From the Editor:

– Debra Neville

Our apologies.

We committed a publishing faux paus. When you send a monthly newsletter, inherent in the word monthly is --once-a-month. We didn't send a May issue. I didn't think anyone would notice. But you did. Many readers sent me an email and asked, "Hey, where's my May Point of Saler?" Or something like that. You missed us and we missed an issue. We won't do that again. Promise.

10 Quick Lessons for Retailers

– Rick Segel

One of the most effective forms of advertising and probably the most ignored is a simple 12-15 second message left on an answering machine. The message is about something the customer is interested in. You aren't selling; you are merely informing the customer about something that just came in, a new department, a sale, or an event, taking place in the store. [Get the full story]

Boomerang Customers

What You Might NOT Think Brings Them Back!

– Anne M. Obarski

With all of the calendars and PDA's and lists I make I recently did a really dumb thing. I forgot my best friend's birthday and her anniversary. Both special days are back to back and I forgot both of them. After being friends for twenty years I feel old and stupid!

It could have been that I was packing my last child to go off to college and the constant comments like, "You're going to be empty-nesters", like I was a big, fat robin, were starting to wear very thin. Even having my youngest leave home was not enough of an excuse to miss two important days in my best friend's life.

So what did I do the minute I realized my mistake? I went shopping! [Get the full story]

Returning from Vegas with Winning Ideas

An overview of the first Island Pacific Retail Pro Global Users' Conference

– Don Capman

On Saturday, September 25th, several of us from J.D. Associates returned from the first Island Pacific® Retail Pro® Global User and Business Partner conference that was held in Las Vegas.  It was a unique event where the attendees received valuable information about cutting edge retail systems technology, and had the opportunity to share stories and experiences with other retailers throughout the world.  By all accounts, this conference was a great success.  Although I did hear that some of the attendees went home with a little less pocket change. [Get the full story]