Feb 21, 2018
When Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone back in 1876, it is unlikely that he envisioned it to become the global juggernaut that it is today. We’re sure he wouldn’t have been too surprised to see how useful the telephone would become. However, we imagine that he had no visions of his innovation becoming an all-in-one media centre involving texting, photo taking and video filming.
Today, smartphones are all the rage. Most people feel that they practically can’t live without these mini handheld computers. And while surfing the internet and communicating via text messages are wildly popular activities, it should be lost on no business owner that the telephone’s original purpose still remains its greatest advantage. Yes, there’s nothing quite like talking on the phone to communicate your message!
Nothing beats a good old conversation.
Over the past couple of weeks, our blog has examined the importance of using the telephone to reach out to your customers. Studies show that it remains an incredibly important business tool that outdoes the modern act of texting as a top communication form. On Entrepreneur.com, Grant Cardone insists that the telephone remains more powerful than social media sites like Twitter, Facebook, Google+, YouTube and LinkedIn.
“This is because at some point in everyone’s career they will use the phone to reach the right person, close a sale, follow-up with a customer or to handle a customer inquiry,” he writes, “The phone is money, and everyone has one. There are almost as many cell-phone subscriptions (6.8 billion) as there are people on the planet. In the U.S. alone, there are just under one trillion phone calls per year!”
What makes telephone communication more effective than any other method?
It’s all about making personal connections. The human voice has the unique ability to win people over in ways that a text message or social media conversation cannot. Tone and inflection communicates warmth and friendliness in ways that words that are read cannot. As well, phone conversations allow for immediate responses. Simply put, they make for much more natural interactions.
“Short of talking with someone face-to-face, a phone call is the best way to get a personal response,” says Mary Nestor-Harper on Chron.com, “If the person you called is available, you can take care of business on the spot. With other forms of communication, such as texting or email, you leave a message and hope for a quick response.”
Why are personal connections so important to your jewelry business?
In 2018, consumers are looking for a lot more from stores than high-quality items. They’re interested in enjoying unique customer experiences. As a result, it’s integral that you develop relationships with the people that support your business. This means reaching out and letting your customers know you haven’t forgotten them.
At TK Enterprises Inc., we have proudly mastered the concept of reaching out to customers for jewelry store owners to build their relationships. Our one-of-a-kind Event Marketing services involve our experienced and highly-motivated callers making personal phone calls directly to your customers to invite them to your upcoming in-store events.
For more information, please don’t hesitate to call us toll-free at 1-877-622-0195. You may also email us at heidi.tke@tomkaufmann.com or fill out the form on our Contact Us page and have someone contact you!
Feb 14, 2018
Happy Valentine’s Day! On behalf of the entire TK Enterprises Inc. team, we’d like to wish all of you lovebirds a fun and exciting day today. We’d also like to send our best to all those who may not be celebrating Valentine’s Day as they are still looking for love. We do know one thing for sure, however. Those who are looking to impress the objects of their affection should practice the age-old technique of calling them on the phone.
Make the phone your friend.
If you’re lucky enough to get the phone number of an individual you admire, do yourself a favor and give him/her a call. Texting is wildly popular today. But it simply cannot communicate one’s tone, inflections and true personality the way his/her voice can. No matter how popular texting gets – and the concept has only gotten more popular with each new social media platform – it’s simply too impersonal to get a real relationship to grow out of it.
“Talking with someone is an art form,” says Los Angeles-based blogger Lauren on her website, “There is also an element of bravery when talking on the phone versus talking through texting because it takes a certain amount of guts to say certain things out loud to someone else instead of just texting. It honestly means so much more if someone actually picks up the phone to call because texting feels like such a cop-out since it’s so impersonal and you can also really get to know a person on a much deeper level if you talk on the phone or Skype with them over texting.”
Texting breaks up the natural pace of a conversation.
When on the phone, people speak back and forth to each other with immediate responses. With texting, it can be several minutes, hours or even days before a text recipient returns a message. While not necessarily intentional, these delayed responses could connote disinterest or irritation. It’s hard to truly know what the other person is thinking when texting is the main source of communication.
On MedicineNet.com, Randy Dotinga explains that there is research that has actually found that relationships can be negatively impacted by an abundance of texting. He reports that a 2013 survey of nearly 300 people aged 18 to 25 who were either married, engaged or seriously dating found that about four fifths of its respondents texted with their partners multiple times every day.
“The researchers found that both men and women were more likely to report less satisfying and less stable relationships when the men frequently texted their female partners,” he reveals.
As we’ve highlighted, the TK Enterprises Inc. team strongly believes in the power of the phone call. This is what has made our one-of-a-kind Event Marketing services so effective for so many years. By calling the customers of jewelry store owners and offering exclusive invites to their upcoming in-store events, we successfully help to grow the relationships between our clients and their supporters. Naturally, these stronger relationships lead to higher sales as well!
Go for the personal touch!
For more information about our Event Marketing services, please don’t hesitate to call us toll-free at 1-877-622-0195. You may also email us at heidi.tke@tomkaufmann.com or fill out the form on our Contact Us page and have someone contact you!
Feb 7, 2018
It’s the year 2018. It’s a secret to no one that we live in an era where social media and the devices that connect us to them are all the rage. People have become very tech-savvy and internet-reliant. Information can easily be Googled within seconds using smartphones. And who doesn’t have a smartphone these days? The temptation for business owners, therefore, is to invest in social media marketing.
And while it’s not at all unreasonable to consider strengthening the online presence of your brand, there is a business rule of thumb that should never be forgotten. Nothing beats the traditional phone call. There is no substitute for connecting one live human to another. During real live conversations, consumers are able to ask questions, have them answered and develop genuine connections with their callers.
“Conversations help us decide who to do business with.”
“Speaking to actual people helps to reassure us in business situations that the company is real,” affirms Zal Dastur on Lucep.com, “Conversations help us decide who to do business with. Conversations are so important that according to this study by Hubspot 35-50% of sales go to the company that calls back the customer first. Conversations are a tipping point for businesses, and help customers make the decision of who to go with.”
People still want to talk. Emails, text messages and tweets are great ways to deliver information. But they aren’t necessarily the best conversation starters. Quite obviously, conversations are two-way streets. They require participation from both parties. Those other forms of communication may be effective in delivering messages. But they fail to guarantee responses. Customers, it should be noted, much prefer calling the businesses they wish to work with over any other form of communication.
“Annual calls to businesses from smartphones will reach 162 billion by 2019.”
Mike Boland of BIA/Kelsey reports that their latest study in call monetization found that annual calls that customers make to businesses from smartphones will reach 162 billion by 2019. “This is more than double the roughly 77 billion calls generated last year from mobile devices,” he writes, “This is made up of search (paid and organic), traditional display ads, native social (in-feed) ads, and mobile landing pages. Our measurements include the iterations of these formats as they appear in both mobile web and in apps.”
It’s all about building personal connections. Doing so isn’t quite possible when you rely solely on Facebook posts, tweets or requests for customers to visit the “Contact Us” page of your company website. Phone calls help for your company to make legitimate connections with the individuals who are most likely to support your business. As Scott Resnick of Today’s Telecommunications Industries makes clear, text-based communications often come off as impersonal.
Calling your customers shows you’re willing to go the extra mile.
“Plus, there’s lots of room for misunderstanding,” Resnick explains, “For instance, tone can easily be lost. If a customer is confused or upset, a calm, empathetic voice on the phone is often enough to soothe their worries. Even when a client contacts you over email, don’t hesitate to call them. It shows that your company is willing to go that extra mile to serve them better.”
At TK Enterprises Inc., we’ve mastered the art of making personal connections between jewelry stores and their customers. Get us working for you using a tried-and-true marketing strategy! For more information about our one-of-a-kind Event Marketing services, please don’t hesitate to call us toll-free at 1-877-622-0195.
Jan 31, 2018
Dear jewelers, welcome to your favorite time of the year! With February beginning tomorrow, you are undoubtedly preparing for the rush that comes with Valentine’s Day shopping. You don’t even need to be part of the jewelry business to know that the next two weeks mark a very busy time of year for the industry. Needless to say, jewelry is right up there with chocolates and flowers as the most popular of all Valentine’s Day gifts.
As well, it goes without saying that jewelry make up the most precious and sentimental of all gifts that celebrate romantic unions. So while you may assume that foot traffic is bound to pick up in your store over the next couple of weeks, it’s incredibly important not to take anything for granted. It’s best that you prepare your jewelry store for Valentine’s Day as best you can.
Stock up on your most popular Valentine’s Day items.
Making sure you have enough supply to meet the demand is never more important than at this time of year. What have been your biggest Valentine’s Day sellers in past years? Make sure that you have ordered all of the most-likely-to-be-sold pieces in time for the special occasion. The last thing you want is for your customers to be disappointed to the point where they go to your competition for their gift-buying needs.
“Ensuring that you have the inventory to meet the demand of your customer base is crucial to your jewelry stores’ success during the Valentine’s Day rush,” writes Danielle Wegert on MultiBriefs.com, “If you are not prepared, you will not have enough supply to meet all of your customers’ expectations, and they will take their business elsewhere. Just like any other holiday, many customers wait until the last minute to purchase their gifts, which will not leave time for you to order more inventory before the holiday.”
Prepare to cater to millennials.
It can be argued that young people are the world’s biggest Valentine’s Day shoppers. There’s nothing quite like “puppy love” to get people to bring out their wallets to commemorate that special day with their partners. Studies have actually shown that millennials are among the biggest spenders for the Valentine’s Day occasion. The 2015 National Retail Federation’s Valentine’s Day Consumer Spending Survey found out as much.
“The largest spending age group is predicted to be 25 to 34 year olds, who will shell out approximately $213.04 on the holiday,” reports Barbara Thau on Forbes.com about the survey, “By contrast, 35 to 44 year olds will spend about $176.21. This is somewhat surprising, as many Millennials have yet to come into their most fertile years of earning power, yet they plan to spend more than their older counterparts.”
Host a Valentine’s Day soirée.
Valentine’s Day offers your jewelry store the perfect opportunity to host an in-store event. Doing so will entice your current customers to choose your store for their gift shopping over your competitors. At TK Enterprises Inc., our one-of-a-kind Event Marketing services are designed to get your customers to come to your event. Put our experienced team of phone agents to work for you. We’re experts at offering exclusive invites to in-store events. It’s a strategy that works!
For more information about our Event Marketing services, please don’t hesitate to call us toll-free at 1-877-622-0195. You may also email us at heidi.tke@tomkaufmann.com or fill out the form on our Contact Us page and have someone contact you!
Jan 24, 2018
As we communicated in last week’s blog, the TK Enterprises Inc. team is currently attending the CBG San Francisco Show as an exhibitor. Presented by CBG Continental Buying Group, Inc., the incredible trade show is taking place at Hilton San Francisco Union Square which is located at 333 O’Farrell Street in San Francisco, California. Today is the first day of the show and we will be here throughout the three-day event which culminates this Friday!
For all of those who are attending the CBG San Francisco Show, we encourage you to pay TK Enterprises Inc. a visit at Table #20. We have a very special and exclusive offer for all of our visitors at this week’s show. When you arrive at our table, you will be gifted with a free scratch ticket that is worth up to 15% off of your already discounted CBG member prices for our Event Marketing services.
We absolutely love the opportunities we get to network with industry professionals.
The way we see it, there is simply no substitute for meeting people face-to-face. By interacting with jewelers from all over the continent, we continually learn more about this fascinating industry. As Shoshi Grossman points out on RapNet.com, “Whether or not two people are in the same business, there is always something they can learn from each other. Networking is all about giving and receiving advice, brainstorming ideas and sharing information.”
In addition to enjoying our learning opportunities, we take great pride in being able to teach. Our Event Marketing services help professionals in the jewelry industry to take their respective businesses to higher levels. We’re well aware that our Event Marketing services are one-of-a-kind. So, it brings us great pleasure to be able to introduce them to others in the most impactful way possible – in person.
In 2018, there are many ways to network.
We’re aware, of course, that modern technology affords us many other ways to network when meeting people face-to-face isn’t possible. Because we serve jewelry business owners all over North America, it’s only right that we take advantage of those new technologies. ProfessionalJeweller.com informs us that social media go a long way in helping jewelry professionals to expand their reach.
The site conducted an interview with Harriet Kelsall Bespoke Jewellery designer, Tom Wilson who revealed that social media is one of the main sources of traffic towards his company’s website. “As an independent jeweler, it allows us to immediately connect with our customers,” he is quoted as saying, “We have also found that Instagram is a valuable tool for sharing photographs of the bespoke process with our customers.”
It’s all about establishing and building relationships.
Grossman stresses the fact that professionals in the diamond industry are often only as successful as their abilities to build their reputations through networking. She notes that sharing information and building strong networks is a great way to get people to recommend your business to others.
“You can enhance your business reputation by helping others with advice and support,” says Grossman, “For example, if your specialty is fancy color diamonds, you can advise a colleague about how to explain to their customer the difference between a natural fancy color diamond and a treated color diamond, or how the cost structure works for fancy color diamonds.”
For more information about our Event Marketing services, please don’t hesitate to call us toll-free at 1-877-622-0195. You may also email us at heidi.tke@tomkaufmann.com or fill out the form on our Contact Us page and have someone contact you!
Jan 17, 2018
The team, here at TK Enterprises Inc., is incredibly excited to have started off 2018 with a bang! First things first – please feel free to take a look around and introduce yourself to our new and improved website! Complete with a sleek and professional new design, our site now adequately communicates our company’s commitment to providing a bright future for all of our clients.
It certainly pays to keep things fresh!
Staying visible online has a lot to do with offering eye-catching visuals and regularly updated content on our site. Not only will we remain committed to offering fresh content via our weekly blogs, but our site now boasts our company motto on its home page: “Calling & Connecting Customers To Your Business”. Since 1980, we’ve been helping businesses connect directly with their customers for a more personalized and connected experience.
We do this, of course, through our one-of-a-kind, not-offered-anywhere-else Event Marketing services. Our friendly and experienced team of phone agents contacts customers on behalf of jewelry store owners in order to invite those customers to upcoming in-store events. The personal “reach out and touch somebody” approach to marketing has provided amazing results for our clients. And we’re excited to offer special discounts on our services this month!
Come and join us at the CBG San Francisco Show!
We’re elated to inform you that we will be attending this month’s trade show presented by CBG Continental Buying Group, Inc. It takes place at Hilton San Francisco Union Square, located at 333 O’Farrell Street in San Francisco, California between January 24th and 26th. Not only are we excitedly looking forward to escaping the cold weather, but we’re also eagerly anticipating this great opportunity to meet and network with jewelers from all over the continent during this awesome three day event.
And, as we mentioned, we’re offering exclusive special discounts to all those who join us at Table #20 at the CBG San Francisco Show. To all of our visitors, we will be offering free scratch tickets. These tickets will offer their recipients up to 15% off their already discounted CBG member prices for our Event Marketing services.
We absolutely love attending trade shows!
Not only are they fun and exciting experiences just to be a part of, but they are excellent opportunities to develop and grow relationships with the members of our client base. Jewelers understand the unique nature of their industry. They sell valuable pieces of jewelry that very often become family heirlooms, symbols of lifelong commitments and gifts that commemorate new romantic unions.
At TK Enterprises Inc., we’re only too happy to help North America’s jewelers gain greater access to their customers by taking the initiative to call those customers for them. Between January 24th and 26th, we hope to meet you and offer you an exclusive discount to our Event Marketing services so that you too can start 2018 off with a bang!
For more information about our Event Marketing services, please don’t hesitate to call us toll-free at 1-877-622-0195. You may also email us at heidi.tke@tomkaufmann.com or fill out the form on our Contact Us page and have someone contact you!
Jan 10, 2018
Throughout the holiday season, people everywhere go out of their ways to make their loved ones feel special. The act of gift-giving is one of the most popular holiday activities. One way of looking at it is that it’s a sign that we care about those who are closest to us and that we want to celebrate those relationships. As a jewelry store owner, this sentiment should never be lost on you. Making people who are important to you feel special is a year-round job.
Which people are most important to your business?
It would be hard to argue that they aren’t your customers. After all, if you had no one to sell your items to, you wouldn’t have a business to run. In 2018, consumers look for a lot more than a place to buy items. And, as such, they’re looking for a lot more from your jewelry store. To your customers, being able to find beautiful pieces is one thing. Enjoying their experiences while visiting your store is another.
What are you doing to ensure customers enjoy their experiences with your store?
On Forbes.com, Alana Muller, who is the president of the very-interestingly-named Kauffman Foundation, poses a few other questions to get you thinking about how your company is viewed by its supporters. “What does your company stand for? What brand image do you project? Are you providing unprecedented service? What problems do you solve for your customer? How do you make your customers feel?”
“People like doing business with companies they connect with personally, with companies they trust,” she continues, “Sure, price is a factor, and your company must demonstrate its value and be competitive, but, believe me, that is the easy part.” To connect with your customers on personal levels, it’s important to take steps to develop genuine relationships with them. This involves active listening to find out what they truly want.
Customers like to feel appreciated.
Listening is just the first step to showing your customers that you value them. However, it also takes some gratitude. It’s important to let your customers know that their business matters to you. Offering a show of thanks can go a long way in securing long-term loyalty. On MyCustomer.com, Margarita Hakobyan lists the simple act of saying “thank you” as a top strategy for making your customers feel valued.
“Businesses sometimes act as if they are owed customers and clients,” she writes, “In fact, businesses exist to serve their clients and customers, and would often do a better job conveying value to their audience if they said thank you. From tangible items, like gifts with purchase, to less tangible ones, like an email thanking the customer for shopping with the company or a coupon for their next purchase, customers like acknowledgements.”
At TK Enterprises Inc., we confidently feel that we have cornered the market in the “making customers feel special” business! Our one-of-a-kind Retail Event Marketing services go to work for your business by calling its customers and offering them exclusive invites to your upcoming in-store events. This unique marketing strategy has proven to make customers feel valued, helping to secure their loyalty for the long haul.
For more information about our Event Marketing services, please don’t hesitate to call us toll-free at 1-877-622-0195. You may also email us at heidi.tke@tomkaufmann.com or fill out the form on our Contact Us page and have someone contact you!
Jan 3, 2018
Welcome to 2018! On behalf of the entire TK Enterprises Inc. staff, we’d like to wish you all a very Happy New Year! And, to be quite honest, we’d love it if we could have a hand in helping for 2018 to be your jewelry store’s most successful year yet! With the changing of the calendar, our team has renewed its commitment to helping North American jewelry store owners enjoy larger customer bases and increased sales.
By implementing some inventive advertising strategies, you can do just that! Here are three ideas:
1. Use tantalizing wording in your product descriptions.
Never let it be lost on you that jewelry purchases are nearly always very important ones for buyers. They often attribute their purchases to the need to commemorate special occasions. The way you describe your products in your marketing campaigns should speak to the uniqueness and sentimentality of the pieces. You want to go over and above the technical terms used to describe your jewelry.
“If you have several different types of items that you are going to sell, break them down into types and describe the products within each type briefly,” explains Kate McFarlin on Chron.com, “For example, you could break it down to rings, necklaces, bracelets, accessories and then go into detail from low to high on the products in these groups. Describe what makes your jewelry unique from other stores in the area and how your product differs.”
2. Offer a travel incentive.
If you really want to take things to the next level, you may wish to advertise the fact that when your customers choose your store over its competitors, there’s more in it for them than their purchases. Odenza explains that travel incentives are complimentary vacations that you can use to encourage customers to remain loyal to your store. Their website notes that they work to both incentivize customers and promote your business.
“The offer looks great on any advertisement and gives your customers a reason to talk about your business with their friends and family,” says the site, “Word of mouth is the best way to get new customers as people trust their friends and family for referrals. Imagine them sitting around and mentioning that they’re going on a complimentary vacation just because they bought something from your store. It’s a great offer, but as you might imagine, hard to start by yourself.”
3. Call your existing customers directly.
Make 2018 the year when you fully commit to strengthening the bonds you’ve already established with your store’s supporters. It’s important to never take your customers for granted. Don’t assume that they’ll return. Call them directly and invite them back. This is the concept behind TK Enterprises Inc.’s Event Marketing services. Our experienced team of phone agents will do all the calling for you!
Contact us to learn more about this one-of-a-kind service! Please don’t hesitate to call us toll-free at 1-877-622-0195. You may also email us at heidi.tke@tomkaufmann.com or fill out the form on our Contact Us page and have someone contact you!
