Contact: Melissa Dressler

WHFA Public Relations Specialist

(916) 960-0385; mdressler@whfa.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 25, 2012

Next Generation-NOW Hosts Chatter Over Cocktails &

Launches New Social Site During Las Vegas Market

Las Vegas, Nev.—The Next Generation-NOW group will host their Market “Chatter Over Cocktails” reception on Tuesday, January 31 at the Las Vegas Market. The cocktail reception, which is becoming a Market tradition for most, will be from 5-6 p.m. in the One-Six Club on the 16^th Floor of Building B and will feature “Speed Networking” during the first 20 minutes. All attendees will be given the chance to meet new faces during two rounds of Speed Networking. Afterwards, attendees continue to mingle and share stories over cocktails and hors d’ oeuvres.

“Market is about exploration and discovery, new colors, patterns, styles and innovations. But none of these are what makes any one market stand out amongst the rest. The most important aspect of market, to our industry, is relationships,” said Nick Gates, Gates Furniture and Next Generation-NOW committee chair. “The building of friendships and partnerships, networking, sharing ideas, and learning are what keep me coming back. This is the chance to get excited about our industry. To share an excitement with others who actually want to talk about furniture; who understand the headaches and triumphs of the business. That is why relationships in this business are vital no matter if you are a 30-year veteran or just getting your toes wet.”

Next Generation-NOW is also launching a brand new social site dedicated to members of the group. Members can create their own profile, share information, create events, add photos and videos, create and share blogs, participate in forum discussion, connect, network, learn and share about furniture news, and so much more. Members can even connect their profile to their Facebook page, Twitter account, and Google accounts. Kevin Doran, vice-chair of the Next Generation-NOW committee, had this to say about the Next Generation-NOW Social Site, “We took what our generation is all about and brought it into one single focused place. We took everything great about Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIN, and YouTube and centered that around building connections and networking around the furniture industry.”

Next Generation-NOW is facilitated by the Western Home Furnishings Association. Its major sponsor is FurnitureDealer.net.

RSVP for the Next Generation-NOW event by visiting the group’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/NextGenNow. To join the Next Generation-NOW Social Site, visit http://social.ngnow.org.

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About Next Generation-NOW

Next Generation-NOW is a community of young, passionate and vibrant home furnishings professionals that are the future of the home furnishings industry. Working together, this community will develop the next group of industry leaders through educational events, social networking and guidance and give a voice to the unique needs of future generations in the furniture industry. For more information, visit www.ngnow.org.

About the WHFA

The Western Home Furnishings Association (WHFA) is the largest affiliate of the NHFA, representing more than 700 independent home furnishings retailers in more than 2,300 stores in 12 western states.

About FurnitureDealer.net

The company operates more than 500 home furnishings websites designed to help consumers find big ticket furniture, mattress, appliance and electronics products online and buy through local retail stores. The company’s clients include 25 of the 150 largest independent furniture retailers in North America and five of the industry’s largest suppliers. FurnitureDealer.net is the premiere Click-to-Store™ expert in the home furnishings industry, helping retailers and manufacturers implement successful multi-channel growth strategies that convert online furniture shoppers into local in-store buyers. FurnitureDealer.net provides world class websites with detailed product catalogs, product content management, search engine optimization, email marketing, sales training and channel integration consulting.

1. Use a Landing Tab to Offer a Compelling Reason for People to “like” you.

When first-time visitors go to your fan page, they will initially see your Wall. That is unless you create a landing tab with one of your Facebook promotional apps.

Make your Sweepstakes, Share and Save or Fan Offer app your landing tab and use it to offer potential fans an incentive or discount. Show them why they should “like” your page and let them know what’s in it for them.

2. Share Pictures.

A picture is worth a thousand words. In fact, 750 million Facebook users share their pictures with their friends on a daily basis. So why shouldn’t you?

Share your pictures of customers, products, staff plus more and watch your fans comment on your store’s unique flair. Plus, when you sign up for a Facebook Site, we’ll share your Website’s entire product catalog full of rich pictures with 750 million people just waiting to “like” your page.

3. Make and Share Videos.

If a picture’s worth a thousand words, a video is worth 10,000. Upload your 30 and 60 second TV spots or even create your own, sharing insights and interviews. Mobile phones make it easy to make videos showing you having fun with staff, customers and partners.

Be sure to upload the videos through Facebook, so that when people share the videos, their friends can “like” your page from the top left corner of the video.

4. Give away Value.

People respond well to quality information and freebies. Use the Sweepstakes, Fan Offer or Share and Save app to offer your fans plenty of value. Plus, it’s simple to provide information by sharing links to articles, podcasts, white papers, and webinars.

Potential customers will remember you and react positively to the expertise and value you can provide. You’ll become their “go-to source” for help and advice.

5. Respond to Negative Comments.

There’s a temptation to delete negative remarks or complaints from your Facebook page. But if you delete someone’s comments, they will only get louder somewhere else.

The two most important words in Facebook marketing are “I’m sorry.” Mistakes happen, so apologize, fix the problem and turn that complainer into a fan.

6. Respond to the Positive Comments, too.

A heartfelt “Thank you” goes a long way too. Make “Thank you” your two next most-important words.

Don’t pass up the chance to encourage a fan who posts something nice on your Facebook page. Give them opportunities to spread the good word about their experience, and thank them sincerely. Get creative with this; there are hundreds of ways to show your appreciation with some personality.

7. Surprise and Delight.

Elements of surprise and delight have always been a tenet of good business. But on Facebook, it’s even more important to surprise and delight fans since 750 million people are watching.

Consider giving away free stuff – our promotional apps make it simple to offer freebies and discounts. Reward people randomly and have fun with your fans.

8. Ask Questions.

Facebook is the world’s largest focus group. You can ask questions and get plenty of valuable feedback about your product or services, and opportunities or challenges. People want to know that you care about their opinion.

Consider this – it’s more important to be interested than interesting in the world of Facebook. Questions are the best way to generate comments, which will improve your EdgeRank and enable you to show up in more of your fans’ news feeds.

9. Share Stories.

People love stories. Talk about how your company got started, an interesting customer or staff member, charity or community involvement. Keep the stories short and simple, and use multimedia.

10. Be Honest and Transparent.

Honesty and authenticity go a long way. Don’t be afraid to be honest with fans. They’ll appreciate the authenticity – and even vulnerability – that accompanies it.

Share what’s going on in your store. Fans will respect it and respond.

11. Be Short, Sweet and Conversational.

Talk to your business’s fans the same way you’d talk to your friends. Short, informal statements and questions generate a lot more engagement than longer posts. You can use up to 420 characters in each Facebook post, but try to keep it to 140 or fewer.

12. Don’t Sell.

Make it easy and compelling for your customers to buy your products. If you’ve set a precedent of quality fan interaction – by listening to them, creating value and educating them about your business through storytelling – then they’ll use your products and services when they their needs must be fulfilled. Better yet, when their friends have similar needs, you’ll be the one they “like” and recommend.

Need more ideas? No problem! Contact us at rawebplus@ramarketing.com for even more great tips on how to boost your sales using the Facebook promotional apps and Facebook Site.

In this blog, I wanted to share a case study with you of one of R&A Marketing oldest clients, Hansbarger Home Solutions.

Hansbarger Home Solutions is an appliance, furniture, bedding and electronics store in Greenville, Ohio.

Every year, Hansbarger’s run their biggest sale of the year the “Hog Wild Sale” in conjunction with the Greenville County Fair. In the years past, Hansbarger’s would run radio spots as well as print pieces in the newspaper to promote the sale. This year, we decided to add a little extra ‘umph’ to the campaign. We merged online media with traditional media.

As I’ve talked in past blog “How do you combine online and offline medias to bring success?” that 62% of online campaigns are seeing an increase in return on investment when combined with offline marketing such as direct mail – Omnicon Media Group (2009). By combining both online and offline marketing techniques, we were able to increase the awareness of the sale as well as increase the awareness of the store.

The online techniques that we used were posting the print piece on Hansbarger’s website, creating a sidebar and a rotator that linked to a PDF of the newspaper insert.  We used email marketing to send the promotion to Hansbarger’s customers via email.

Besides the website and email, we also utilized social media to help get the word out. By using Hansbarger’s facebook page we helped promote the sale, as well as promoted traffic to the facebook page. In addition to the Hog Wild Sale, we wanted to give the Facebook users an incentive to ‘liking’ the Hansbarger page, thus to help increase the awareness of Hansbarger Home Solutions. We worked with Hansbarger’s to come up with a Sweepstakes promotion on Facebook. They offered to give a way a free sofa and all you was ‘like’ the Hansbarger’s Facebook page and sign up for the Sweepstakes. This allowed us to not only build our fan base on Facebook, but also collect email addresses that we could use in later promotions via email marketing.

The first day of the sale was August 1^st, that week the Facebook Sweepstakes launched as well as the radio spots. In the day, we had five people sign up for the Sweepstakes, giving us five new email addresses to add to our database. The first week we had 13 people sign up for the Sweepstakes – and remember so far the only medias being used are Facebook and radio.



Starting the second week of the sale we had inserts in the newspaper, posted the sale and Facebook sweepstakes on Hansbarger’s website and sent an email blast to Hansbarger’s customer email list. The radio continued as did the promotion on Facebook.

The sale is still going on and with one week left. Currently, 67 people have signed up for the Sweepstakes. And the interaction on the Facebook page has exploded.

Besides results from Facebook and email marketing, store traffic has increased and sales are up. All of these results are from combining both online and offline media for a campaign. The message was consistent across the board between offline and online marketing, both promoting the sale and the Facebook Sweepstakes. It was successful in helping increase the traffic on Hansbarger’s Facebook page, thus increasing the awareness of their store.

In short, Google+ is real-life sharing through Google. According to Vic Gundotra, from Google, “we believe online sharing is broken. And even awkward … We think connecting with other people is a basic human need. We do it all the time in real life, but our online tools are rigid. They force us into buckets — or into being completely public … Real life sharing is nuanced and rich. It has been hard to get that into software.” So like Facebook, where you connect with old friends, etc.

There are various parts that make up Google+:

• Circles: Google Circles allows you to organize your friends into groups such as college friends, co-workers, family, etc. “Just make a circle, add your people, and share what’s new.”
• Spark: Similar to Google Reader, Google Spark brings content you based on your interests and shares it will your “Circle.” “Thanks to Google’s web expertise, Sparks delivers a feed of highly contagious content from across the Internet. On any topic you want, in over 40 languages. Simply add your interests, and you’ll always have something to watch, read and share—with just the right circle of friends.”
• Hangouts: Hangouts are virtual video chat rooms, where you can chat with people in your “Circle.”
• Huddles: Huddle is group messaging/chat for people within you “Circle.” The Android phone has a mobile app that allows you to send messages from your phone as well.
• Instant Upload: If you have the Android phone, when you use it to snap a photo it’s automatically uploaded to your Google+.

Wow – that’s a lot of information to sort through. When reading it, you can see some similarities to Facebook. Facebook has groups, they don’t function the same way as “Circles,” but the concept is similar. You can upload photos and video from your smart phone to Facebook, similar to the Instant Upload. Facebook doesn’t have group chat, but Yahoo, AOL, meebo and a few others have group chat. The other features, Facebook does not have, but others do. For example – Hangouts, Skype allows you to do group chats and group calls.

We all know that Google is still in its testing stages of Google+, but already there is a lot of feedback – both negative and positive revolving around this new social media device.

In a recent article, Google’s Launch Of Google + Is, Once Again, Deeply Embarrassing — Facebook Must Be Rolling Its Eyes by Henry Blodget, “Google has given people little reason to think that the launch of + will be any different from the launches of its other social products, such as Wave and Buzz (Wave is dead and Buzz might as well be dead).  And the folks at Facebook must be rolling their eyes.

In another article, Repent, ye bloggers—the end is nigh: Google+ is coming to annihilate you by Shel Holtz, “Google+ is the latest alleged killer. Search the phrase “will Google+ kill” and you’ll find nearly 30,000 results speculating whether Google will kill Facebook, Twitter, search engine optimization, email, Flickr, the list goes on.” Basically he concludes to saying that of course Google+ will have an affect on blogging, but not kill it. Some may just be overreacting.

Google+ in its beginning stages looks like it’s just for personal use, not for business use. But they are starting to put together ideas for building profiles for businesses. It will be interesting to see what that will lead to.

At the moment, since Google+ it just in the testing phases and I have yet to actually use it, it is hard to have an opinion on it. I will admit, it was hard for me to join Facebook back in the day when it was brand new as well as Twitter. But then again, that’s when social media was brand new. Hopefully, I will be able to check it out and compare it as a user to the social media sites that I currently use. I believe that only then, I will be able to give an honest opinion as to whether or not I actually like it and if it would eventually replace my Facebook or even Twitter account. What are your thoughts? Is this something worth checking out? How do you think it will affect the rest of the social media world? Will it ‘kill’ Facebook and Twitter as some are saying?

Do me a favor. Grab a sheet of paper and pencil. Go to your desk, the bathroom, outside, or wherever you think the best and write down five ways you think you can sell your product through social media. You got it? Great!

Now throw it away.

There are no pat answers on how to make sales from social media. Don’t let anyone tell you they have the greatest solution to start getting you sales from social media. Social media is an ever-changing media. Every single day, something new is introduced or taken away.

You’re competing with a lot of other businesses in the social media marketplace. Facebook recently announced that there are now more than 3 million active business pages on Facebook, and the average user becomes a fan of four pages every month.

What can you do to reach and understand your Facebook marketplace? The answer to this question will help you increase sales and grow your social media presence.

Social media is exactly that: media that delivers a message. And just like traditional media, you need to get to know your costumer and your marketplace. Although social media may be free, social media marketing is not. It’s just a whole new way to do it.

“So,” you ask, “how do I get people to come to my social sites?” The answer is simple—sort of! You must embrace social media in all aspects of your marketing.

Some examples –

• Add your social media logos to your direct mail pieces and print inserts
• Announce them on your radio spots
• Include them in your TV spots
• Talk about it in the showroom
• Add them to your website
• Have a promotion solely focused on social media
• Create a direct mail campaign that embraces your offer and a Facebook contest.

Selling through social media is no different than selling face-to-face on the showroom floor. Customers must be engaged and interested. They will not respond to random information or a hard sell. Social media is about your costumer. They came to your page for a reason, so give them a reason to keep coming back.

One of social media’s best qualities is content: creating it, sharing it and engaging with it. Quality content will inspire, inform, educate or even entertain your customers (and if you’re really lucky, it does all four!). So if you’re looking to engage with your customers to keep them coming back for more, follow the tips below to implement social media cohesion:

Establish Your Brand Voice

Brainstorm with your team and establish your social media identity before you set up your social media accounts. Decide what your brand stands for and what you want to portray on your social media platforms.

Ask yourself the following questions to help identify your social media goals:

• Do you want it to be strictly a selling tool?
• Do you want it to build life-long customer relationships?
• Do you want to increase fans and followers regardless of results?

Focus on Your Topic

Your social media fans may forget a specific post, but they will remember the topics you talk about the most and your subject matter of expertise – assuming that you establish one!

An effective social media branding strategy should write, talk and share about topics related to your business and industry. This will reinforce your weight as an expert on that topic. That’s not to say you should never post about anything else, but keep your subject matter close to your area of expertise to reinforce your image as a leader in that area.

Talk about what you know. You’re a furniture store right? Talk about what you do every day. Tell your fans how this new sofa is a perfect fit for the family. Share decorating tips; give them tips on how to pick out the right bedroom suite. Show them you’re the leading voice of authority in your industry!

Get to Know Your Fans

People become fans of your page for a reason. They didn’t happen to “like” your page just because they thought it looked cool. They want relevant and expert information from you. So go ahead and give them what they want!

Pay attention to their posts—both positive and negative—and respond appropriately. Allow negative feedback and address it head on. Simply say, “I’m sorry,” and don’t make excuses. Be real with your virtual fans, and you’ll create real friends.

Update Moderately

Don’t get caught in the overload zone. Once your fall into this trap, it’s hard to escape. Overloading your followers and friends with too many updates will annoy them and can cause them to un-like your page. However, it’s important to update moderately and steadily to help keep your brand fresh and reiterate your brand personality among your customers.

Okay. Now go back to the trashcan and take out the five ways things you wrote down at the beginning. Now take the four above-mentioned ways to produce social media cohesion and apply those to the five you wrote down. It’s about finding the perfect balance between selling and building that fan (customer) relationship.

Remember, you’re a furniture store for a reason and people become fans of your page for that very reason. So give them what they want!

One of social media’s best qualities is content: creating it, sharing it and engaging with it. Quality content will inspire, inform, educate or even entertain your customers (and if you’re really lucky, it does all four!). So if you’re looking to engage with your customers to keep them coming back for more, follow the tips below to implement social media cohesion.

Establish Your Brand Voice
Brainstorm and establish your social media presence or identity before you set up a Twitter account or Facebook page.

Ask yourself the following questions to help identify your social media presence:

• Do you want it to be strictly a selling tool?
• Do you want it to build you life-long customers?
• Do you just want to have fans and followers and don’t care what comes from it?

Decide what your brand stands for and how you want to portray that on your social media platforms.

Focus on Your Topic
Frequently, people forget exactly what you say in your social media content. However, they generally remember the topics you talk about the most and your subject matter of expertise – assuming you focus on one.

This is why an effective online branding strategy should write, talk and share about topics related to your business and industry. Doing this will reinforce your weight as an expert on that topic. That’s not to say you should never post about anything else, but keep your subject matter close to your area of expertise to reinforce your image as a leader in that area.

Get to Know Your Fans
People become fans of your page for a reason. They didn’t happen to “like” your page just because they thought it looked cool. They want relevant and expert information from you. So go ahead and give them what they want! Talk about what you know. Talk about what you have been doing for the past twenty years. Show them you’re the leading voice of authority in your industry!

Update moderately
Don’t get caught in the overload zone. Once your fall into this trap, it’s hard to escape. Overloading your followers and friends with too many updates will annoy them and can cause them to unsubscribe. However, it’s important to update moderately and steadily to help keep your brand fresh and reiterate your brand personality among your customers.

Need help getting your social media back on track? We can help!

Call us (888-225-0776), Facebook Us, Email Us, Tweet us, or visit our website to get in touch with the social media experts at R&A Marketing!

“Have I ever told you you’re my hero,

And everything I would like to be?

I can fly higher than an eagle

Because you are the wind beneath my wings.”

This cheesy standard won Bette Middler a Grammy in 1990, the same year I said my wedding vows. Our first dance was to an obscure Jimmy Buffet tune, but I’m sure “The Wind Beneath My Wings” made the playlist.

Wikipedia defines wind as a power source for work, energy and recreation; it also helps expand the range of transport by guiding sailing ships across the oceans. I know it’s corny, but for the past 20 years my husband, David, has been my wind. He’s my best friend and number one fan, the first to celebrate my success or steer me from a slip. Wind is caused by differences in pressure, and the resulting gusts can cause a squall in any marriage. It takes commitment to turn that friction into flight instead of a cyclone path of destruction.

Do you have someone in your life who pushes you higher than you could go on your own, a power source who makes you work harder, do better and enjoy life more fully? Have you acknowledged that person and told them how their influence has helped you? Are you a refreshing breeze in someone’s life, or do you carve the landscape like an eroding storm?

Is there someone in your organization who constantly pushes you to reach the next level? Are they seen as a troublemaker or a dream catcher? Do you push back or let them take you on an incredible journey? What’s your corporate attitude toward new ideas, a turn of direction, movement and change? Do you strike Ms. Jones like a tornado, or do you steer her on prevailing winds toward the destination you’ve chosen?

When sailing, a common hazard is becoming “becalmed” because of lack of wind. The next time you feel it’s resistance, hold on tight and use it to soar.

The “Word of the Week” is written by Amy Lively of The Lively Merchant, David’s wife of 20 years and R&A’s partner in providing these thought-provoking weekly witticisms.

Not surprising, this is the same child who would ask from her car seat, “Where are you taking me?”

Traveling unfamiliar territory can be a white-knuckle ride. Ms. Jones has the same question when she shops in your store. Sometimes she comes in sure of her destination, with a map in her hand. Other times, she has a vague idea of where she’d like to go but has no idea how to get there.

Are you her GPS? The first thing the GPS has to know is, “Where do you want to go?” What kinds of questions can you ask to determine Ms. Jones’ final destination? Does she want the scenic route, the pedestrian route or public transportation? Do you give turn-by-turn instructions, always telling her what’s going to happen next?

Our daughter has also planned trips to Gatlinburg, Florida and Disneyland. Generally, by the second day of a vacation she’s got an itinerary posted. We don’t leave home without her!

Are you an indispensible tour guide for Ms. Jones?

The “Word of the Week” is written by Amy Lively of The Lively Merchant, R&A’s partner in providing these thought-provoking weekly witticisms.

And we happily waited for another five hours.

Yes, happily.

How did a long delay in a crowded airport far from home at the end of a tiring trip result in two very satisfied passengers? Two reasons: warning and reward.

First, we had been told that the flights were full. Oversold, in fact, to account for beach bums who couldn’t be back in time. We were warned that every seat was taken, every inch of cargo space accounted for. Take the first seat you can find, the famously funny employees advised us. “The back of the plane arrives at the same time as the front.”

Secondly, we were rewarded – handsomely, I might add! In fact, we volunteered for a later flight to receive the reward.

Sometimes you’re behind the eight ball with Ms. Jones. You’ve overpromised and you’re about to underdeliver. Her order is late. It comes in wrong. Your truck has a flat. Your employee screwed up. Oops.

How can you use warning and reward to offset inconvenience and disappointment? Do you think Ms. Jones prefers bad news with good news, or no news at all? What price are you willing to pay for a satisfied customer?

If you handle your mishandling well, you’ll end up with a customer more satisfied than one who was never poorly handled in the first place.

The “Word of the Week” is written by Amy Lively of The Lively Merchant, R&A’s partner in providing these thought-provoking weekly witticisms.