ROOTNOTES ONLINE

I will find out once and for all if it truly is “Always Sunny in Philadelphia.”

I am going to a one day Marketing Mastermind sponsored by my friend Mike Capuzzi the creator of the remarkable Copy Doodles.  That will be followed by a networking get together in Mike’s suite at the Phillies game.

The trip came about because of a contest I won for the most innovative use of Mike Capuzzi’s Copy Doodles, a terrific product for anyone trying to break through the clutter in their marketing.   So here’s the back story and then the campaign.

I had a meeting scheduled with a buyer to present a new bedroom set.  We were to have dinner the evening before the meeting but a conflict came up and she had to cancel.  Knowing that she liked Red wine, I thought of the most expensive bottle I could think of (Silver Oaks) and decided I would make up a story about enjoying that wine by myself.  I knew Copy Doodles had napkins and a wine stain as part of the package so I hit on the idea of writing this as though I was at the bar.

After getting into it a bit I realized I didn’t have enough room on those silly napkins to get my message across so I went to the next morning with the concept of being hung over and needing to hand write the yellow legal pad.  It was a good story that provided lots of laughs and broke the ice for an excellent presentation.

On the last page of the Copy Doodle samples, you’ll see four questions I pose that will help you make better presentations.  As always make sure you leave comments below.  Thanks

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Tags: Furniture, Marketing, Uncategorized by Mike Root
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Today we will discuss the pros and the cons of having two major furniture markets. Additionally, we will be discussing a few elements that the markets employ which you can also implement in your sales and marketing techniques.

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Tags: Furniture, Uncategorized by Mike Root
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Being from Omaha, I have a better than working knowledge of home grown Berkshire Hathaway Company and its iconic leader Warren Buffett.  As most should know, Berkshire Hathaway is a company that has the highest priced shares traded on the stock market (at one time over $150,000 for one share).  This value has kept Mr. Buffett as one of the top 3 wealthiest people in the world for over a decade.
I have met several people that are original investors and are now worth millions and in some cases billions.  In most cases, except for their philanthropy around Omaha, these people live their daily lives without the ostentatious lifestyle normally associated with such great wealth. 
I personally know families that built marvelous businesses and sold out to Mr. Buffett.  In every case they got up the next morning, went to work, and continued to run the same business with no changes in their personal work effort.  These entrepreneurs turned Berkshire millionaires continued to give every bit of effort working for Warren Buffett as they did for themselves.  They stand in sharp contrast to all the greed that has recently been on display from Wall Street bankers and corporate chieftains who are strictly in it for the money.  The Berkshire folks I have met over the years are a much more respectable group of folks, and truly an embodiment of what has made our country great
There is no better place to get a feel of the inner workings of a Berkshire Hathaway type of company and quality of an entrepreneur that built it than in reading a brand new book entitled How to Build a Business Warren Buffett Would Buy;  The R. C. Willey Story by Jeff Benedict.   It is the story of how a small door to door sales operation started in the Utah countryside turned into a Billion Dollar Retailer.   R. C. Willey is respected by consumers throughout Utah, Nevada, Idaho and California as well as manufacturers in the home furnishings, electronics and appliance industries.
More importantly, this is a story of a remarkable entrepreneur, Bill Child.  He was the reluctant retailer that led this company from 1954 when founder R. C. Willey suddenly passed away.  Bill inherited a business with no assets except customer’s goodwill, and he grew the business over time into a business that Warren Buffett purchased for $175 million in stock.
I would go so far as to say that if you are in the furniture business, the retail business, or you service any type of retail business, this is a must read book (to order go to www.TheRCWilleyStory.com).  This is also a terrific book full of wisdom for the entrepreneur or small businessman who wants to grow his business over time. 
There are no quick fix solutions to growing a main street business.  We are not talking about becoming a Google millionaire.  It takes hard work, dedicated employees, loyal customers and a willingness to try new things so that the business does not become stagnant.  This book encompasses all of that plus what it takes to build a rags to riches story while still holding true to your inner convictions.
I think all my friends that are in the furniture business will empathize with many of the struggles to build a business one sale at a time.  I think many of my friends working in small business will relate to the challenges and the innovation it takes to grow a profitable enterprise.  And, I think many of my friends that are struggling entrepreneurs will be inspired by the success of having a lifetime of hard work rewarded.
One of the chapters that will resonate with any serious business person and can easily be incorporated into your own business philosophy is the 10th Chapter “Rules to Live By”.  These are 8 common sense principles that are backed up by easy to relate anecdotes.  For example, number 4 is simply put – Be Honest.  I loved their saying “If you always tell the truth, you never have to remember what you said”.  If Wall Street and Washington acted with this integrity we wouldn’t have the problems we have today.
In the book Bill Child is quoted as saying “The world changes.  Many of the furniture companies that have gone out of business have done so because they failed to change.”  We have that challenge today in the furniture business (as do many other industries) with lots of change being thrown at us.  It will never be the same because “customers’ needs and expectations change”. 
Whether you are a furniture rep, a retailer or manufacturer, you need to adapt to the changes or be overrun by them.  I know several years ago we saw the erosion of commissions for furniture reps.  We could have complained and got angry that the rep was being squeezed, but the reality was that the business has changed.  We looked at the landscape and realized the large retailers like Walmart figured out a way to make a good living on very thin margins by working on volume.  Consequently we designed our business with a volume model that has served us well. 
Of course there are several other ways to make money including selling luxury products at a premium price to the affluent.  It doesn’t matter what the model as long as you look at the landscape, determine your unique selling proposition and design your business model around serving that customer. 
There are fourteen management principles and philosophies gleaned of decades of hard work and hard knocks that Bill Child lists at the end of the book.  These simple ideas are worth more than a masters in business because they are easy to understand and proven to work. 
Finally, in challenging times like these you can never be complacent.  No matter how successful you have been, as Bill says “You can only stand on the laurels of what you did yesterday for a few minutes.  Then you have the challenges of tomorrow.”  There are definitely challenges and this book will inspire you to relook at your business and build for tomorrow.
I could write for pages about all the great takeaways in this book, but that would be doing a disservice to the author and to you.  There are no excuses not to get the book right now.  Go to www.TheRCWilleyStory.com and order the book.  You will be glad you did.

Though I have met Mr. Buffett in Omaha a few times, the only picture I ever had taken with him was at an R. C. Willey store Grand Opening event in Las Vegas.

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Tags: Furniture, What Mike’s Reading by Mike Root
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The following article was published in the monthly newsletter ROOTNOTES

Recently I had the good fortune to be chosen by my peers as the newest member of the Executive Committee of the International Home Furniture Representative’s Association (IHFRA).  It is an Association with almost 1200 Industry Members.  There are a couple of events at the upcoming market for the benefit of the Industry that IHFRA is sponsoring.  They also have good national discount programs in place that more than pay for the annual dues.  Anyone in the industry is welcome to join.

I tell you this because as the new guy in the organization, it appears that a reason I got the job was because I shared with them all the great ways I think they can be a very viable force in the industry.  Let’s face it, times have been tough for our industry and no one is anymore  challenged than the middleman between the factory and the retailer.  Many reps feel all they do is get squeezed on both ends and no one appreciates their efforts. 

I believe the rep still has a valuable place to champion the retailer’s needs back to the factories.  Manufacturer’s strength is making a good quality product that will sell at retail and deliver on time.  The retailer’s job is to merchandise, promote, sell and service the manufacturer’s product.  They don’t want to create the ideas, manufacture or worry about delivery.  The rep’s job is to help both parties understand each other and make the relationship as smooth as possible.  In other words, the good rep’s provide COMMUNICATION between all parties.

What I shared with the nominating committee is the need for the organization to be more proactive  just like all rep’s need to be more proactive.  We need to help dealer’s figure out ways to sell the product to the end consumer with Promotional Ideas. Those ideas in a free report at www.FurniturePromotions.com is one way to do that. 

Reps need to help factories have the right product, delivered at the right time to the retailers so that the retailers can satisfy the customer.  Working with retailers to set projections and communicating such to the factories is what I do with all my accounts so that we can stay in stock when the retailer needs it most.

But above all, communication is the key.  My dealers get a monthly newsletter and hopefully find value in it.  I am very intrigued with online social media and have begun to post to this blog.  This is the best place to keep up with all my various marketing projects as well as get my contact info.  You’ll also find me in social media as follows

Facebook: www.facebook.com/Mike.Root

Linked In: www.linkedin.com/in/mikeroot

Twitter: www.twitter/meroot   

YouTube: www.youtube.com/meroot

People may laugh at this social media stuff and I am still just learning it, but based on early results, I believe it will be imperative for businesses to have a presence there to communicate with their customers.  This nontraditional WEB 2.0 communication where you can interact with your customers online is hitting other industries.  The furniture industry will be right around the corner.  I will be communicating my progress in social media over time on this blog.  I also will be sending out a weekly ezine with marketing tips so make sure I have your email if you would like to be included in this ongoing analysis of how the conversations we have with our customers are changing.  Let me know what you think.

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Tags: Furniture, Marketing, Social Networking by Mike Root
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