The FAM Marketing Show

When life hands you lemons... ....turn it into billion dollar lemonade. In this episode, Adrienne hosts a very special guest - her brother, Nathan Gautier, Development Officer for the St. Francis Healthcare System in Cape Girardeau, Missouri and the founder of the LemonDrop Long Drive, an area fundraiser to raise awareness for testicular cancer. Listen in as Nathan discusses his marketing heart, considerations for becoming involved in "cause marketing" and how his event has caught the attention of a billion dollar company.

Read the mind of a woman and your marketing dreams will come true. In this episode, Adrienne is joined by special co-host, Tara Kinsley, the prettier, more energetic half of the Kinsley duo. Together, they discuss problems in showroom staging, what they want to see when they walk into a mattress store, furniture store and what their ideal shopping experience looks like.

Reinvention: Producing something new based on something that aleady exists. Movie theaters as we have always known them are becoming a thing of the past. In fact, in the last decade, movie theaters have changed more in terms of service and experience than in the 70 years. In this episode, Mark and Adrienne chat movie theater makeovers and how this affects the furniture, appliance and mattress industry. Scantily clad butlers and flutes of Prosseco for a Magic Mike preview, ropes course challenges and themed food at the Alamo Draft House for a screening of Cocaine Bear -- what does this mean? Retailers need to being to think, "how can I create an experience around that that's culturally relevant that would get people to come into my store and have some fun?" Listen or watch for more creative ideas and topics on how to reinvent the shopping experience and become culturally relevant!

You need to be completely unreasonable. Unreasonable how? In your service to customers. In this episode, Mark Kinsley returns to co-host alongside Adrienne as they discuss Adrienne's most recent read of the book, "Unreasonable Hospitality" by Will Guidara. Never heard of it? It's book you can't afford to not to read. The premise of the book is the remarkable art of giving your customers more than they expect, and while the author's focus is on his rise to the top in making his restaurant (Eleven Madison Park) the number one restaurant in the world, the principles can apply to any service, client-focused industry. Listen or watch to learn about the innovative ways he created bespoke experiences for the patrons of Eleven Madison Park, and Kinsley weighs in on what unreasonable hospitality looks like in a mattress retail environment.

Show us your marketing and we will show you your customer base. The FAM Marketing Show is reviewing a popular Tiktok video and breaking down the marketing principles. In this episode, Quinn joins Adrienne to discuss the problem with unaccommodating salespeople, industries who fail to keep up with changing times and how the sales you promote indicate the type of customer you seek after. In this TikTok by @moneymanmyers, the creator recaps a recent sales transaction for the purchase of a new car. In 57 seconds, he identifies a problem in the car sales industry and explains why he spent $18,000 more on a vehicle at a place other than a dealership. After a comment on the original video indicated that he wasn't giving car shopping the deference due, he follows up in this TikTok about how people value two things: money or time. Quinn and Adrienne dissect how placing too much value on one or the other will indicate the type of customer you're after and why isolating your marketing to one customer base, may cost you in the long run.

Failing can be your biggest learning opportunity, but when it's a product at stake, failure can also be costly. In this episode, Adrienne co-hosts alongside Bedhead Marketing team, Brandon Bain and Stephen Ferguson to discuss guaranteed ways you can fail when launching a product into the market place. Tangible Takeaways: 1) Heavy lift on the front end to avoid disaster. 2) The first 30-90 days are the most crucial. 3) Trash the "junk speak." 4) Create a cohesive communication strategy that aligns all party on terms, from the manufacturer to the consumer. 5) Make it fun!

Your customer is 90% pre-sold if they walk into your store. Thus, the sale is yours to lose. In this episode, return co-host Doug Stewart of Resident discusses how the typical customer has changed -their shopping patterns, behaviors, and expectations - and how most customers walking into your store aren't there to merely shop for a product, but to confirm a decision to make a purchase they researched and shopped for online. Listen or watch Doug discuss how Resident views the Nectar customer and how they have learned to assess the sale in under 8 minutes. From changing how you communicate with the customer to identifying meaningful, quality touch points for the customer, it's a tutorial in customer sales you can't miss.

Generative Pre-Trained Transformer. If you don't recognize the acronym, you need to learn it and what it does, ASAP. On today's special FAM Marketing Show episode, Mark Quinn joins Adrienne and professional FMS co-host Julia Rosien to chat the next marketing phenomenon. GPT, according to Wikipedia, is an "autoregressive language model that uses deep learning to produce human-like text." For students, this platform is a win when it comes to paper writing. With very specific prompts and directives, GPT is able to produce a human-like quality paper that is unique and free from plagarism. What does this mean for marketers, retailers, and everyone else? The sky is the limit. While in its infancy, and still ripe with errors, the tool is quickly adapting and learning as users edit and input new information. Microsoft has invested billions of dollars and Elon Musk, Sam Alton, and Peter Thiel all have a stake in the chat GPT game. Listen or watch to learn what you need to know about this "arms race" to the new way of business.

It is said, picture is worth a thousand words. In social media, they're worth likes, clicks and a requisite part of brand awareness. In today's episode, Julia Rosien returns to co-host alongside Mark and Adrienne to discuss the importance of digital images in social media. From when to use static images, whether to use images with words, the decision to put together short form or long form video and the never ending task of drafting the perfect caption, Julia discusses what brands and businesses need to know. Plus, check out her recent article on images for blog posts - Do You Use Images In Your Blog Posts? over at fam.news!

Do you want to read your customer's mind? What retailer wouldn't want to do that if they could? On today's FAM Marketing Show, bed marketing guru, Brandon Bain of BedHead Marketing, joins Mark and Adrienne to discuss how you can extrapolate consumer data and learn exactly what your customer wants. In this episode, Bain discusses morphing technology and how everyone from retailers to manufacturers are jumping on board to integrate it into their products and how that usage can be a useful tool when it comes to sales. Learn how to read the data that's being received and how to translate that information into language your customers needs to hear to build confidence in their purchase.

Low sales should not mean you ease back on marketing. On the contrary, those who stay the course with their marketing strategy or increase fair better not only during the recession, but for years afterwards. Back on today's FAM Marketing Show co-hosting alongside Mark Kinsley and Adrienne Woods is Eric Grindley, Founder and CEO of Esquire Advertising. In this episode, Eric gives insights into marketing during a recession - how to pivot and how to make back your return. He states, "McGraw Hill did this study, um, where they, they studied 600 different companies... what they found... is that for the stores that continued to advertise... through a downturn in the market or through a recession, that they, when they came out of the recession, they had more market share, they had a higher increase in sales, as compared to those that did not advertise." Listen or watch and learn 1) How to determine what is discretionary spending in your business when it comes to advertising and 2) How technology has evolved since the last recession and how hyper-targeting could help you.

Podcasts that are perfectly curated are a labor of love. Join Adrienne in this very special episode as she takes you behind the scenes and recaps a few episodes from the debut year of the FAM Marketing Show. Tangible Takeaways: - Just like in marketing, do things differently to capture attention; - Even hosts of their own show, get the name wrong. In business, don't sweat the small stuff no one else will notice.

Surviving a pressure test can reveal a lot about your business. The holidays put added stress on a number of points in your business. From staffing (and staff shortages), to POS systems and inventory, the holidays will show you exactly what works and what doesn't when foot traffic and sales pick-up. In this episode, Adrienne enlightens Mark with her recent trip to Hobby Lobby for holiday decor and how she almost left a $200 transaction in line over inefficiencies at the register. Learn how to pressure test your business from multiple angles before the rush of major holidays to ensure that customers leave your store delighted and ready to return.

You're probably doing Omnichannel wrong… …Omnichannel and omniexperience are not the same thing and often times the two are used interchangeably. Most omnichannel approaches don't render a cohesive omni experience and that can kill your marketing efforts. Enter the guys from Bedhead Marketing. In this episode, BedHead Marketing Co-Founders, Brandon Bain and Stephen Ferguson, discuss amplifying your omnichannel approach and taking your marketing to the next level and making your hard work pay off. Tangible Takeaways: How to give customers continuity of experience from website to your social media platforms to your physical store location; Explaining the "why" behind why what's done is done and how that differs between bigger and smaller retailers; and How VRS is the next cool kid on the block and how you can integrate it into your online presence.

Shopping is at an all-time high this Christmas Season! On today's episode, Mark and Adrienne kick-off the Christmas season with 5 ways you can capture a customer's attention (and their wallet). 1. Host a Donut with Santa event; 2. Place a mailbox outside your store and allow kids to send their letters to the North Pole (bonus! if you have "Santa" write them back); 3. Be the host destination for an Angel Tree; 4. Make photo backdrop settings for customers to use for their holiday cards; and 5. Make a bet on the weather! Offer an incentive for customers who spend over a certain dollar amount to be entered into a drawing where if it snows on Christmas, they get their purchase free! Whether the events are simple or elaborate, invest in your Christmas spirit this season!

Running an effective social media ad campaign during the holidays is crucial. Social media algorithms constantly change and ensuring you end up on the right side of the algorithms can be tricky. On today's episode, our resident social media expert, Julia Rosien of Restonic, joins us to discuss how to use social media to help your business make it into the black for 2022. Tangible Topics: Advertising is more expensive at the holidays; make your dollars go farther. Don't wait to use social media just during the holidays. How to prepare organic content all year long in order to amplify your holiday marketing efforts. What are barriers to entry and how you can overcome. Go Deeper: Make a social media strategy plan for upcoming holidays in 2023.

"Pay attention to who you're pissing off. " This advice is from Doug Stewart, a Director of Retail Training for Resident by day, and a TedX presenter and author by night. On today's episode, Stewart co-hosts alongside Mark Kinsley and Adrienne Woods and explains how being a mentor to those around you, beneath you and above you can translate into a marketing strategy. In today's episode he highlights a piece of advice given to him by an unnamed executive at Tempur-Pedic which was "pay attention to who you're pissing off because people push away from you for certain reasons and you need to know what those reasons are." Good or bad, you need to be aware of your influence and how that directly translates into the people around you and the brand you represent. Listen and learn as Doug discusses: How to talk to customers (and what turns them off); How to give and receive constructive feedback; Identifying good leaders by the questions they ask, and How to remain agile in an ever evolving industry. Go Deeper: What's one piece of advice you would give to a newcomer or a younger employee in this industry?

Divorce presents a unique sales opportunity. It's a touchy subject, but like marketing to those getting married, those getting divorced often find themselves as consumers in need of half of everything. From living rooms to bedrooms, families enduring divorce are rebuilding life in two separate places. In this episode, Mark taps into Adrienne's former life as an attorney with domestic relations experience and they discuss the emotional state of divorces, the pieces of furniture that are top of mind and unique ways you can meet a customer's needs during the tumultuous time.

Does television advertising scare you? Do you think it's out of reach due to cost? Monthly or yearly ad spends have previously been barriers to entry for small and medium size businesses and understandably, when minimum ad spends can start at $1 million. On today's episode, Eric Grindley, Founder and CEO of Esquire Advertising, co-hosts the FAM Marketing Show alongside Mark and Adrienne. They discuss OTT (a.k.a. know as Over The Top - it's okay, we didn't know the acronym either) and how television advertising is far from over and how Esquire is working to make streaming advertisements available to small businesses. Plus, get insights into Eric's data and how Esquire is working to ensure you target the right customer every time and can measure your tv ad spend ROI.

Are blogs still a thing? In business, blogs are still relevant and they can be high income earners if you know how to utilize them correctly. Returning to co-host this episode is Restonic's Julie Rosien to discuss how blogs are adapting to changing consumers, challenges small businesses may face (and how to overcome them) in successful blog development, and the ever changing search engine optimization. Plus, she gives us an inside scoop into her own travel blog GoGirlfriend.com. Go Deeper: If you don't have a blog, start one! It doesn't have to be fancy. If you're a retailer carrying major brands, borrow content from their PR announcements or articles and make them your own (pro tip: just always site back to your original source)!

VRS isn't the next big thing in technology, it's the current thing and if you aren't utilizing virtual room scenes, you run the risk of being behind. In this episode, Brandon Bain, Co-Founder and CEO of Bedhead Marketing joins Mark and Adrienne to discuss revolutionary technology that it amplifying the shopping experience online and turning it into in-store sales. Move over 360 degree pictures, the shopping experience of the future is immersive and Brandon is telling us why everyone from the manufacturer to the retailer needs to be involved.

Do you know how to turn online shoppers into purchasers? In this episode, Mark and Adrienne discuss exclusive research conducted in partnership with Outward, Inc., regarding the confidence of the consumer in the shopping process. According to research, there are 5 key factors that can build confidence in a shopper when viewing a product online that will enable them to complete a purchase. The good news? The retailer has the ability to control more of these factors than they may realize. Go deeper: Connect with Outward and see how they can help you!

Luxury is a lifestyle all on its own, but marketing luxury doesn't have to be for only the elite. On today's episode, Nationwide Marketing Group's Director of Luxury Appliance, John O'Halloran returns to co-host the show and discuss innovative and unique ways to market to designers and builders to make you stand out. Listen in as Mark, Adrienne and John discuss: the non-traditional path to purchase many consumers take when building a home or designing a commercial space, the relationship needed between the retailer and the contractors and consumer, email campaigns, working with the influencer community, and the experience contractors, builders and designers are creating for their consumer and you can aid in that partnership.

The Format Festival held in Bentonville, Arkansas over this past weekend was compared to Woodstock. Yet, those attended can attest that it was anything but the infamous historical event. Rather, it was a festival filled with music, art and technology and the integration of all three for a truly immersive experience. This got Mark thinking, how do we replicate these experiences inside our industry? What made standing in line to wait for people who were blind folded to assess your "vibe" a worthwhile experience? Mark and Adrienne discuss immersive experiences and what they look like in our industry, how you can identify events to be a part of and what truly makes an event magical.

Sustainability. It's a buzz word in almost every industry and for good reason. In this episode, Restonic's Julia Rosien joins Mark and Adrienne to discuss retail sustainability and what that means for the furniture, mattress and appliance space. Aside from the known upcycling/recylcing of mattresses, Julia discusses purposeful support (such as investing in local charities within one's community) and persistent transparency (if you have never heard of the term "green washing" you need to pay attention). Go Deeper: Listen in as Julia discusses how diversity impacts sustainability and why it sets up the foundation for success.

From Door Dash to Instacart to mattress delivery, your delivery drivers could be the key to your success. How? On today's episode, Co-Host Keith Moneymaker of Sweet Dreams Mattresses and More returns and identifies a common mistake retailers are making. Join Moneymaker, alongside Adrienne and Mark, as he discusses how under utilizing your employees is a missed marketing strategy. Together, they touch on employee training, empowerment, management and how investing in your employees is a lesson you cannot afford to miss.

Thermador. Wolf. Dacor. Gaggenau. These luxury appliance brands need no introduction to the independent retailer, but how do you market them to your customers? On today's episode, we host the legendary John O'Halloran of Nationwide Marketing Group. Currently, O'Halloran is the Director of Luxury Appliance and for good reason. His resume in the luxury appliance goes back almost two decades and if there can be a resident expert in luxury appliances, O'Halloran is it. We chat why luxury appliances have not faired well in big box stores (hint: it's not for lack of trying), expectations for service of a luxury appliance and who should network with, the intention of the consumer, and how 2020 shifted the marketing landscape and what you need to do about it.

Do you know what luxury consumers want? On today's episode, Monogram's Senior Brand Manager, Robert Koller discusses the luxury consumer. He touches on the overall economic make-up of one shopping in the category: from income ranges to home values. He emphasizes how the average luxury shopper isn't buying "onsies and twosies" when it comes to appliances, but rather, luxury consumers are looking for total packages. Listen or watch to determine how you should be thinking about this consumer and how best to network and market effectively.

"It's About Damn Time..." If you're paying attention to anything on social media, the instant you read the above words, you knew (and possibly heard in your head) the remaining lyrics to the famous Lizzo song. Why? Because music is powerful and as Adrienne mentions in today's episode, if you can put something to music people will remember it. That notion is exactly what today's co-host, Trent Ranburger of Trent's Bedding, was banking on. He took the wildly popular song by Sammy Stephens, "Just Like a Mini Mall", replaced the lyrics to fit his commercial and has gotten over 12 million YouTube views promoting his mattress store. What can you do with this information? Social media reels, tiktoks, and other short form video platforms have made it easier than ever to make videos and put them together with trending sounds. Tap into what's relevant when planning your marketing content. You don't have to reinvent the wheel to make an impact.

This past weekend, Nationwide Marketing Group hosted their 59th edition of the PrimeTime event in Orlando, Florida. The Gaylord was abuzz with activity as retailers from all across the United States gathered together to learn, grow and network. As it was Adrienne's first in-person Furniture, Appliance and Mattress event, she took to the halls to ask retailers on the front line for their best piece of marketing advice. The responses were overwhelming and business owners freely shared real stories of advice and tactics that have worked for them in their markets. Listen or watch to learn innovative ideas from those on the front lines!

Social media and ad spend can be complicated and time consuming, and you're left wondering if any of it makes an impact. On today's episode, guest co-host Julie Rosien from Restonic joins us to discuss the power of small social media platforms. Though sites such as Pinterest or the app "WhatsApp" don't immediately spring to mind when you think of social media, Julie digs in to discuss how much further your dollar goes and how the ROI can often times be higher. Listen in as she discusses strategy, pitfalls to avoid and gives her thoughts on budgets for Facebook and Instagram.

You can host an event at your store or you can host an experience such as a mattress chucking competition. This week, Trent Ranburger of Trent Bedding Company, returns to co-host the show and discuss how to host events at your store that are not only memorable, but leave a lasting impact. In this episode, Trent discusses partnering with their local chapter of the American Red Cross and hosting a "mattress chucking" competition, which is exactly what it sounds like. He hosted a men's, women's and children's division and offered a new mattress set to the winner of each category. All the competitors had to do? Chuck the mattress the further than any other competitor. Listen or watch as Trent discusses where the event idea came from, how they collaborated with local businesses and why it is an event that people will never forget.

Are you afraid to use your charitable arm as a marketing tool? Don't be. On today's episode, co-host Keith Moneymaker of Sweet Dreams Mattresses & More discusses how his non-profit, the Dreams4All Foundation works alongside his retail business. Moneymaker didn't start out in the charitable space. His retail business started back in 2002 out of necessity and after years of managing a team of RSAs, inventory, and focusing on P&L sheets, his heart again saw another need. In 2016, after Hurricane Matthew devastated the area around his community, he began providing used mattresses to keep people from sleeping on the floor. What was once a quick fix solution has now become a fully operational arm of his retail store. Listen as Keith discusses how to set up a non-profit, intricacies of repurposing used mattresses, how you can use it as a marketing tool (without coming across as arrogant and flashy) and why you should.

The question business face today is not whether there will be a social media crisis, but when. On today's episode, co-host Julia Rosien, Vice President at Restonic, gives us practical tips in how to identify a percolating issue online and how to address it before it escalates. She discusses how to implement a strategy (hint: it's not as expensive as it may seem), who to designate as a spokesperson in the event of a crisis, the importance in building community, and provides a timely reminder that time is always of the essence. For more on social media crisis management, listen or read her latest FAM article, How to Build and Manage Your Social Media Crisis Plan.

"People will stay at a job they hate because they work for someone they love. Alternatively, people will leave a job they love because they hate the people they work for." On today's episode, Adrienne and Mark are chatting creating and maintaining a company culture people want to be a part of. Today's work force no longer adheres to the working 80 hours a week with zero appreciation. Recruiters are ruthless and employees are a hot commodity. Listen or watch as they discuss how to create culture, who is doing it well in the industry and a few tips you can put into action to ensure your business is where people want to work.

Urban legends stick with you for a reason. Urban legends are often tangible and the story usually taps into an emotion of fear or excitement. The stories have just enough truth to be believable, yet the premise is fairly simple. Why do urban legends stick around? It is because they follow a simple marketing method for SUCCESS. In today's episode, Mark and Adrienne discuss 6 "sticky ideas" from the book, "Made to Stick" which covers why some ideas survive and others die. In a nutshell, all marketing ideas should try to incorporate at least one of the six SUCCESS points (and the truly genius marketing plans hit all 6). Simplicity. Unexpectedness. Concreteness. Credibility. Emotions. Stories.

Magnify your brand...it seems simple, but how do you stitch your brand and your promotions together to create a cohesive marketing strategy? On today's episode, Mark and Adrienne chat brand logos and how they add value to your business (hint: no boring logos allowed), creating experiences through your marketing messages, and the importance of specificity. Want more? Check out the other FAM article on how much your logo costing you here.

In marketing, are you going with the flow or are you forging a new path? In this episode, guest co-host Trent Ranburger of Trent Bedding joins Mark and Adrienne and discusses how he started doing the opposite of what his competitors were doing and that singular act, propelled him forward. What exactly did he do that was so revolutionary? You'll have to listen to find out....

Here comes the bride, all dressed in white... From the flowers, to the venue, from the dress, to the cake, weddings are a multi billion dollar industry. So, why isn't the furniture and mattress industry getting a slice of the cake? In this episode, Adrienne and Mark discuss innovative ideas to get your name into the wedding industry market, creative gift ideas and breakdown what just one single mattress purchase per wedding could mean for your business.

We have all walked out of a store and seen a kiosk with the happy and sad face emojis pointing to green, yellow and red buttons asking us to rate our experience. Was the customer service good? Did you find the products you were looking for? What if you provided a "don't bother me" button in your store? What if, when walking into a store, you gave customers the option to alert the RSAs as to whether they wanted to be helped or to hold off? With a new generation of shoppers accustomed to doing their research online before ever walking into a store, it got us to thinking--is offering to help the customer really hurting your chances at completing the sale?

Welcome to the FAM Marketing Show! It's our debut episode! Join us each Thursday for 15 minutes (we promise, it'll be quick) to get an idea, inspiration or share in some marketing magic to help you in your retail business. We'll have industry experts co-hosting the show giving you tips, tricks and ideas that worked for them and help you take your marketing to new levels. Get ready to enter the most outrageous whiteboard sessions with Mark Kinsley, CEO of Englander Mattress and Adrienne Woods, voice of the FAM, Executive Producer of the Dos Marcos Show, and the target audience to which all businesses are trying to appeal. Together, it's their goal to get you to shake your moneymaker.