Money Talks

First of all, my apologies for not providing my loyal fans with a blog last week. I was rather ill and certain things needed to take a back seat. These included eating, sleeping, generally being comfortable and writing blogs. None the less HE'S BACK, AND THIS TIME....IT'S PERSONAL. It isn't, don't worry.

In recent weeks I have spoken about value. I have tried to illustrate that a cut in budget allows us all the opportunity to think so much more about our below the line marketing. For some people, this has struck a chord, and I'm delighted. For many others, it still comes down to who can provide the cheapest merchandise.

It would be lovely to think the loyalty and good service can triumph over the lowest prices, but in the current climate, I think we all have to accept that this is not always going to be the case.

Fortunately, this week I am in a position to appeal to your wallets. One of Europe's biggest suppliers is getting ready to launch their new catalogue and in the process, has decided to discontinue a number of lines. Now normally when you hear the word "discontinued", your mind instantly starts looking for all the things that must be wrong with it. That's reasonable - I mean think of all the crap that we wish would discontinue - Big Brother, The Star Wars Franchise, the rule of the Labour Party, but sometimes things just get discontinued because a new and improved model gets released. We're not just going to trash the old stuff, so how to entice people to buy?

It's simple. MAKE IT CHEAP. And so it is that we have a 132 page catalogue, just brimming with merchandise with discounts of between 40 and 70%. What is more, in many cases, we're not talking about the last dozen gathering dust in a warehouse - we may have literally thousands of them but once they're gone, they're gone.

Now of course news like this doesn't remain a secret for long, and it's safe to say that some of the more popular lines will have already been snapped up by the time you read this, but if you really want to bag yourself a bargain before the financial year end, you'll need to go here:

Have a click through, and then call me for prices and availability. This information is not just for the enlightened few that read this blog - our whole sales team is sharing it with all of their clients, as are all of our competitors, so don't be disappointed to learn you were just minutes too late.

Good luck and happy shopping.

The best gadgets don't need batteries

Gadgets, gadgets, gadgets. Everyone wants to know about the latest cool product that they can give to their clients. What does it do? How does it work? How will it enrich my otherwise mundane existence?

We marvel at the latest toys to find their way over from the Far East. USB sticks with fingerprint identification, travel mugs that stir the drinks for us, even T Shirts with a full colour print that react to sunlight. This stuff is cool. This stuff is now. This stuff is........completely unnecessary.

Seriously. A mug that stirs your drink for you? Any archaeologist working on any dig site will invariably find some sort of spoon - they've been around for thousands of years. OK, I know, sometimes you can't find a spoon, but surely that's going to be at roughly the same time you also forget to bring your self stirring mug.

A fingerprint to open my USB stick? Come on. If my stick gets nicked then it was my own stupid fault for leaving it in a vulnerable position, and if any of the files are truly sensitive, I'll whack a password on them. And since when did anyone with half a brain not back up their most sensitive data anyway?

As for the T Shirt....well actually, they are rather cool, so feel free to order a sample.

People come over to our stand at trade shows because they think we are the corporate equivalent of The Gadget Shop. We're not. Sure we've got some cool toys, but my biggest selling item last year was a lanyard. Yep. A lanyard. A shoelace that you wear around your neck. That's all it does and I sold over a million of them.

Last week I met with a company who were looking for something cool and exciting. We went through what it is they did and how they communicated with their customers and it turned out that the very best thing that they could use was actually a notebook. Not a cool laptop - I'm talking about a real book with paper in it - real cutting edge stuff. Printed in an effective way, this notebook would become a standard tool amongst all of their clients and potential new customers. A clock that runs on fairy dust just won't do that.

Any gadget lover will confess to the fact that he or she (oh come on, it's he) has at least one or two items in a cupboard which have them wonder why the hell they ever thought that it would be a good idea. Old games consoles, Breville sandwich toasters, universal remote controls the size of Bristol (bought in order to give us more space), all of them now gathering dust but holding too much sentimental value to find their way into the nearest skip.

So if you think that giving a gadget is the right way to go, think again. I'm not saying that it isn't right - some gadgets really will boost sales for you, but why not take a moment to think about what your customers actually need as opposed to what they might really like for five minutes.

Right, I'm off to watch a Blu Ray movie on my 50" LCD TV whilst I sit in my luxury massage chair drinking a beer from the built in fridge in the arm rest. OK, you got me, it's a good book and a Pot Noodle - but at least I'll stir it myself.