perhaps it’s the aggressive agenda of the Obama Administration or maybe it’s the tremendous turmoil in the business community over the past two years or perhaps it’s the rapid-fire needs of our clients.
Whatever the case, change has always been a part of life and a part of business life, too. Over the past century, consider how travel, communication, entertainment, health care, warfare, even farming has changed.
How much change has occurred just in the past 20 years? According to the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation (www.ofbf.org), each American farmer feeds 129 people vs a few dozen only several decades ago. How many of us had cell phones in 1999? How about now? Google. Ebay. China. Hybrid cars. Facebook. Twitter. It can make your head spin – but just wait. How will things change in just the next decade? Fasten your seatbelts!
That’s why nimbleness is crucial in our way of work @ Tusco Display. We must respond with lightning speed and still get everything just right. Having the right equipment makes such nimbleness possible but there’s an even-more important ingredient: mindset. Tusco has it.
Like it or not, stores will continue to change and so will shopping habits. As at-retail marketing experts, we stay abreast of this fast-changing world. Similarly, as experts in the design and production of custom, permanent displays and fixtures, we must also keep current on materials, processes, equipment and techniques. It’s not easy but it is essential.
A century ago, driving a horseless carriage at 20MPH was considered reckless. Today, failing to drive 65MPH on the highway can be dangerous. Accept that the speed of change will only continue to accelerate. To stay in the race, Tusco will keep changing, improving and evolving to meet the ever-faster pace of change in the world.
Independence (July 1st, 2009)
Americans celebrate our national birthday on July 4 every year. It’s a time of BBQs, picnics, family gatherings and time away from work. In all of the fun, we sometimes forget what we’re actually celebrating: the huge risk our forefathers and foremothers took in declaring our independence from the most powerful nation on earth, Great Britain.
Marketers face a similar "dependence" challenge with their retailer clients. There is a greater concentration of retail power in the hands of companies like Home Depot, Walmart, CVS, Macy’s, Office Depot, McDonalds, and Kroger than anytime in the past 50 years. Smaller, local players have been pushed out of many of these industries as global reach, Wall Street financing, logistical wizardry and massive buying power have supplanted the mom-and-pop retailers.
This isn’t all bad. In fact, the American consumer has benefited handsomely as these behemoths have strode the earth in search of the very best deal to resell to us. Many communities have suffered as their downtown shopping districts have shrunken but we – the consuming public – have voted those smaller, less independent retailers out of business with our feet and our dollars.
Years ago, brand marketers ruled the roost. "Soap operas" got their name because companies like P&G sponsored them, creating demand for their products. Retailers were just the place you went to acquire the products you saw advertised on network TV.
My, how the world has changed, eh? Today, retailers largely call the tune and brand marketers pay the piper. One of the few significant ways for them to assert their independence – to set their products apart from the me-too crowd of competing products – is with powerful point-of-purchase programs that touch the shopper as they shop. We support that independence with our ingenuity, our reliability and our nimbleness. God bless America and the in-store marketing world!
Graduation Season (June 1st, 2009)
Author and business owner Harvey Mackay tells the story of a class of college students who arrived for their final exam. The professor announced that she had divided the questions into three categories and explained that students must choose one category for their questions.
The first category of questions was the most difficult and worth 50 points. The second set was somewhat easier and worth 40 points. The third group – the easiest – was worth 30 points.
The professor graded the papers without even reading the answers. Students who chose to answer questions in the hardest category were given As. Students who chose category two were given Bs and those settling for the easiest were given Cs.
Naturally, some of the students were frustrated with the professor's grading scheme. The professor simply explained: "I wasn't testing your knowledge. I was testing your aim."
The point? Aim high. Have dreams that inspire you to go beyond your limits. Show me someone who doesn't dream about the future and I'll show you someone who doesn't know where he or she is going.
At Tusco, we constantly look for clients who aim high and know where they are going. Marketers content to let their products languish on shelves, satisfied to present their products like all of their competitors, and uneasy about investing in the in-store experience of their prospective buyers are not the clients we seek. Instead, our clients know that most purchase decisions are made by consumers in the only place where the person, product and predisposition to purchase co-exist: in the aisle.
The "A" clients look for "A" suppliers who can deliver on their promises. Tusco always aims to be at the head of the class.
Manufacturing Trends (May 15th, 2009)
I’m speaking at a Point of Purchase Advertising International (POPAI) conference in Chicago next month on production trends in at-retail displays.
The world has changed a great deal in my 30 years of industry involvement, especially the last ten. Here are some of the key points:
· We live in a global supply chain economy. We must be better at what we do than ever before – and continually improving – because the world has shrunk. Everybody needs local (fast, custom, high-touch), near-shore (lower cost, slower delivery, fewer touches) and offshore (least cost, longest delivery cycle, least touchable) options to meet varying needs.
· Communication technology speeds up everything. Since the ‘70’s, we’ve gone from postal delivery to FedEx to facsimiles to email to Twitter.
· Having the right manufacturing technology is crucial to competitiveness. If you’re not upgrading, you’re degrading.
· Squeezing out non-value-added processes is key to profitability. Lean/Six Sigma and other techniques are invaluable tools.
· You ignore the integration of technology into the finished product at your own risk. RFID, touch screens, interactivity – these are all growth drivers. As manufacturers, we must embrace the components for our clients.
· There’s a great deal of manufacturing turnover as companies who have chosen not to continually improve have sealed their own doom. You can’t do what you’ve always done and hope to survive.
· Reliability, speed, quality, and engineering expertise – these are characteristics many clients seek but often do not find in manufacturers. They can find them @ Tusco.
Growing Relationships (May 1st, 2009)
According to the National Gardening Association, 7 million more American households plan to grow their own fruits, vegetables, herbs, or berries in 2009 than in 2008 – a 19% increase. Sales of vegetable seeds and transplants are up 30% this year at the nation’s largest seed company.
Last year, American amateur gardeners spent $2.5 billion on seeds, plants, fertilizer, tools, and other supplies to grow their own food. The NGA estimates that an average "well-maintained food garden" yields a $500 return on investment.
I mention this for several reasons. First, growing your own can make economic sense, provide good nutrition and offer valuable lessons for your family.
Second, this represents an interesting – and positive – change in American consuming habits due to the recent, steep economic decline. Tough times can lead to better, simpler lives.
Finally, know that Tusco pays attention to consumer and shopping trends because they can lead to new opportunities for us and because we are an extra set of eyes and ears for our clients. We ask ourselves, “How might this trend impact a client who makes and sells gardening tools?” We wonder if they should look for new channels and vehicles through which to market their goods. If consumers are buying less fresh produce, how should the point-of-purchase change to meet these changing preferences? How can we assist both consumer goods companies and retailers in responding to this trend?
We always seek to put our clients first. Seeing the world through their eyes and shoppers’ eyes makes us more valuable merchandising advisors. By putting our clients’ interests first, they may keep Tusco first in their minds and hearts, too.
Two Point Three Seconds (April 15th, 2009)
That’s how long the average consumer spends making a brand decision in-store. A study by Miller Zell, an Atlanta-based retail consultancy, reaffirms research that has consistently shown the immediacy and importance of the point of purchase. Get it right IN the store or your product won’t move OUT of the store. In this study, they tracked the purchase behavior of 1000 shoppers recently and also learned a few other things:
+ 65% of shoppers make a list before shopping.
+ 90% shoppers make impulse buys.
+ Generation Y (born 1961-81) are more influenced by in-store efforts than other generations.
Curt Johnson, SVP for the consumer industries division of Miller Zell, told Marketing Daily, "We were surprised. Because while we've been hearing so much lately about how careful shoppers are being, making lists and doing research on purchases beforehand, there's still a lot of impulse buying."
Getting it right in the store makes a very real difference in the sale of products at retail. Whether a purchase is strictly impulse (e.g., candy bar at the checkout) or highly planned, (e.g., washing machine), how the products are displayed impacts how they sell. Providing the right merchandising equipment is what Tusco does and does well. Isn’t it great to know that what we do matters?
Tyranny of Choice (April 1st, 2009)
I’m turning “freedom of choice” on its head when I write this headline. We benefit from choices but at some point that benefit becomes a liability.
Barry Schwartz, a psychology professor at Swarthmore College wrote a book called, “The Paradox of Choice: Why More Is Less.” In it, he points out the perils of too many options. Schwartz says that one of three things is likely to occur when people have too many decisions to make: (1) they end up making poor decisions; (2) they are more dissatisfied with their choices; or (3) they become paralyzed and don't choose at all. When it comes to choices in-store, nobody wins when they choose door #3.
And as the complexity of a decision increases, a person is more likely to look for ways – often erroneous – to simplify the choosing process. If there are 100 kinds of cereal, instead of looking at all of the characteristics, people will evaluate a product based on something familiar or easy, like brand name or price.
Even when they choose well, they are often less satisfied because, with so many choices, consumers are certain that there was something better but they just didn’t find it. "They think about attractive things they've passed up and missed opportunities," Schwartz says.
One of the benefits our clients find in working with Tusco is that we understand that some choice is good but too much is not. Many brand clients want every possible combination available to the shopper while retailers typically want to minimize the slots taken by any one brand. We help both the brand marketer and the retailer find the sweet spot for their shoppers and consumers. Having enough inventory but not too much, having enough choices but not too many – it’s a fine line and that line moves depending on the product category and retail channel. Tusco’s here to help everyone strike the right balance and make choice work for the brand, the store and the shopper.
Back to Basics (March 16th, 2009)
In a Feb 23, 2009 Ad Age article, author Denise Lee Yohn made the argument that retailers must return to the tried-and-true approaches that have served them well for many years. Many retailers have recently failed and more likely will, especially if they fail to do their fundamental job well.
First of all, they must know their customers. The best brand marketers believe that they know their customers but so do the best retailers. Understanding what the shopper seeks when they visit your store helps that store differentiate themselves from other stores.
Second, retailers must invest in their salespeople. The experience a shopper has in a store is often directly related to how well they are served by the salesperson. If the salesperson is knowledgeable, attentive and sensitive to the needs of the shopper, that shopper may buy and return to do so again. If the salesperson isn’t all of these things, the shoppers may never return. And they may tell their friends about their disappointing experience.
Finally, to succeed, a store must deliver a superior in-store experience. Have the right products, the right environment and the right layout and the retailer can find success.
Tusco supports all three of these points. We know how people shop and how they interact with displays so we design units that meet the needs of the retailer, the brand marketer and the shopper. All three parties must be served. Effective merchandising equipment makes the best salesperson better by presenting the products and information right where and when the shopper is in the market to buy. Finally, Tusco displays help deliver a superior in-store experience. When the product, the price and the potential purchaser all come together at the point of purchase, shoppers acquire what they need and want, retailers earn a return on their investment and brands earn new or renewed customers. Everyone wins. And we’ve done our job.
Shovel Ready (March 1st, 2009)
Much has been made of the federal stimulus package. For the past couple of months, talk has centered on finding government projects that would be “shovel-ready” once President Obama won approval from Congress. Dollars will be minted and projects funded that will inject cash into the economy, generate work for people and lead to improved infrastructure – roads, bridges, schools – that will benefit Americans for years to come.
Color me skeptical but I’ve seen all manner of projects proposed that have been around for years but weren’t done because they weren’t valuable enough to spend limited funds on. Now, these marginal projects are being funded with money that our federal government is borrowing. Hope and pray that this stimulus has a long-term positive impact on our economy that outweighs the huge costs.
Being “shovel-ready” is something Tusco is, too. When our clients order, we order materials – just what we need – and begin production quickly. Our machinery and processes are flexible, allowing us to make a book shelf this morning and a display base this afternoon. Our associates have a variety of skills, nimbly moving from one area or process to another to get the job done on-time and on-budget. We often produce and deliver custom displays in less time than it takes to move a container of stock products from Asia to North America.
Tusco will be receiving no federal stimulus dollars; we don’t produce bridges or windmills or have powerful members of Congress as friends to add earmarks for us. However, when retailers and brands want to stimulate sales of their products with the best at-retail equipment, we’re here to make it happen nimbly and reliably.
$1000 winner
| We pack our units with Custom Satisfaction Survey Cards and each year draw one from the stack of thousands that are returned. Ron Scanlon of Rust-Oleum was this year’s winner of a $1000 U S Saving Bond. Ron is the New Business Development Manager and has been with Rust-Oleum for more than 20 years. During that time, Ron estimates that he has assembled at least 1000 RO2 paint merchandisers just like the one that from which he returned the card. |
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Outliers (February 16, 2009)
I read Malcolm Gladwell’s new book, Outliers, a couple months ago. Among other things, Gladwell makes the convincing argument that it takes about 10,000 hours – about ten years – to become a world-class expert at something. He cites various studies and experts in support of this idea.
"The people at the very top don't just work harder or even much harder than everyone else," Gladwell writes. "They work much, much harder." Achievement, he says, is talent plus preparation. Preparation seems to play a bigger role. "Practice isn't the thing you do once you're good. It's the thing you do that makes you good."
With over 60 years in business and many long-time associates @ Tusco, we have people who have surpassed the 10,000-hour milestone. Whether it’s a small countertop unit or an entire retail department, we have people who have become experts in the practice of creating, producing and implementing outstanding merchandising systems. Whether it’s Rust-Oleum paint or Therma-Tru doors, Goodyear tires or Louisville Slugger bats, Stadler hams, Tones spices or Westinghouse light bulbs, we have the expertise to present the goods and motivate the shopper to purchase the products.
This expertise is in high demand today. With shoppers frozen in spending, retailers are searching their souls to find ways to turn those inside their stores into actual buyers. The best retailers are learning how to employ the latest in-store technology and techniques to make the sale.
Of course, we cannot stop learning either. Retail is a host of dynamic, ever-changing environments. The skills we employ today are greatly enhanced from those needed even ten years ago. From understanding shopper psychology to offering the best in lighting technology or interactive display components, we must continually upgrade our skills and knowledge. Becoming an expert today doesn’t mean that you remain an expert tomorrow.
Authenticity (February 1, 2009)
Advertising giant J. Walter Thompson trends expert Ann Mack calls "recessionary living" the top trend for 2009. What’s that mean and why do we care?
Instead of buying a new car, finding a solid used car is recessionary living. Instead of buying brand-name peanut butter for the kids, trying the store brand at half the price is another example of recessionary living. Ms. Mack believes that the current economic turmoil has created so much anxiety among consumers that even those who remain financially comfortable are thinking more like those worried about job security and those already holding pink slips.
New consumer behaviors that are a fall-out of the economic crisis also dominate the trends forecast from Porter Novelli, another New York communications agency. Topping Porter's list is "value and values" -- a movement in which money gradually loses its edge to new values such as stability, sustainability and peace of mind.
Porter predicts consumers will look beyond consumption. "We all have enough stuff; it's not where our heads are anymore," said Marian Salzman, a Porter partner renowned as a trends guru.
Even the Chinese New Year (Jan 26) seemingly confirms this. The Year of the Ox, from the Asian perspective, anticipates a return to more conservative habits, greater patience and more solid foundations.
Companies that make and sell consumer goods and services -- many already hard hit by the economic mess and dismal holiday sales -- probably don't want to hear that people save more and spend less.
Shopping will likely be less about sport and more about value in 2009. We can expect our brand clients and retailers to follow the consumers and better focus on permanent displays that connote solidness, resiliency and authenticity, too. We’ll see fewer gimmicky, temporary displays and more attention on staking out the retail space that they can own and defend. And that sounds OK to our ears, doesn’t it?
Sticky Displays (January 15, 2009)
Stanford Business School psychology professor Chip Heath recently wrote Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die. His ideas apply to the display world, too.
Heath’s research suggests that sticky ideas share six basic traits. Here’s how we apply them as we create effective displays and store fixtures.
- Simplicity. Messages are most memorable if they are short and deep. Glib sound bites are short, but they don’t last. Proverbs such as the Golden Rule are short but also deep enough to guide the behavior of people over generations. Keeping a display simple helps it accomplish the task of getting the product into the hands of the shopper.
- Unexpectedness. Something that sounds like common sense won’t stick. Look for the parts of your message that are uncommon sense. Creating displays that generate interest and curiosity helps them stick.
- Concreteness. Abstract language and ideas don’t leave sensory impressions; concrete images do. Clear, evocative images instantly communicate. At the point-of-purchase, we have only a split second to capture attention. We encourage clients to do it with clear, concrete images.
- Credibility. Will the audience buy the message? Shoppers discern whether an in-store offer makes sense or not. Declaring “BIG savings!” or “Easy to use” but not showing it turns shoppers off.
- Emotions. Graphics that involve people also move them. “We are wired,” Heath writes, “to feel things for people, not abstractions." Babies, puppies and, yes, sex, really do sell.
- Stories. We all tell stories every day. Why? Heath writes, “Stories act as a kind of mental flight simulator, preparing us to respond more quickly and effectively.” Our best displays tell a story for our clients’ products and help the shopper interact with them.
Tusco creates sticky stuff so clients’ products move from the store to the consumer. When products move, everyone – brand marketer, retailer & consumer – wins.
Crisis (January 1, 2009)
“You never want a serious crisis to go to waste... This crisis provides the opportunity for us to do things that could not be done before.”
Rahm Emanuel, President-elect Obama's new chief of staff, succinctly captured the challenge and opportunity before many of us – but available only by taking serious action affecting the health of our families, our organizations and our society.
For companies, it means thinking strategically, making tough decisions and acting boldly. How do we make ourselves more competitive, more resilient, and more successful in 2009? These efforts dominate my agenda these days. We’ve made some tough moves and we’ll make more. And Tusco will be the better for it.
We can apply the same thoughtfulness in our families, too. How do we teach our spouses, kids, grandchildren (and ourselves) better money management skills? How do we protect and grow our retirement savings? How do we eliminate waste and improve our family economy? How do we become better stewards of the resources we have? Our current economic crisis has changed the frame of reference for many who have seen their homes diminish in value (or worse), have seen their retirement plans get postponed, have had to look for work for the first time in many years, or have had to make do with less than they have had in years. Tough times demand diligent thinking and decisive action.
We’re going to keep improving and striving for better ways to serve our clients. We’re going to find more and better clients and projects. We’re going to face the challenges that 2009 brings and overcome them. Together, we'll make the most of a tough situation -- and not let it go to waste.
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Garbage (December 15, 2008)
I recently read about a guy who hopped into a taxi and headed for the airport. They drove along when suddenly a big car jumped out of a parking space right in front of them. The taxi driver slammed on his brakes, skidded, and missed the other car by mere inches. The driver of the other car whipped his head around and started yelling at them. Contrary to what you might expect, the taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy. He was really friendly to the reckless, inconsiderate driver.
So the passenger asked, "Why did you just do that? That guy almost caused an accident and could have sent us to the hospital!" This is when the taxi driver explained The Law of the Garbage Truck.
Many people are like garbage trucks, he explained. They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, full of disappointment and rage. As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it and sometimes they'll dump it on you. Don't take it personally. Just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on. Don't pick up their garbage and spread it to other people in your life, whether at work, at home, or to people that you don't even know on the streets.
Though the holidays should be a time of peace and goodwill, the stresses of the economy, the shopping, the complexities of family relationships, etc can turn the potential joy of the season into junk. Always remember that good people do not let garbage trucks take over their day. Life's too short to wake up in the morning with regrets – and smelling like garbage.
Thanksgiving (December 1, 2008)
We’re living in truly extraordinary times. Erratic markets, business failures, home foreclosures, growing unemployment, massive restructuring of whole industries – I’ve never seen anything like it.
Despite the unsettledness and the uncertainty, I hope that you took time to contemplate the things for which you can be thankful this past weekend.
Do you have a warm, safe place to sleep? Food on the table? Family and friends who love you? Clean air and water? Good health and opportunities to improve it? These are things that hundreds of millions of people around the world do not have. Plus, as Americans, we are blessed to have freedom to express our opinions, to congregate, to worship, to vote, to bear arms and to travel. Even when times are tough, we have it good.
Don’t get me wrong: times are indeed tough. We are surely in a serious recession. Though Tusco is very busy right now and we’re winning some exciting new business, we expect 2009 to be challenging. From a global angle, we’ll see more banks and businesses fail. If General Motors goes into bankruptcy, we’ll see a tidal wave of job losses, company failures and other pain spread throughout the region and the world. And, though we don’t do much automotive work, it’ll impact us, too, as we find more vendors in trouble, more metal fabricators trying to compete for at-retail work, and more unrest and uncertainty in the marketplace.
But through it all, we will survive and find ways to thrive. Remember, recessions are nature’s way of correcting excesses accumulated during the previous expansion. The short term pain will yield to renewed growth and vitality for our national economy. Such resiliency is something else for which we should always be thankful, regardless of the circumstances or the season.
Consumer Economics (November 13, 2008)
I saw a recent poll of people in the grocery business in which they were asked to identify the biggest trends for 2009. The #1 answer: private-label products. You see, when times turn tougher, many consumers abandon big-name brands to buy less expensive, private or store brands. Many store-brands now rival their bigger-budget brethren for quality and taste. Thirty-three percent of consumers say they bought more private-label brands in October, BIGresearch found. Making the switch makes sense for more Americans.
And it’s not just in the grocery channel. Walk through a Lowes or Ace Hardware or CVS drugstore and you’ll see more private-label products than ever before. And they are attractively packaged and effectively merchandised. Retailers are following the consumers’ lead and giving them what they seek.
Concurrently, another of the other top trends is more in-store marketing. How can brand marketers like Proctor & Gamble, Pillsbury and Kellogg combat the loss of share to private label? Dialing up their in-store merchandising efforts and increasing coupon drops are two of their principal tools.
We were with a client this week who bemoaned their budgeting process for 2009. It’s tough sledding. Cuts are being made in a variety of areas within this brand marketer “but we’re definitely not touching our display budget. In fact, we’re likely to increase it.” That’s music to our ears.
Consumers will always seek out value. How they define “value” changes from person to person, product to product and circumstance to circumstance. Price plays a key role in the value calculation, of course, but consistency, quality, availability and familiarity matter, too. Over the years, buying Jif peanut butter or Charmin toilet paper or Tide detergent represented the best “value” for more Americans than lower-priced alternatives. And they still do: the most recent data I’ve seen tells us that less than 6% of retail sales go to private-label. But that percentage will climb in 2009.
The value equation is changing with price more important than ever during difficult economic times. Defending their brands from this shifting value calculation today is something that custom displays and fixtures are uniquely positioned to do. And this is good news for the in-store marketing industry and Tusco Display.
Most Valuable Trait (November 1, 2008)
Tusco passes a milestone this year that few companies reach: 60 years in business. How did we get here? The road has been bumpy with unexpected twists and turns. We’ve experienced Mt Everest highs and Death Valley lows. Still, we journey onward.
Has it been luck? Maybe. But I subscribe to the idea that the harder we work, the luckier we get.
Has it been brilliance? Though we’ve had flashes of brilliance in design, in clever tooling solutions, in developing client relationships, and the like, we haven’t had that many grand slams. Our success and longevity is more a product of consistently hitting singles and stealing a base from time to time.
Has it been macroeconomics? Certainly the “storing of America” – the rapid expansion of retail space in the past 50 years – has contributed to our success. But many other producers of custom store fixtures and displays grew and died during the same period.
I believe that our most valuable trait as an organization has been tenacity. I’m confident that WB Stocker, the founder, principal owner and manager of Tusco for 30 years, faced plenty of times when he thought about throwing in the towel. When entire markets once served evaporated, Tusco morphed to uncover new needs and serve those new markets. It’s an approach that we have continued in the ensuing 30 years. Just as Mr Stocker did, we continually look to upgrade our capabilities, strengthen our skills, and expand our reach to new markets. We have done all of those things by the equipment we’ve invested in, the people we’ve hired, the skills we have acquired, the clients we have sought and the systems we have in place.
These things have all significantly improved our capability to succeed. While having the capability to succeed is important, having the will to win is essential. At Tusco, we have that will.
Stumbling Times (October 15, 2008)
We have entered a time where many organizations will stumble. Some will not make it, but for others the experience will unleash new vigor, new ambitions, new ideas.
In 30 years in business, I have learned that all businesses and industries are cyclical; boom and bust come to many companies. It is human nature to become exuberant at the top and depressed at the bottom. Such a rollercoaster is the essence of life itself.
When times are good and money easy, we misallocate resources, make waste and mistakes. As the wheel inevitably turns and conditions deteriorate, credit tightens, companies founder and assets are recycled. It’s an irresistible sequence of events.
Markets and exchanges are merely mechanisms which reflect this same temperament of humanity. Witnessing and taking part in such upheaval can be traumatic. Take the current upheavals on Wall Street or the longer-running decline of American automobile manufacturing. For the staff, their families and other stakeholders, these classic examples of economist Joseph Schumpeter’s “creative destruction” are hardly something to celebrate. Here is a sudden and jolting realignment of resources. Overnight, venerable institutions are destroyed. Inefficient and misguided organizations disappear and ultimately more productive ones arise. This process of renewal is at the heart of capitalism.
The lesson is that all organizations must reinvent themselves periodically or die. At Tusco, we understand this cycle better than most because we have always had to reinvent ourselves. A popular display today is tossed behind the store tomorrow. The market is a great leveler. Even the mighty are humbled – just look at the multi-billion-dollar investment banks in shambles. Of course, value is destroyed in the violent process of reordering but without such a threat, what institution would accept the pain of restructuring that is part of staying relevant and competitive?
So many industries we know – newspapers, retailing, financial services, RVs – face the need to adapt to a rapidly evolving market. Manufacturers like Tusco have long known that competition never rests. Only value persists.
There is a palpable sense of urgency that would be absent if the pressure were not real. The relentless march of technology and competition force the pace. This is how institutions and societies improve. This is progress.
Confidence Game (September 30, 2008)
These past few weeks have seen some epic changes in the financial structure of the American economy. How these changes end up affecting you and me remains to be seen.
How did we get here? The search for villains will occupy politicians, pundits and historians for years to come. That seems like wasted energy since the firms and individuals engaged on Wall Street were simply responding to the market and regulatory environment in which they operated. The only thing I know for sure is that things will now be different in the way money is raised, loaned and managed. I just hope that the unintended consequences – and there will be some doozies, I’ll bet – don’t hurt America too much.
Our area never saw the huge run up in property values that occurred on the coasts and in many metro areas. Consequently, we have not seen the collapse in home values but we have seen a decline of average home values in the 10-15% range in our region. That’s significant enough. People who borrowed against their home equity or were counting on continually rising home values to pay their bills have run into trouble, causing hundreds of people into bankruptcy and/or foreclosure.
The $700 billion rescue plan under consideration by Congress at the request of the Federal Reserve and the Treasury will allow banks with various mortgage-backed securities to quarantine their problems and let the federal government unwind them. It took years to accumulate the problem; it will take years to fix them. The majority of these securities will prove sound and the taxpayers may actually make money over time. Without these unprecedented moves, our financial system could collapse.
Again, how did we get here? One key element has been the loss of confidence. The various players lost confidence in the value of their holdings, lost confidence in the ability of Americans to pay back what they owed, even lost confidence in one another. When confidence goes, so goes everything. If you wanted to use a credit card but the bank didn’t believe that you could pay it off – or even the interest on the debt – then they’d shut off your credit. In a sense, this is what has happened across our economy. By creating a fund to manage these risky loans, the government hopes to restore confidence in the system.
What they hope to do is to avoid crashing the economy into a tree and, instead, allowing it to slow into a parking space. Either way, the car will stop. Hopefully, we don’t destroy the car in the process.
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See it. Feel it. Trust it. (September 15, 2008)
Sports psychologist David Cook trains professional golfers to use this mantra before each shot. Dr. Cook's research has shown that a golfer's performance is determined by their potential minus the interference that distracts them from living up to that potential. Potential minus Interference = Performance. Therefore, Dr. Cook believes that golfers can eliminate interference by using a "See It. Feel It. Trust It." pre-shot routine, and thus perform to their maximum potential.
How does it work?
Start with a clear vision. Golfers must be able to visualize the shot before they ever try to hit the shot. How can you ever expect to hit a shot that you cannot first see in your mind?
Second, they must move toward feeling it. Golfers must allow the body to feel what it must do in order to hit the shot that they visualize. In other words, they must allow the body to do what it is capable of doing.
And finally, they must learn to trust what they visualized and felt. They must let go of every negative thought and self-doubt that tries to enter their minds. Not even Tiger Woods can control where the ball goes every time; all we can control are our thoughts. Therefore, we need to spend more time preparing our thoughts by visualizing our goal, then internalizing it, then believing that we can achieve it.
The same holds true in our work. If we visualize a bad day, odds are that we’ll make it so. If we envision a positive sales call, we improve the chances that it’ll go well. Our minds are powerful engines. Unleashing them in the right direction can make a positive difference on where they take us.
A Native American grandfather was talking to his grandson about how he felt. He said, "I feel as if I have two wolves fighting in my heart. One wolf is the vengeful, angry, violent one. The other wolf is the loving, compassionate one." The grandson asked him, "Which wolf will win the fight in your heart?" The grandfather answered, "The one I feed."
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Tusco installs a new ERP system in September
Enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems automate and optimize business operations by integrating the data and processes of an organization into a single unified solution.
Tusco will utilize software from Epicor to create a single, end-to-end solution that goes beyond traditional ERP. In addition to award-winning financial, inventory and manufacturing management capabilities, it provides in-depth supply chain management, customer relationship management, business intelligence and enterprise performance management functionality. Epicor has tailored this system specifically for Tusco’s design, engineering, manufacturing and distribution needs with deep industry-specific functionality within each of these sectors. The bottom line: a powerful tool to better serve our clients.
- $1000 winner
| We pack our units with Custom Satisfaction Survey Cards and each year draw one from the stack of thousands that are returned. Janet Swett of All Pro Floors in Marietta GA was this year’s winner of a $1000 U S Saving Bond. Janet wrote this about the U S Ceramic Tile display she assembled, “Well thought out combinations of color, design and information; possibly the best in my 41 years in this business…very salesperson and customer friendly. Well done!” |
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Tusco Display/ACS 5K race
Forty-four runners participated in Tusco’s twelfth annual 5K race to benefit the American Cancer Society. This race is part of the Tuscarawas Valley Challenge series of 5K races. The weather was picture perfect as the race netted $1325 for the ACS.
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