Are you ready for Small Business Saturday?

In case you’ve been living under a seashell in Micronesia for the last few years, the Saturday after Thanksgiving has been designated “Small Business Saturday”. On that day shoppers are encouraged to spend money with locally owned businesses.

This year Small Business Saturday will be observed on Nov. 30.

Credit-card giant American Express deserves credit for leading the Small Business Saturday crusade. Three years ago Amex spent a fortune and launched a nationwide advertising campaign to promote Small Business Saturday. Now that’s what I call walking the talk!

Other major companies, government agencies and political leaders have joined the campaign to urge consumers to shop local on Nov. 30.

So Mr. and Ms. Business Owner, how will you take advantage of this magnificent opportunity?

Look around your sales floor. What do you have to sell?

Is it the same old same old? Or can you introduce a few new products to freshen things up?

Let’s face it, the Christmas countdown clock is ticking. Christmas season sales will make or break many retailers – both large and small.

If you expect people to spend money, you need inventory – especially items consumers are likely to buy. If you don’t know what’s hot, you better do some quick research.

By the way, what about some great discounts to sweeten the pot? Everybody loves a sale!

Since this is all about the Christmas sales season, please put up some holiday decorations in your store. The decorations you use are a personal choice, but don’t go overboard. I’ve been to shops that were so heavily decorated that it was difficult to tell the merchandise from the decorations. Remember, the goal is to make sales, not win a decorating contest.

And while you’re looking around the sales floor, does your shop need to be spruced up? Be honest! Some locally owned small businesses I’ve visited are cluttered and could use a deep cleaning. One of my pet peeves is storefront windows that are smudged and stained. If you’re too busy to clean, then hire a janitorial service, but get it done quickly!

Pay attention to your business exterior, too. Is there trash in the gutter? Does the sidewalk need to be power washed? Please encourage neighboring businesses to do their part because cleaning up benefits everyone’s business. If your business looks bad from the outside most prospective customers will drive right past you.

What American Express has done is wonderful, but please don’t rely on the national campaign to bring shoppers through your door on Small Business Saturday.

You need to take action! This week you should be sending a snail-mail letter or email to your customers encouraging them to make plans to visit your store on Nov. 30. Ask them to share the Small Business Saturday news with their friends. Shame on you if you don’t have a customer mailing list!

For those businesses with customer mailing lists, there are free resources available to help you prepare messages you can send out, post at your store, and on your Facebook page and business website. Search “Small Business Saturday” on Google and you can find all kinds of material, including logos and fliers to promote your business and Small Business Saturday.

If I owned a store, when Small Business Saturday arrives, I would have extra staff on hand, (everyone in clean pressed clothing with big smiles on their faces), and a nice platter of holiday cookies to greet shoppers. Remember the line from that commercial: You never get a second chance to make a first impression.

This article was written by David Porter, principal and owner at David Porter Communications Inc., an Orlando-based communications consulting firm that produces www.B2BFlorida.com