May 29-Jun. 4
INVENTORY School’s out! And ironically, that’s the signal for you to start preparing for the time when school’s back in. Brainstorm promotions and begin searching for your back-to-school specials — the must-have optical frames that all the high-school and college types will need.
PREPAREDNESS Atlantic hurricane season officially runs June 1-Nov. 30. If recent years taught us anything, it’s that a generator is a wise investment.
Jun. 5-11
STAFFING Set a summer work schedule. “Stagger and strategically schedule and coordinate vacations. Don’t work short-handed,” advises Chris Dudley formerly of Lake Eye/Precision Optical in Wildwood, FL.
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TRAINING Write down one important skill that you can teach each member of your staff. By the end of next week, make sure that you’ve spent at least some time working with each staffer on that skill.
Jun. 12-18
ONLINE Test your online channel. Purchase an item on the website to see how smooth and easy it is or isn’t for your customers.
OPERATIONS Thinking of a remodel, a move to a new market, or just need some advice on how to stay competitive? Give your local U.S. Small Business Administration Center (asbdc-us.org) a call. There are approximately 1,000 service centers across the country that provide no-cost consulting and low-cost training.
Jun. 19-25
MARKETING Start your planning for the second half of the year by asking yourself what one advertisement or promotion in your recent history elicited the biggest response. Just because a $100 gift card to local businesses was hugely successful three years ago doesn’t mean you can’t do it again.
FINANCES This has been a volatile year for the economy. Next week will mark the midpoint of the year. How are your sales forecasts and other projections looking? Are you on budget for expenditures? Review and make adjustments where appropriate.
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Jun. 26-Jul. 2
INVENTORY It’s time for some analysis. Dig deep into trends for the first half to determine buying needs come fall. What’s happening with markdowns by department and category? Are they increasing either by size or as a portion of inventory?
COMMUNITY It’s parade season: Time to suit up and sign up for the July 4th fun. You’ll be spreading a message of fun, community involvement and vision health. Win/win/win.
