A retail store in its finished form involves many decisions: what products should be sold, how the space being leased should be laid out, what employees should be hired, and more. However, retail marketing comes next after the primary decisions are made and your store is open and active. This style of marketing involves getting people interested in buying your products.

If you run a retail store, you almost have no choice but to market. Marketing gives you your best chance at sales success. Here are retail marketing ideas for beginners to ensure that your store thrives in sales and revenues.

Define What the In-Store Experience Will Be

The in-store retail experience dictates whether you can convert a lead. This refers to the colors you use, the music you play, the scents you put into the environment, and more. Entertaining the five senses can prove critical in retail marketing to closing a sale.

Run Paid Ads to Gain Instant Notice and Attention

Paid ads provide instant awareness. They can be essential for a new retail store. Paid digital ads across Google and search media that target local-only put you in front of qualified leads and high-intent shoppers searching for products or services like yours.

Optimize Your Curb Appeal to Get More Customers In-Store

Curb appeal is the look and feel of your retail store from the outside. What you have for curb appeal communicates all sorts of things to passersby.

Proper lighting and a clean, tidy presentation outside your store increase visibility. Professional, tone-appropriate signage that features your logo or color palette. An engaging window display that catches the eye with the right products and promotions. You may wish to include digital signage software or a video wall here.

Address Doubts About Your Store and Products

A fundamental element of retail marketing is overcoming doubts about your products or store. If customers are not familiar with you or your products, retail marketing can be used to build trust. This is done by referencing the quality and reliability of your products and services.

Offer Samples of New Products In-Store

Offer free samples to attract customers to your physical store and help them evaluate the quality of a product. This allows customers to try a product before buying and essentially get their questions answered about whether to buy from your store or not.

Define What Pricing Strategy You Want to Take

How you price your products sends a marketing message about how a customer should interpret a product’s value. High prices mean premium and luxury. Low prices mean affordable and sometimes cheaply made. Then there’s the middle. Find a pricing strategy that works for your target market.

Analyze the Competition for Retail Marketing Ideas

Chances are there are dozens – sometimes hundreds – of stores like yours worldwide. Investigate what others are doing for retail marketing. See what they’re doing right or wrong. Find the opportunities. Never copy; take what you like and reinterpret it with your marketing.

Host Events That Attract People to Your Location

Events can draw in people who may not have otherwise found your store. Consider product demos, discussions with a subject matter expert about your products, a party or celebration, or live music. A person in-store is more likely to buy from you than outside.

Build Customer Loyalty

Creating repeat customers and increasing customer retention rates increases profits with less marketing spending. Ask for customer feedback post-sale through an online survey. This will give your customers a voice and let them know their input is valued.

Start a loyalty rewards program that incentivizes customers to make repeat purchases in exchange for exclusive discounts, promotions, and benefits. Use email marketing to build a base of customers to whom you can market directly and send personalized email messages.

Strong Consistent Branding Across All Retail Marketing

A strong brand presentation alone can support or increase revenues by as much as a third. Ensure your retail marketing materials have a strong color palette, logo, graphics, and tagline.

Traditional Marketing And Offline Channels Still Work

Local stores can still reach their audience through offline channels. While digital marketing should take up most of your budget, traditional marketing offers a strong way to connect. Possible routes to investigate include flyers and brochures given out in-store, direct mail, newspaper ads, and radio.

Create In-Store Digital Displays That Feature Key Products

Use digital signage software to create in-store displays that feature seasonal products, best-sellers, and price cuts. In-store retail marketing can help increase revenues and make the shopping experience more comfortable and intuitive.

Invest in Local SEO to Reach the Audience Where You Are

Local SEO uses search engine optimization strategies that target your specific area. Help people in your local area find your store on Google with relevant keywords, location-based retail marketing strategies, and more.

The post 13 Retail Marketing Ideas for Beginners appeared first on MarylandReporter.com.

The more you practice, the better you will be. But since golf is a mental sport, you need more than being great at hitting balls to win a game. You need confidence, mental focus, concentration, and the ability to read the greens on a golf course.

Whether you’re about to play a tournament or embark on a friendly competition with your best friend, learn how to win a game of golf with these seven tips.

Practice regularly and with a passion

Yes, golf is a mental sport. But it’s also a physical sport; you must practice regularly to win. So, grab your used golf drivers and head to the driving range to hit some balls. Practice your swing and pick different targets instead of always aiming at the same one.

Practice your short putts to make sure you won’t miss any next time you’re playing a game. And spend some time trying to get your ball out of the practice bunker to work on your sand shots. You have to be ready for anything that could happen during a game.

Be positive and confident

Do your best to appear confident, no matter who you play against. Keep a positive mindset from the start of the game until the very end. Stand up straight, keep your head up, and smile, knowing you got this.

If you act like you’re in control and ready to win the game, you’ll be more likely to feel in control and perform at your best. Plus, your confidence could make your opponent feel slightly less confident in their abilities, which would be to your advantage.

Understand that your true opponent is the golf course

Sure, you’ll play a game of golf against at least one other golfer. But you need to understand that your true opponent is the golf course you’ll be playing on.

What does that mean? You should not focus on your opponent’s score or what they’re doing. You must understand the course, know where each hole is, know where the fairway is, and know which hazards you should try to avoid. Have a plan for how you will play each hole, and focus on your game.

Give it your best from the start

Each hole counts when your goal is to try to win the game. Remember this and give it your very best from the start. Play each hole like it’s the most important one in the match. You want to take the lead and maintain it until the end.

And this is probably what your opponent wants to do as well. If they see you take the lead, they will get more competitive. But don’t let it stress you out. Focus on maintaining your pace and playing every single hole of the course as much as possible.

Relax and play at your own pace

You’ll be more likely to perform well if you can play at your own pace. Suppose you notice that your opponent is playing at the same pace. That’s good.

But what if they play faster or slower? Relax and keep playing at your own pace. You could make mistakes or get nervous if you try to speed up your game or slow it down to match their pace. You want your opponent to make mistakes by unconsciously adjusting to your natural pace.

Ignore what your opponent is doing

If you pay attention to what your opponent is doing, it will be more difficult for you to focus on your own game. You won’t be able to win if you’re constantly worried because your opponent is doing well and you’re afraid they might be better than you.

You should ignore what they’re doing simply. If they seem happy with their game, that is good for them. If they seem upset or disappointed, that is good for you. Try to be indifferent to what is happening with them so that you can concentrate on your game.

Keep a poker face on until the end of the game

Our last tip on how to win a game of golf is to try to put on a poker face and keep it on until the end of the game. If you get discouraged and let it show, your opponent might feel more confident. Plus, it might become more difficult for you to do your best.

On the other hand, if you get too excited because things are going well for you, you might celebrate your victory too early, lose focus, and lose the game. Be sure to stay calm no matter what happens and not let your opponent know how you feel.

The post How to win a game of golf appeared first on MarylandReporter.com.

When property taxes go unpaid, the municipality eventually takes over those properties and sold off to recoup these costs. If you are an investor seeking to invest or buy a tax-sale property, hundreds go on sale yearly. You should understand what to expect, your strategy, and how tax sales work.

Here’s a buyer’s guide to tax delinquent properties:

Understand the Risks

A tax-delinquent property may be the best purchase you’ve ever made, but it can also be the worst. Tax sales carry a lot of risk, with a chance for legal disputes and not knowing the full condition of the property. Be prepared financially and mentally for whatever may come.

Your Municipality Sets the Rules

Different regions have different rules. Not all tax sales are the same. Read up on the unique rules governing tax sales in your area to understand better how you can bid on these homes.

Find Tax Sale Listings Online

Local tax sales listings are easy to find online. Check any local government website for more information on properties currently up for bid.

Inspect Tax Sale Listings Regularly

When you first look at the tax sale listings, you may not find the right tax-delinquent property. If not, wait until the next sale and look again. Every tax sale brings with it new investment opportunities.

Properties Are Sold As-Is

Most tax-delinquent properties are sold as-is. As you are not the owner, you cannot inspect the home until you purchase it. Try to do your best to use online resources to determine the value of a property to you.

Observe the Property

From the public road, observe the property. See what you cannot see just from its exterior. Look for potential liabilities, such as environmental or structural issues, that require an immediate fix.

Research the Neighborhood

See what the lot is worth and what the neighborhood’s reputation is. See if there are development plans that could positively or negatively impact property value and what you want from it.

Evaluate a Home’s Resale Value

Calculate a potential resale or rental value even if you don’t intend to sell. These numbers will help you determine what’s profitable and what makes the most sense when putting a bid on tax-delinquent houses.

Check for Liens

Run a title search and check for liens or encumbrances. Most liens are removed from a property once it goes up for a tax sale, but not all are. Ensure that what you’re bidding on is free and clear.

There May Be Renovations

Budget for possible renovations. Many tax-delinquent properties are not in good standing and require repairs, be they roofing, plumbing, or structural repairs. These can be costly. Set aside some funds to cover what you discover post-sale.

Don’t Overpay

There is always a risk that a tax sale house could be much more expensive than you thought—the quality of your research and how you calculate value matter. Do not bid emotionally. Bid by the numbers and avoid overpaying.

Avoid Bidding Wars

If you’re buying a tax sale house by public tender, bidding is done by mail. You make one bid, and you’re done. If you’re bidding by public auction, the competition can heat up. Avoid bidding wars at every turn.

Secure Financing

Secure financing or cash for a quick, painless purchase well in advance. Many tax auctions and tax sales by public tender require immediate payment. There is no time to arrange a mortgage. Bring funds to the deadline or risk losing a property on which you have been deemed the ‘highest bidder.’

Plan for Holding Costs

If you cannot immediately buy a property or if it’s not sellable, you may still be responsible for future property taxes, insurance, and maintenance costs. Budget accordingly.

Let the Grace Period Roll Over

Before you make any major changes to the property or invest further in a tax sale house, let the prior owner’s grace period roll over and have them evicted if they are still on the premises. Only then should you start to renovate and continue putting money towards tax-delinquent property.

You May Have to Evict

If the prior tenant has refused to leave, you may have to evict them. Talk to a real estate lawyer. Pursue legal avenues to do this. Know your rights and their rights and how to get the former tenants or owners to leave as best they can.

Have a Lawyer

Even if it’s just to know who to call, have a real estate lawyer to help you navigate complex tax sales. A lawyer can advise on how to pursue liens and other factors that could impact your property ownership rights.

The post A Buyer’s Guide to Tax Delinquent Properties appeared first on MarylandReporter.com.

Fun activities you can do with your dog help you create a strong bond. These activities offer exercise and challenge your dog’s mind. The best activity will vary based on your dog’s breed, age, and any health issues they might have. There are lots of good ideas to keep your dog lively.

Here are all the fun activities to do with your dog:

1. Take a Nature Hike

Choose a dog-friendly hiking trail with scenic views and varied terrain to take your pup on. Pack all your hiking essentials, including high-quality dog food, water, a collapsible bowl, waste bags, and a leash. As you hike up and down, front to back, let your dog explore and sniff to get that mental stimulation they crave.

2. Organize a Playdate

Coordinate a dog playdate with your dog and another. Ideally, you want to find dogs of similar size and temperament. As they meet and engage in play, supervise the interaction to ensure safe play at all times. If dog toys are involved or secondary activities, rotate them and work to keep things exciting.

3. Train Your Dog

Yes, training your dog can be fun. It’s a bonding experience and a chance for your dog to learn good behaviors. Start with basic commands, using positive reinforcement to keep training fun and productive. Unlike other activities on this list, when you train your dog, practice in short sessions spanning 5-15 minutes at most.

4. Play a Game of Fetch

Take your dog to a local park and play with toys like a frisbee or tennis ball. It’s an excellent opportunity to exercise yourself and work out your puppy. Select an open area where there are few distractions. Fine-tune a dog’s retrieval techniques and use a game of fetch as a training opportunity. Praise them every time your dog nails the catch!

5. Agility Training

Agility training can be challenging for some dogs, but it is an enjoyable activity for those who can handle it. Build an obstacle or set up simple tunnels, jumps, and weave poles. If your dog hasn’t undergone agility training, start with simple tasks. After they get it, the difficulty increases. Always reward them with treats or dog food to boost their confidence.

6. Practice Nose Work

Hide a treat in different spots around the room and let your dog sniff it. Add different treats or scents to make the nose-work game even more complex. When a dog sniffs something out, reward it with verbal praise. This can be a fun way to occupy their time with something fun and mentally enriching.

7. Dress Them Up for Photos

Some dogs do not like costumes or clothes, so this can be a bit of an iffy activity. However, if your dog is comfortable, you can go for it and dig in. Choose simple costumes for your furry friend to jump in, and don’t forget to snap many photos. This can be even more fun with a few friends at a doggy playdate.

8. Dog-Friendly Restaurant

Visit a dog-friendly café or restaurant. Research local spots with an outdoor patio or that welcome dogs indoors. Bring a portable water bowl with you if you take them out to have a container to put water and food scraps in. When in public, practice calm behavior and commands. A dog-friendly restaurant is a great pick if you have another activity planned for before and after.

9. Explore the Urban Environment

Take your dog to the city and explore the urban environment together. If you know of dog-friendly shopping areas or outdoor markets where dogs are welcome, these may be the place to explore with them. For this, keep your dog leashed and watch for others. Let your dog explore new sights, smells, and sounds for enrichment.

10. Go for a Swim

Take your dog to a beach or pool with shallow waters where dogs can swim. If your dog hasn’t swum before, always use a life vest. Use a life jacket, especially if you’re outdoors and there’s a risk of a current. A dog new to swimming may be a bit nervous at first, so give them lots of patience and don’t put too much pressure on them.

11. Night In with Your Dog

Schedule a movie night with your dog! As silly as it may sound, hanging out with your dog on the couch or in bed is an excellent way to maintain a connection with them. Offer your dog a snack and lots of affection throughout the night. A night in with your dog and a nice meal can make for a fun activity.

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