You've seen the ads, JC Penney has big changes in the works;

So what can JCP teach the small business owner? Johnson's presentation revolves around the 6 P's- Product, Place, Presentation, Price, Promotion and Personality. We offer the M.O.S. (Moral of the Story) after each item to help you use these strategies in your business plan this year.

1. Product: The brands at the new JCP will be confined to smaller spaces, giving the feel of specialty shops within the department store.

What's the M.O.S.? Streamline your services for the customer. Are they looking for help with foreclosures or REO's? Create an easy place on your website for customers to get more information. Produce a community video explaining all the advantages of different areas in the metro region, so clients can narrow down their search.

2. Place: Johnson wants JCP customers to experience what Apple customers experience when they go to the Apple store. Apple has the "genius bar" where customers can go to have problem fixed.

M.O..S? Make it easy for the customer to come to you with any questions they have related to real estate, become their go-to expert. This is easy to do on your website, add easily accessible information and videos on a variety of subjects for clients to access. Make sure you include a quick way to contact you for further information!

3. Presentation: If you want to compete, you have to look as good or better than the competition. All marketing must be professional, or it's not worth the money you spend on it. Simplicity is key. "In a world where the product we want is just a key-word search away, we've lost our tolerance for complexity." Johnson said.

M.O.S.? Look at all your advertising, is it consistent? Does it give the impression you are looking for? See what your competition is offering and do it better. Analyze what has worked and what hasn't.

4. Price: Pricing strategy for JCP will be three-tiered. Instead of clearance sales, they will offer regular prices, month-long sales and "best price" discounts. Experience is vital. JC Penney is 110 years old and they are not trying to shed that foundation. Johnson's presentation of how JC Penney is transforming itself began with a voice over by Ellen Degeneres, who recited the company's new anthem. They're fine with "growing old" -- the company turns 110 this year -- but are not OK with "growing stale."

M.O.S.? Especially in real estate, you can't discount your services. Are you worth your commission? Focus on the services you provide and do them well.

5. Promotion: In 2011, JC Penney offered 590 promotions, each promotion cost around $2million and only brought a customer in an average of four times a year costing $1 billion in promotion dollars, which 99% of their customers ignored. Johnson is cutting the promotions down to 12 for 2012 and spending $80 million a month on each.

M.O.S.? Make your promotions count by doing them well.

6. Personality: JC Penney has redesigned their logo. Brands such as Target, Nike, General Electric and Shell can be identified solely from their company's branded symbol.

M.O.S.? Be consistent with your image. All of your promotional materials should have your "look".

Who is YOUR competition? The most important part of JCP's strategy was to identify their competition. Other department stores like Kohl's and Macy's, they found out, were not their main competition. Smaller specialty shops and other retailers have taken the major share of business away from the large department store.

Start Slowly. The JC Penney website will get a major overhaul as part of the change. But the changes won't come overnight. The new pricing strategy will begin this month and by fall, JC Penney will start introducing shops and by 2015, the company plans to have completed all store layouts. M.O.S.? You can't do everything at once. Start slowly but have a plan in mind for implementing the changes you feel will keep your business growing.

Johnson believes that these strategies will restore JC Penney's brand integrity which has taken a big hit in the last decade.

So what lesson can we take from JC Penneys major overhaul? Identify the competition and rework your business model to include the services your customer wants and remember to demonstrate your value in everything you do.

Everyone will be watching JC Penneys in 2012 to see how this works.

See the full article at Business Insider.com

If not, you should be. In the past six months, visits to Pinterest grew by 4,000%, receiving an amazing 11 million hits in just one week, according to an article by Nancy Messieh on TheNextWeb.com.

Pinterest is a new social networking site that is "invite only". Pinterest uses online "pinboards" to organize and share your interests with other members. Pinterest connects people all over the world based on shared tastes and interests.

Self-promotion is a No-No, however. On the Pinterest etiquette page, they state "Pinterest is designed to curate and share things you love. If there is a photo or project you're proud of, pin away! However, try not to use Pinterest purely as a tool for self-promotion." So how does it work for businesses? Pinterest is all about the users; focus on them and their interests within the context of your business.

"Before taking a look at how you can put Pinterest to work for you," writes Messieh, "it's worth looking at why you shouldn't be ignoring Pinterest." In some cases, Pinterest outperformed Facebook to drive traffic to websites.

"Pinterests users are highly engaged and can easily contribute to your social media campaign going viral." says Messieh, "users can also post to their Facebook pages." A wide variety of businesses have already set up Pinterest pages.

How can you make Pinterest work for your small business? Messieh offers these tips to get the most out of Pinterest for your business:

• Get personal: Create a board featuring your office and the people who work there.
• Inspire your customers: This is what Pinterest is all about. Share ideas of your area; what to do, places to visit, local entertainment, etc.
• Offer exclusive information: This is a great way to showcase your expertise in specific areas. Offer Pinterest users exclusive offers only for them. What is your niche?
• Raise Awareness: Is your company involved in community service projects? Help raise awareness for the projects and your connections.
• Get the customer involved: Ask clients to post pictures about their community, favorite hang-outs, etc. "Pinterest provides an amazing array of ways where you can truly listen to the customer, and show them that you're listening by sharing their images on your account." writes Messieh.
• Invite Customers to your events: Planning a community event? Post your invitation to users and then post pictures of the event afterwards.

Adding Pinterest to your Social Media toolbelt could be just the boost your business needs in 2012.

Read the full article at The Next Web.com

Almost one third of home sale transactions in the U.S. last year have been all-cash, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal. Which might explain why mortgage applications have been down, as all-cash transactions completely bypass the mortgage process.

The Journal reports that more and more homebuyers are selling other investments to pay cash for real estate.

"Lending is very tight, so we are seeing people who can't qualify for loans but are invested in the market, cash out (and buy a home)." says Mitra Kalita of WSJ. "You are starting to see people who may have been on the sidelines, now taking the plunge."

For the real estate market to rebound, however, we need to see lending requirements loosen so that first time home buyers can bring vitality to the economy. Most of the cash buyers are baby boomers looking for a retirement home and taking advantage of markets that have been hardest hit.

Read the full article at WSJ.

photo credit: wallyg

Generation Y, also referred to as the as the Millennials, use communications, media and digital technologies in their everyday life. They connect with their world online, through social media and they are very aware of what their "friends" are doing. Marketing to this group obviously means connecting with them through social media outlets such as Facebook, Twitter, etc.

"They are the first generation in human history who regard behaviors like tweeting and texting, along with websites like Facebook, YouTube, Google and Wikipedia, not as astonishing innovations of the digital era, but as everyday parts of their social lives and their search for understanding." said the Pew Research Center.

In an article on The Next Web.com, Ekatarina Walters gives us the statistics of Gen-Y's brand awareness and how they connect to their world through social media:

Facebook:

• 40% visit Facebook more than 10 times a day and 76% spend over an hour a day on it.
• 43% have liked more than 20 brands on Facebook. 71% reported liking a brand just for the free offer.

Twitter: 58% use Twitter "all the time".

Foursquare: 66% would look up a business after learning that their friend checked in there.

Buyers seem to be getting younger and younger! In 2011, the average age of a first time home buyer was 30, according to the National Association of REALTORS®. The oldest members of the Millennial generation are reaching 32 now. Make sure that your marketing includes social media to keep in touch with younger potential clients who will soon be looking to invest in the real estate market.

Read the full article at TheNextWeb.com

View the Highlights of the NAR Report.

photo credit: AlvaroArenas

It's all about lead generation in the real estate industry. "Getting someone to agree to a coffee meeting is only the first step in obtaining leads." writes John Heckers in a great article for Colorado Biz Magazine.

Cultivating networking partners is an important aspect of business growth. A networking partner is an acquaintance in the business world through which you can generate leads that you might not otherwise get. This partnership is a two-way street, so make sure you get to know the person before doing business with them. A coffee meeting is a great way to build trust and begin a long-term networking relationship.

Heckers offers "Nine ways to make the most of your coffee meeting, otherwise all you get is Starbucks and a lighter wallet."

1.) It's not all about you. Ask what you can do to help them in their goals. This is a quicker way to get the information (and potential leads) you want.

2.) "Don't go for the jugular" counsels Heckers. You have to establish trust and a relationship before someone opens their rolodex to you.

3.) Give your 30-second elevator speech, not "War and Peace". Make it conversational, hit only the details you need and keep it under two minutes.

4.) Ask "Who do you know to whom I should be speaking?" DON'T ask if they know someone because unless they live in a cave, of course they know people.

5.) Counteract a negative response of "Gee, I don't know anyone" with suggestions of types of acquaintances they might know including neighbors, coworkers, people they've met while networking, vendors, etc.

6.) Closing: At the end, thank them for their time and exchange cards. "Ask your networking partner to keep you informed of their progress, and ask if they'd like to be kept informed of yours. If the networking partner has been helpful, suggest that you two meet again in a couple of weeks." suggests Heckers.

7.) Leave Communication Open: At the close, tell them you'd be happy to give them a call if you come up with more information and then ask them to do the same. And then make sure you follow through!

8.) "Don't be too nice though," says Heckers. If you refer contacts to the networking partner, follow up on those people you sent to see how things were handled.

9.) Don't Waste Valuable Time: "If it has been two meetings and you still are not getting any reciprocity from a new networking partner, broom 'em. Don't waste your time continuing to meet with someone who is stingy or unhelpful. It may sound harsh, but your time is valuable." writes Heckers.

Your coffee meeting can be a valuable tool or a complete waste of time, says Heckers. It's important to know the difference and make your time count.

Read more at ColoBiz.com

photo credit: Jonathan Rubio