THE HOLIDAYS


THINGS TO DO


Sites to See The Holidays Making the Season & Your Numbers


SEO Book seobook.com


A resources website with constantly changing new information, tools and tips to teach you search engine opti- mization for your business. You can also hire its staff to coach you.


Numbers to Crunch


101 SEO Resources 101-seo-resources.com


The site boasts handpicked selections to point you to peer-based forums and blogs, as well as tools and advice. It includes a glossary of terms and a list of “bad” SEO techniques.


Events to Check Out


2012 Specialty Equip- ment Market Association


(SEMA) Show Oct. 30 - Nov. 2 Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nev. www.semashow.com/ the-sema-show


Hot Import Nights Tour -


Nightshift Event Dec. 8


Blaisdell Expo Center, Honolulu, Hawaii www.hotimportnights.com


2013 International Consumer Electronics


Show (CES) Jan. 8-11 Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nev. www.cesweb.org


Vendor Relationships: What You Should Be Doing


■ Black Friday quickly has turned into Black November, which means you need to be making inquiries beginning Oct. 1. Ask for close-out opportunities in anticipation of increased floor traffic during the Black Friday weekend. But more importantly, these close-outs should be inventoried and offered in February for the beginning of tax time.


■ Contact all your vendors during the holiday and close-out period to discuss each brands’ future technology and product roadmap. Offer to sign a non-disclosure agreement if necessary, then make some preliminary decisions on which brands you will support in the coming year.


Apps to Download Stuff to Read


Ultimate Guide to Facebook Advertis- ing: How to Access 600 Million Cus- tomers in 10


By Penny Marshall and Thomas Meloche


Use proven strategies to gain and retain Face- book fans and learn the secrets of paid adver-


tising to turn Facebook goers into customers. 26 Mobile Electronics Survival Guide 2012


Small Business Smarts: Build- ing Buzz with Social Media


By Steve O’Leary and Kim Sheehan This book helps


you decide which types of social media are right for you, then teaches you the basics of each. Learn from actual stories from successful small businesses.


ClockIn A time tracking/monitoring application where you are able to keep tabs on the time you spend on a project. This app also


tracks your shifts, giving you the option of clocking in or clocking out. $1.99.


Evernote A tracking application


documenting everything happening in your life. From voice memos to snapshots,


Evernote is an easy-to-use free app.


www.me-mag.com 27


Forecasting Next Month’s Sales Numbers Why it’s important: You can’t just pull these numbers out of your nether regions. Set realistic goals based on real sales history.


Determining sales increase or shortfall: Average sales of the same month over the past three years * trending percentage (see Winter Prep / Back- to-School Numbers to Crunch) ($90,000 + $92,000 + $100,000)/3 = $94,000 3-year average for same-month sales $94,000 * (-0.23) = -$21,620 sales shortfall


Determining forecast: 3-month average sales number + Sales increase or shortfall $94,000 + (- $21,620) = $72,380 forecasted numbers for upcoming same-month sales


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