Consultant Carothers focuses on Internet
Web is great way to reach consumers, she says
By Furniture Today Staff -- Furniture Today, May 2, 2008
EAGAN, Minn. — Leslie Carothers, once a conventional sales trainer, has shifted her consulting practice to help the industry marshal what for many is an underused resource, she says: the Internet.
She said her firm, The Kaleidoscope Partnership, is aiming to help retailers and manufacturers maximize sales by capitalizing on changes taking place in the research and buying patterns of today’s consumer.
“For the past two years, I have seen that there is a demand for services from my clients and the industry in general to identify ways — quickly — that they can use their Web sites and the power of the Internet to increase their sales and drive future revenue,” she said.
Carothers, who started her consulting firm after a 20-year career in home furnishings design, sales and management, said there’s more to harnessing the Internet than just creating a Web site. She works with clients in several areas, including:
+ Using real-time metrics from Web site analytics to align their online and offline strategies to maximize conversions — to turn consumers who click on a company’s site into buyers.
+ Training sales teams how to use the phone and Internet effectively to convert Web-based inquiries into sales.
+ Writing relevant content for Web sites, corporate blogs and other e-publications to maximize click-throughs and conversions.
+ E-mystery shopping to provide retailers and manufacturers real-time feedback, also aimed at improving phone selling skills and conversions.
+ Developing, managing and moderating online communities, and internal social networking communities, to build loyalty, trust, transparency and referrals.
Clients that have used one or more of those services include Top 100 stores Baer’s in Pompano Beach, Fla., and Gallery Furniture in Houston, and manufacturer Hooker Furniture, she said.
Carothers also writes Furniture/Today’s online “Retail Ideas” column.
More information about The Kaleidoscope Partnership is available on its Web site at www.tkpartnership.com.
