Retailing Tips from "Build-a-Bear"

I just finished reading an article on how the company "Build-a-Bear" got started.

I always enjoy learning about successful businesses that originally started as an idea that everyone thought would fail. Everyone, that is, except the entrepreneur who took the risk to start the business.

Anyway, an interesting point was made in the article which I think really applies to many businesses today. The article quotes Stanley Goodman, who was then CEO of May Department Stores, as saying "Retailing is entertainment, and when customers have fun, they spend more money."


Whether you have a website, a mobile business or a brick-and-mortar shop, entertainment is a key factor in retail success. When customers can get involved offering feedback, using interactive widgets on websites, helping to create products or taking part in special company events, the buying process suddenly becomes more comfortable.

Buyers become more interested in what the business is doing, they return to take part in more activities, they tell their friends about it.  What can you do in your business to entertain your customers? Here are some ideas...

- Encourage feedback and 2-way communication with your customers by starting a blog.

- Let visitors choose and print their own gift certificates from your website.

- Let clients get involved in the product creation process like VistaPrint's "design your own business card" program or LogoMaker's interactive logo designer.