Another 100 Degree Day and All is Well...

We here in the Midwest have been facing drought like conditions due to scorching heat and lack of rain. As a furniture sales rep, this is an inconvenience but not necessarily life changing (at least not yet).

But traveling through western Nebraska this week, I was reminded how much this uncontrollable weather situation can impact farmers and ranchers who depend on living off the land. Everyone I spoke with in the rural communities were aware of the lack of rain because it dramatically affected their lifestyle and ability to make money. When a brief thunderstorm looked to materialize, the locals were calling friends in surrounding communities to see if any rain had fallen.

On the other side of the equation are the utilities selling electricity for air conditioning or the natural gas suppliers who sell the natural resources to power the utilities. Their business is great because demand is so high for people to keep cool. Or how about the guys selling irrigation or sprinkler systems? They have to be raking it in as well.

My point is this --- in every challenging circumstance, there is an alternative side of the coin that businesses are providing a solution to solve their customer's needs. Our job as an industry is to determine how to position our products to solve the consumer's needs for a better home and a more comfortable life.

Even though it is over 100 degrees in the Midwest, people still have needs for our furniture. Maybe even more so since they may be sitting inside the air conditioned living room more often and see how old their existing furniture has become. Tell them it's time for an upgrade.

Talk to customers about the weather that's on their mind by offering a Sundae Sunday and give away free ice cream cones. There are all kinds of ways to play this weather.

We can't control the weather, and it doesn't do us any good to get mad at it. We might as well take advantage of it to craft a message that resonates with customers to help sell some furniture.

Stay cool...........