Hey there!
Now that the holiday haze has passed and everyone’s settling into 2012, it’s time to start following up with those stores you contacted last year! They may be busy (I know, it never ends! 
) with their year end duties, inventory and what not, but they will also be in the state of mind to bring some new-ness to their store! New year, new merchandise! AND, if business was good over the holidays, they might have some extra “open-to-buy!”
Of the many questions I’ve received from you over the past couple of months, a majority of them have been about trying to figure out the WHEN and HOW part of beginning a conversation with retailers.
When is the best time to contact a buyer?
It really depends on each person, but I would shy away from contacting a buyer on Mondays and Fridays. Mondays are usually spent running sales reports and analyzing business from previous week. They’ll be busy and distracted and you most likely won’t get their full attention. Fridays might not be best if they’ve already checked out for the weekend.
I would say Tuesdays and Wednesdays are good days to approach buyers. Thursdays tend to be market days for many!
Do buyers prefer to be contacted via email, snail mail or phone?
I would recommend contacting them via snail mail (if you want to WOW them with your samples). Email works too (with a follow-up phone call). Give them about a week or two before contacting them again. When I get bombarded with calls the minute I get an email, it doesn’t give me enough time to digest all the information.
If you are feeling a little lazy and just want to add the store’s email address to a mass mailing list, don’t do it! It will go right into trash. If you choose to email a store for the first time, send out a personalized email to the store buyer. This is what I teach my private clients to do with exact formula to follow and sample scripts.
Hope that answers your questions! If you have a question you would like answered in one of these posts, join me on facebook and post your questions there!
Next week, I will address three things you can do to get a buyer (i.e. someone like me 
to visit your booth at a trade show! Yes, you still need to reach out to buyers before and after
xoxo,
Grace Kang
Your Retail Product Mentor
p.s. A BIG, warm welcome to all of the new readers who joined our community! You are going to love the resources you will find here to help you make your product retail-ready… Enjoy!
image: Pink of Perfection
