Family man. Runs in the family. In the family way. Family tree. Family matters.

Americana is all about family. We’ve even stretched it to include our “work family” and our “school family” or our “church family.” Despite efforts to redefine it, we all have our own personal definition.

What does “family” mean to Ms. Jones? Are there always kids, or can it just be her cats? What if Mr. Jones took off with someone from his “work family”? What if there are kids, but they just jumped out of the nest? What if they’re still in the nest, but only for ten minutes at a time between sporting events and play dates?

Whatever you sell has got to fit into Ms. Jones family, however she defines it. Has the changing shape, size and style of the American family changed the way you do business? Has it impacted your assortment? Have the needs of your employees changed as their own families have changed?

How do you find out what Ms. Jones’ family feels like, so you can fill their needs?

Check out this excerpt from “How To Make Your Website Really Sell” in the September, 2009 issue of Entrepreneur Magazine featuring David Lively:

Be sure to post toll-free phone numbers and e-mail addresses on every page, as well as fields for visitors to submit questions, says David Lively, whose Ohio consulting firm, The Lively Merchant, specializes in retail sales. Glickman says retail sites should also allow visitors to calculate shipping costs early in the purchase process so that they aren’t ambushed at the conclusion of the transaction.

The ability to send automated responses to visitors who have reached the shopping cart is also critical, Lively says. “You want to be able to send auto responses that correspond to the exact point where a customer exits the shopping cart before purchasing, a communication that says, ‘We saw you were considering purchasing so-and-so product. If there are any questions we can answer about that product…’”

Whether you sell generic widgets or provide a highly specialized service, your efforts are more likely to bear fruit if your prospects perceive you as a benevolent authority in your field.

To that end, Lively says, a well-written, informative and regularly updated blog not only can boost credibility, it can also hold visitors’ interest and reengage them in the shopping experience. Read more…

• Make the essentials accessible. The company phone and e-mail should be prominent on most every page of a site, says Jay Bower of the Crossbow Group. Sites with a shopping cart should also provide ready access to privacy policies, return policies and shipping info.

• Don’t demand too much information. “Only ask a customer or prospect for information you really need,” advises retail sales consultant David Lively. “Long forms are a source of frustration.”

• Let them buy first, join later. It’s important to give customers an opportunity to open an account, but only after the close, says Dave Nevogt, owner of e-tailer PurePointGolf.com.

• Remember: Less is more. “It’s a Facebook-driven world right now,” says Bower. You don’t want a site that looks text-heavy.

• Function well with any browser. The best sites accommodate all visitors similarly, whether they arrived via Safari, Explorer or Firefox.

• Be original. Don’t use a common template. Dare to differentiate with a site that looks and feels like no one else’s, says David Gass, who heads Business Credit Services.

• Keep the site fresh. Regularly update your content, graphics and so on, and don’t be shy about trying new stuff on your site (a blog or video, for example).

“Just the facts, ma’am, just the facts.”

Ms. Jones might pull out this Joe Friday line when she’s furniture shopping. Even if she falls head over heels in love with a sexy chaise or a beautiful bedroom, she’s going to have to justify her financial investment with some cold, hard facts.

Look at the following areas where Ms. Jones might find information about furniture. Rate them for accuracy, and then rate them for influence:

1.       A recommendation from a friend

2.       The internet

3.       A store visit

Now rate your store in these same areas. Have you irritated your customer base to the point that your name is dragged through the mud more often than it’s recommended? Do you have a website? Is it fresh and relevant? Do you have tear-offs in the store that she can take home with her? Does your entire staff know your policies? Are your designers well trained? Be honest!

Once Ms. Jones is in the information gathering stage, she has already decided that she’s going to buy furniture. The only question is, from whom?

How do you ensure that it’s from you?

FURNITUREToday recently reported that David Lively was elected to the HFIA Board of Directors:

“Our board is on the front lines of the furniture industry every day,” said Frye. “They know exactly what keeps an independent retailer up at night. We continually ask ourselves, ‘What can we do for our members that they can’t do better themselves?’ We rely on the board’s insight and oversight to develop a mix of services to save our members time and money.” Read more…

Toilet paper made from yesterday’s news. Computers made from clunkers. New tin cans made from old tin cans.

Recycling is a good thing, most of the time. Furniture recycling, however, is not a good thing for you. We’re not talking about making microfibers from plastic pop bottles, or advocating filling landfills with still-good stuff. What you don’t want is Ms. Jones recycling her old furniture when she buys new.

Sometimes Ms. Jones moves up or adds on, but mostly she just moves stuff around. Most furniture purchases are replacements of existing pieces in the home. She needs to take that old furniture and put it out of its misery. You want her to say, “Sionara!” to sagging mattress sets and, “Ciao, baby!” to crappy couches. 

Do you remove old furniture? What charities in your community could use gently-used goods? How do you help Ms. Jones free up square footage for fantastic new furniture?

“Never buy a couch or chair unless you’ve sat on it. You spend a lot of time there, so it needs to fit your body.”

So says “home maven Angela Matusik, founder of home decorating website Shelterrific.com” in a print and online article in Woman’s Day magazine.

Huh?

Shelterrific’s “friends” and major online retailers at Living Rooms Direct might beg to differ, as do a growing number of home furnishings retailers nationwide, and as do we at The Lively Merchant.

With manufacturers joining the eCommerce world, what choice do retailers have? Should they sit back and watch sales slide in their brick and mortar stores while allowing their once-trusted vendor partners to use them as third-class distribution partners? Should they ignore Ms. Jones’ late night browsing and buying binges?

A vibrant online presence and online selling is not only necessary, it’s vital, to the survival of today’s home furnishings retailer. New solutions for product imaging and cataloguing as well as innovative delivery services and flexible return policies are making this an achievable reality for many stores whose future may be otherwise bleak.

We don’t need “industry experts” telling the customer otherwise.

People shouting, arms waving, voices rising. Bang! Bang! The judge pounds his gavel and shouts, “Order in the court! Order in the court!” The slamming gavel continues until the courtroom goes silent.

Ever notice that you don’t reach into your $10 popcorn until order is restored on the Hollywood screen? If the movie usher had come down your aisle during this scene and offered you a refill, you would have shushed him off. We can’t really relax until order is restored. Chaos breeds tension, discomfort, anxiety. It ties us up in knots. Order cuts the ropes loose.

Is shopping at your store like watching this movie? Is there so much drama and confusion that Ms. Jones is unable to concentrate or respond?

Sure, you’re going to have to pound your gavel sometimes. But does your drama ever play out on Ms. Jones’ screen? Do your run around like a headless chicken looking for pricing? Do you have to ask three different people when her order is coming in? Do you transfer her call to find out where the truck is?

Can she eat her popcorn – or pull out her wallet – while watching your show?

Smell the suntan lotion… taste the piña colada… run your fingers through the warm sand… listen to the seagulls… gaze into the clear blue water…

Where is your perfect picture of tranquility? Maybe it’s not a beach. Maybe it’s a ski slope or a deer blind. We all have one place we would go if time, money and duty were magically suspended. But time, money and duty rarely let us off the hook. We’d better find that elusive tranquility somewhere a little more handy, or we’ll all end up with a heart attack.

Can you find tranquility in your living room? That’s where Ms. Jones finds it every day. Like you, she can’t always hop on a plane and take off to the Caribbean when life gets stressful. When she comes to your furniture store, she’s not just buying something soft to sit on. She’s looking for the props that create that carefree place of rest and relaxation in her own home.

Does your entire store ooze tranquility, from your lighting to your muzak to your salesperson’s approach to your delivery? Do your policies about price and repairs and returns give Ms. Jones a sense of safety?

Ms. Jones is shopping for tranquility. Do you have it in stock?

If you think you deserve one, you know exactly how an apology should be delivered. Eye to eye so you can see their pain. Face to face so you can sense their sincerity. And yesterday wouldn’t have been too soon.

Have you ever received a false apology that annulled itself when the same offensive act was repeated almost instantaneously? How about the old “I’m-sorry-you-feel-that-way” line that only makes you madder?

Admit it: sometimes your company makes enormous mistakes that madden Ms. Jones. What do you do? Do you fess up, agree with her and make it right? Or, like the Fonz, do you stammer and stutter an insincere excuse? What’s holding you back? Fear? Pride? Apathy?

Yes, it’s easy to judge the effectiveness of an apology when you’re on the receiving end. When you mess with Ms. Jones, are your apologies too little, too late? Or are they just right?