Why is paid facebook advertising critical to the success of a going out of business sale?

Many retailers have the belief that when the time comes to close your doors forever and have a Going Out Of Business Sale all you have to do is “throw some signs up” and “deep discount everything” for success.

If that were the case, then there would be more savvy entrepreneurs starting new businesses in volume for the sole purpose of planning a store closing sale!

Let me back up and provide some more context here…

Every business has a lifecycle. Every, single, one. That business lifecycle can come to its end for a number of reasons: poor marketing, poor buying, poor location, poor idea, death, retirement, hemorrhaging cash (see the suite of “poor” topics above) and many other things.

Regardless of the reason, ALL businesses have a lifecycle.

In the 22 years (as of this writing) that I have been helping independent retailers successfully navigate the store closing process I have seen it all…

I’ve seen the retailers who have done just about everything as close to right as possible, made tons of money, and gotten to the end of their lifecycle and simply want to cash out and retire.

Contrarily, I’ve also seen the retailers who have done just about everything as close to wrong as possible, made little money, and gotten to the end of their retail lifecycle and want to stop the bleeding before it’s too late.

I’ve seen retailers in that “right down the middle” area where they’ve done some things right, some things wrong, made some money, but want to move on to other things.

Regardless of the circumstances they’ve all had a lifecycle. And every single one came to the realization that trying to sell as an ongoing business is not the best option to produce any kind of real profit.

There are many reasons for this.

First, finding a buyer who is willing to pay you anywhere near what you paid for your inventory, fixtures, supplies and equipment is highly unlikely.
Second, even if you WERE to find a buyer who was willing to do this, they have to be or get qualified, which is also highly unlikely.

I’ve seen it more times than I can count over the years with retailers who still insist that this is a better path…buyer after buyer after buyer after buyer comes and goes.

And while all this time is passing they could have had a structured, well promoted and organized going out of business sale which not only would have produced FAR more profits for them, but it also would have been done and over with in a matter of several weeks!

Ultimately, most of them ended up doing a Going Out Of Business Sale.

Now I’m not going to tell you that they all decided to work with me and my company Retail Sales PRO…

Some decided to try it on their own. Some decided to work with someone else. Some decided to have me and my team help them.

I will be 100% transparent here and share something very important…

In 22 years (as of this writing) of facilitating and conducting store closing and going out of business sales for retailers all over the world (mostly in the US, but also Canada and Australia) and generating well north of $50,000,000 in sales for them here’s what I have experienced:

Most of the ones I spoke to, but decided to do it on their own…failed miserably. And they told me why.

Actually, they first pleaded with me to come in after the fact and “save the day”, but I can’t do that. As I tell all my potential clients you get ONE shot at a successful store closing sale otherwise, it’s VERY challenging to try again without a year or more wait.

Of all the ones I spoke who made the same fateful decision my father made many years ago and decided to hire a “cheaper” option (search Google, you’ll find them) or an option that forces you to buy prizes to turn your store into a circus, well, many of those contacted me later and said they wish they had gone with me.

This article is not to toot my own horn, although I probably could given my track record of success…

This article is about paid Facebook ads and why they are absolutely critical to the success of a going out of business sale.

Note that I did not say they are the ONLY means of promoting a store closing sale, but that they are a critical component to the success of one.

Also note that I said “paid Facebook ads”. This does not mean simply making an organic post to your Facebook page.

And it does not mean “boosting” a post you make to your Facebook page.

There are literally hundreds (possibly thousands) of paid courses, books, and even free tutorials on how to effectively create and manage paid Facebook ads for a business from the Facebook ads manager, so it’s wise to believe that there’s a bit more to it than simply “boosting” a post you make, right?

This is what a Facebook post looks like that is not paid to attract a larger audience of targeted prospects. Translation: no one sees it, therefore few people respond.

Even if this very same post were to have been “boosted” (as Facebook calls it for novices to give them money and think they are doing something wise).

In this instance you will reach more people, and maybe have some more engagement, but most often it’s still having very little impact.

Why?

For starters, there’s MUCH more to effective advertising (whether print or digital) than just throwing something out there. You MUST have a strong, compelling headline and even more compelling copy.

When launching a going out of business sale (remember, you get ONE shot to do it right) the most critically important outcome you NEED is to have hoards of people gathering for the opening day launch of the sale. The reason is because it creates a psychological fear of loss in the minds of consumers subconsciously encouraging them to buy more right out of the gate.

**NOTE: getting customers at your store in groves for opening day of your store closing sale is only part of the battle. From there you’ve got the have the right discounting strategy, otherwise you could lose your shirt, financially speaking.

So again, although a great direct mail piece, well distributed press releases (yes, even in small towns), and possibly other media play big roles in the successful promotion of the launch I’m going to stay focused on the importance of effective paid Facebook ads.

That, when done correctly, will go viral and create a local network of people tagging friends and sharing the post (for free) as well as reduce costs of the ad because Facebook likes it when posts go viral. They reward you with lowered costs to continue promoting the ad.

Here are some examples of the ads my team promotes for all of the going out of business sales we facilitate for my clients…these are common results during the first week ALONE!

Pay particular attention to the volume of SHARES, reach, and engagement.

I know with good authority that very few retailers know how to produce this kind of result with paid Facebook advertising.

I also know with good authority that no company that helps retailers with the store closing process know how to produce this kind of result with paid Facebook advertising.

Just know that running a going out of business sale is not for the faint of heart. There’s WAY more to it than just “throwing up some signs” and randomly picking out some discounts to start with.

The proper combination of direct mail, PR, and social media advertising done in such a way that magnetically attracts the right volume of customers to your store with the right psychological triggers…is the way you launch a hyper successful going out of business sale.

Always remember, you get one shot to do it right, otherwise you have to wait for a while.

You hire a mechanic to fix your car, you hire a dentist to fix your teeth, you hire a doctor to fix your health, and the list goes on and on. When it comes to one of the most important events of your life why would you even consider doing it yourself?

Or as bad, why would you consider hiring someone incapable or unqualified to implement everything the right way?

Schedule a FREE, discreet, consultation with me now ($495 VALUE)! No obligation. I’ll assess your unique circumstances and see how I can help you. If it’s a good fit -and if you’re ready to go- we can map out a game plan!