6 Tips From Terri
1. Never rest on your laurels. Change can happen in an instant, Terri Alpert points out. It did for Professional Cutlery Direct and resulted in the revamped Cooking Enthusiast and Uno Alla Volta catalogs.
2. Use your financial statements as a rearview mirror. Focus on the road ahead so you can prepare yourself for the first tip above.
3. Don’t skimp on inventory management. Your inventory managers should be some of your most highly skilled and compensated employees. They must be empowered with the right tools and an understanding of the company philosophy.
4. Treat your vendors as you wish to be treated. Always pay on time or early without ever having to be asked. If you do this, they’ll be there for you when you need a favor or when you want to negotiate extended payment terms.
5. Always treat your customers as you wish to be treated. The value of your business is based mainly on the value of your housefile. The value of your housefile is nothing more than the sum of the quality of all of the most recent experiences of your customers. Leverage every contact point.
6. Always treat your employees as you wish to be treated. Because, Alpert says, they’re the ones who’ll accomplish tips No. 4 and No. 5.
—MDF
- People:
- Terri Alpert