{"version":"1.0.0","segments":[{"startTime":31.456,"endTime":36.497,"body":"Welcome to Retail for the Rest of Us, a podcast for indie retailers, makers, and shop owners"},{"startTime":36.569,"endTime":38.0,"body":"who want to do business differently."},{"startTime":38.766999999999996,"endTime":44.239000000000004,"body":"I'm your host, Janine Malone, retail expert, small business cheerleader, and the founder of Feel Good Retail."},{"startTime":45.247,"endTime":49.847,"body":"On this show, you'll hear insights, strategies, and ideas on how to sustain and scale your"},{"startTime":49.847,"endTime":51.909,"body":"shop without sacrificing your sanity."},{"startTime":52.687,"endTime":56.766999999999996,"body":"Each week you'll hear from me and the occasional guest expert in what I hope feels more like"},{"startTime":56.766999999999996,"endTime":62.206999999999994,"body":"voice note from your retail BFF than a business podcast. Additional goodies and support can be"},{"startTime":62.206999999999994,"endTime":66.607,"body":"found in our show notes and at feelgoodretail.com. Now let's get into the show."},{"startTime":67.19,"endTime":75.51,"body":"Music."},{"startTime":76.053,"endTime":79.807,"body":"Hey everyone, welcome back to Retail For The Rest Of Us. I'm your host Janine Malone,"},{"startTime":79.807,"endTime":84.447,"body":"and today I want to talk about making changes inside your business. We talked a little bit"},{"startTime":84.447,"endTime":90.407,"body":"bit about this before a couple episodes ago, the beginning of this return of the pod. But I don't"},{"startTime":90.407,"endTime":94.58699999999999,"body":"really want to focus on my business, which is a relief to me and is probably a relief to you."},{"startTime":95.291,"endTime":101.467,"body":"Although I am thinking about changes, thanks to all of your amazing support and responses to our"},{"startTime":101.467,"endTime":107.847,"body":"community survey that we had been running for the month of April. I got so many amazing responses,"},{"startTime":107.847,"endTime":116.307,"body":"such thoughtful feedback, such caring insight. And I'm really inspired and excited to kind of"},{"startTime":116.307,"endTime":123.987,"body":"metabolize all of that and make some really cool stuff for you. So thank you if you took the time"},{"startTime":123.987,"endTime":130.165,"body":"to participate. It really means the world to me and I am sending you so much love and energy and"},{"startTime":130.435,"endTime":136.767,"body":"hopefully new exciting things coming in the future. But as I was reading through, I was thinking,"},{"startTime":136.767,"endTime":144.867,"body":"about some of the themes that were coming out. And a few of them we're gonna, you know, zoom into."},{"startTime":146.405,"endTime":152.855,"body":"Much more in depth, things like making more sales, using social media, understanding how"},{"startTime":152.855,"endTime":160.055,"body":"to use analytics without feeling totally beholden to them, talking about inventory and inventory"},{"startTime":160.055,"endTime":165.01500000000001,"body":"management and cash flow, management, delegation, all that stuff. All the things we already talked"},{"startTime":165.01500000000001,"endTime":169.29500000000002,"body":"about, but it's nice to hear what is really would feel supportive to you right now."},{"startTime":169.89200000000002,"endTime":177.57500000000002,"body":"But today, maybe because change is on my mind and evolution is on my mind, I am really excited to"},{"startTime":177.57500000000002,"endTime":184.735,"body":"think about just the concept of making changes. I talked to a lot of retailers in moments of"},{"startTime":184.735,"endTime":192.85500000000002,"body":"transition, in moments of growth, in moments of either adding things on, taking things off,"},{"startTime":192.85500000000002,"endTime":197.095,"body":"pivoting in some way. Those are usually the moments that we all look for a little support,"},{"startTime":197.095,"endTime":203.935,"body":"right? If you're moving, or if you're changing jobs, or if you just had a baby, or, you know,"},{"startTime":203.935,"endTime":208.655,"body":"if you're going through a period of time that is just different than the period before it,"},{"startTime":208.655,"endTime":213.055,"body":"odds are those are the times you reach out to your community, you reach out to your friends,"},{"startTime":213.055,"endTime":219.13500000000002,"body":"your family, you find some kind of support because change is hard. It's constant, and it's"},{"startTime":219.13500000000002,"endTime":229.175,"body":"And it's constantly hard, frankly. And I always come back to a similar idea when I'm contemplating"},{"startTime":229.175,"endTime":234.895,"body":"change and want to move forward with confidence that I thought would be helpful to dive into a"},{"startTime":234.895,"endTime":241.375,"body":"little bit today. I've been noticing some retailers in the conversations I've been having in the"},{"startTime":241.375,"endTime":247.78900000000002,"body":"community survey responses that I've gotten that there is a hesitation to rock the boat, right?"},{"startTime":248.335,"endTime":254.055,"body":"We worry that any changes we'll make will upset our customers, will lose us business,"},{"startTime":254.055,"endTime":263.255,"body":"will be the end of our shop as we know it. But odds are that's not the case. And I think that"},{"startTime":263.255,"endTime":270.055,"body":"while I'm a huge fan of getting customer feedback, of getting your community's feedback,"},{"startTime":270.055,"endTime":278.455,"body":"I don't think you need to get it and get approval for everything because you know"},{"startTime":278.455,"endTime":285.055,"body":"your business best, right? And of course, retail is all about relationships. And that means that"},{"startTime":285.055,"endTime":288.29499999999996,"body":"the changes that you make will affect your customers. Sure."},{"startTime":289.60499999999996,"endTime":294.575,"body":"But people are risk averse, people are change averse. And I think when you ask folks who've"},{"startTime":294.575,"endTime":300.895,"body":"been shopping with you, would you still like this product? If would you still visit us? If we were"},{"startTime":300.895,"endTime":307.29499999999996,"body":"located here? Would you pay X amount for shipping? Would you would you would you? Odds are,"},{"startTime":308.68,"endTime":314.505,"body":"the majority is going to fall on the side of like, don't make change, or there's going to be enough"},{"startTime":314.676,"endTime":320.09499999999997,"body":"pushback that you're going to feel insecure, you're going to feel scared to make the changes"},{"startTime":320.09499999999997,"endTime":325.935,"body":"that maybe you know are essential for your business. And so, you know, one big example that."},{"startTime":331.852,"endTime":335.85499999999996,"body":"I don't know if that's made it into one of these episodes yet, but if you just heard that,"},{"startTime":335.921,"endTime":343.29499999999996,"body":"that's my alarm that I have that goes off every two hours between 7am and 9pm to remind me to"},{"startTime":343.29499999999996,"endTime":351.575,"body":"to take a breath. So let's do that. I feel like if it's coming up while I'm recording,"},{"startTime":351.575,"endTime":357.97499999999997,"body":"it must be for all of us. We're talking about change that can be scary. So let's just put our"},{"startTime":357.97499999999997,"endTime":365.135,"body":"feet on the floor, take a big breath, relax our shoulders, unclench our jaws and be here."},{"startTime":368.12199999999996,"endTime":374.495,"body":"One of the changes I see retailers contemplating quite a bit is their relationship with marketing,"},{"startTime":374.65799999999996,"endTime":379.609,"body":"how they market their shops. And so this is a simple example to kind of go through the concept"},{"startTime":379.655,"endTime":384.935,"body":"I want to talk about, which is that you always have to prioritize the function over the form."},{"startTime":385.722,"endTime":390.575,"body":"That is what will keep you light on your feet. It will make transitions in your business much"},{"startTime":390.575,"endTime":395.97499999999997,"body":"simpler, much easier, much clearer. And it will allow you to see what comes next,"},{"startTime":395.97499999999997,"endTime":401.335,"body":"because you're understanding the purpose of that change in your business. I also think that this"},{"startTime":401.335,"endTime":410.17499999999995,"body":"is a good way to weigh if a project is worth taking on if an initiative is a priority,"},{"startTime":410.17499999999995,"endTime":415.575,"body":"and really coming back to helping you focus on what really matters and what's really going to"},{"startTime":415.575,"endTime":421.41499999999996,"body":"move the needle in the direction that you want it to inside of your shop. Because again, here at"},{"startTime":421.41499999999996,"endTime":426.935,"body":"feel good retail, we're all about helping you manage your resources so that you can sustain"},{"startTime":426.935,"endTime":433.495,"body":"your business for a long time. And when we take on too much, as we've talked about quite a bit"},{"startTime":433.695,"endTime":439.655,"body":"over the last couple of weeks, it can be really challenging to get everything done well to"},{"startTime":439.655,"endTime":445.53499999999997,"body":"understand what's really working in your business, and to have the energy to figure out what comes"},{"startTime":445.53499999999997,"endTime":449.269,"body":"next, right? As we know."},{"startTime":448.414,"endTime":456.50399999999996,"body":"It's a marathon. It's not a sprint. Just when you have one project or launch or season behind you."},{"startTime":457.596,"endTime":461.704,"body":"There's another one. There's another thing that needs your attention. There's another priority."},{"startTime":461.704,"endTime":467.544,"body":"There's another project. And that can be really exciting and expansive. And it can also feel"},{"startTime":467.544,"endTime":473.864,"body":"really exhausting. So function over form is something that I come back to a lot, I would say"},{"startTime":473.864,"endTime":482.104,"body":"it is in the top of our manifesto, which maybe I should write for feel good retail. But function"},{"startTime":482.104,"endTime":488.18399999999997,"body":"over form means that you're identifying what function does this change serve in my business,"},{"startTime":488.816,"endTime":494.664,"body":"and what form can that take. So as an example, like I mentioned with Instagram."},{"startTime":496.26099999999997,"endTime":502.104,"body":"Instagram is a form that your marketing could take. It is a platform that is available to you."},{"startTime":502.104,"endTime":508.531,"body":"It is a tool in your toolbox that you are free to use and you are free to walk away from. But what."},{"startTime":509.06399999999996,"endTime":516.344,"body":"Happens when we get too attached to the form that something takes is that any changes we see in the"},{"startTime":516.344,"endTime":524.544,"body":"results that that form is showing us. So for example, decreased engagement, decreased visibility,"},{"startTime":524.544,"endTime":531.884,"body":"lack of sales, lack of return on investment, any of those things, it becomes really hard and we"},{"startTime":531.884,"endTime":538.644,"body":"become really resistant to making any changes. It can feel very scary and you kind of get that"},{"startTime":538.644,"endTime":545.6039999999999,"body":"sense of being like trapped in a corner, right? Like you're just like, I have weighed, I have"},{"startTime":545.6039999999999,"endTime":551.9639999999999,"body":"relied far too heavily on this thing and now it is changing. And if it changes, I don't know what"},{"startTime":551.9639999999999,"endTime":558.364,"body":"do next. And that is a feeling I don't want for anyone. So that's the form, right? The form is"},{"startTime":558.364,"endTime":563.564,"body":"the actual shape that something takes inside of your business. Like I said, for marketing,"},{"startTime":564.066,"endTime":568.644,"body":"a channel could be Instagram, a form that your marketing takes, a form that your shop takes"},{"startTime":568.644,"endTime":575.124,"body":"could be brick and mortar, a form that your shop takes could be your exact address, a form that"},{"startTime":575.124,"endTime":579.804,"body":"your shop staff takes is a certain size, right?"},{"startTime":579.804,"endTime":586.733,"body":"So what is the actual physical shape and feeling and size and color of exactly"},{"startTime":587.049,"endTime":589.497,"body":"what you're doing in your business? That's the form itself."},{"startTime":590.505,"endTime":595.16,"body":"So when I say function first, anytime someone comes to me and says,"},{"startTime":595.664,"endTime":597.383,"body":"what do I do about Instagram?"},{"startTime":598.292,"endTime":604.3439999999999,"body":"My engagement's down. It's really feeling so bad. Or what do I, what am I going to do?"},{"startTime":604.3439999999999,"endTime":608.824,"body":"My lease is up and my landlord doesn't want to re-sign us. Like, am I going to move?"},{"startTime":608.824,"endTime":613.184,"body":"Am I going to just go to e-commerce? Am I just going to shut the whole thing down?"},{"startTime":613.184,"endTime":615.874,"body":"Like, you know, those questions that really feel."},{"startTime":616.702,"endTime":622.3919999999999,"body":"Scary. It's like I can feel my heart starting to beat faster just thinking about when we run up"},{"startTime":622.3919999999999,"endTime":627.432,"body":"against something that isn't working anymore that we want to make a change for. I'm sure my."},{"startTime":627.432,"endTime":632.632,"body":"Retailers who make their own products run into this all the time. The cost of things are going"},{"startTime":632.632,"endTime":639.112,"body":"up, right? Am I going to sacrifice some margin? Am I going to change my supplier? Am I going to"},{"startTime":639.112,"endTime":644.312,"body":"change my formulation or the supplies that I use to make the product that my customers know and"},{"startTime":644.312,"endTime":650.072,"body":"in love. Like, those are the things that keep us up at night, you know. But when we think about"},{"startTime":650.072,"endTime":657.712,"body":"function, it allows us to step away from that trapped feeling and get back into our creative"},{"startTime":657.712,"endTime":665.2719999999999,"body":"bodies. And so what that looks like, let's go back again to Instagram, is my first question will be,"},{"startTime":665.2719999999999,"endTime":670.232,"body":"well, what function does it serve in your business? Is it about connecting with your"},{"startTime":670.232,"endTime":676.912,"body":"current customers? Is it about getting discovered? Is it about actually driving sales? And I don't"},{"startTime":676.912,"endTime":684.752,"body":"mean what do you wish it did? I mean, what is it actually doing? And yes, that may require some"},{"startTime":684.752,"endTime":691.072,"body":"self reflection, it may require diving into analytics. But let's say for example, you"},{"startTime":691.072,"endTime":697.2719999999999,"body":"posting on Instagram consistently for the past few years of your business has always been a place"},{"startTime":697.2719999999999,"endTime":703.112,"body":"where you can connect with your customers, right? You can create a little bit more story around the"},{"startTime":703.112,"endTime":709.632,"body":"product that you're selling. So what are some other forms that that can take that could show."},{"startTime":709.632,"endTime":716.752,"body":"Up on email that could be something that you're sharing at pop-ups? You could publish a catalog"},{"startTime":716.752,"endTime":723.472,"body":"and send it to people. You could do a zine. You could record a podcast. You could move to tick"},{"startTime":723.472,"endTime":729.352,"body":"you could focus on Pinterest, you could do all of these different ideas. This is"},{"startTime":729.352,"endTime":733.832,"body":"totally just spitballing, but like when you have a problem to solve..."},{"startTime":735.154,"endTime":741.419,"body":"Versus a roadblock that you're hitting, it just activates a different way of thinking that I think"},{"startTime":741.644,"endTime":751.444,"body":"is really so much more expansive and will allow you to like step up and step into and be excited"},{"startTime":751.444,"endTime":757.924,"body":"about the solutions that you can create rather than feeling squished and squashed and scarce"},{"startTime":757.924,"endTime":764.8439999999999,"body":"around like what is no longer working. I know pivot is like the worst and most annoying word,"},{"startTime":764.8439999999999,"endTime":771.804,"body":"especially after the COVID-19 pandemic. Like I don't know a small business owner who doesn't"},{"startTime":771.804,"endTime":776.524,"body":"like shudder at the idea of yet another pivot, but they're inevitable as you're running your"},{"startTime":776.524,"endTime":782.524,"body":"business. If you don't react to what your audience and your community and your numbers are telling"},{"startTime":782.524,"endTime":791.404,"body":"you, then you're not going to survive very long. Frankly, this is a delicate dance of refining and"},{"startTime":791.404,"endTime":799.044,"body":"tweaking and changing and being loose. And like my friend, Erica from house, which says being like"},{"startTime":799.044,"endTime":804.684,"body":"water, just be like water, you have to flow, you have to move with it. I like to say lean with it,"},{"startTime":804.684,"endTime":811.564,"body":"rock with it like this is business. And I understand not being comfortable with it."},{"startTime":811.763,"endTime":817.024,"body":"I'm not comfortable with it. I love I'm a cancer. You guys, I'm just like, I want to stay in my"},{"startTime":817.024,"endTime":823.3439999999999,"body":"little comfy shell. And I never want to leave and this is working and I am just like, relying on it"},{"startTime":823.3439999999999,"endTime":833.864,"body":"to work forever. And unfortunately, that's just not the way. But I think there is a way for us to"},{"startTime":833.864,"endTime":843.264,"body":"confidently make decisions, feel really strategic, feel really illuminated and excited and energized"},{"startTime":843.264,"endTime":850.491,"body":"by some of the changes we may have to make inside of our business, and be business people, right?"},{"startTime":850.824,"endTime":861.1039999999999,"body":"Solve those problems. And the way we solve those problems is never going to be by prioritizing or"},{"startTime":861.1039999999999,"endTime":870.2239999999999,"body":"focusing on or like hyper fixating in some cases on what isn't working anymore. It's about"},{"startTime":870.2239999999999,"endTime":878.1039999999999,"body":"understanding what's not working and what form that thing is taking and experimenting with the"},{"startTime":878.1039999999999,"endTime":884.4639999999999,"body":"next one. You know the outcome you want, you know what it looks like and what it feels like for your"},{"startTime":884.4639999999999,"endTime":890.584,"body":"business to grow and feel really good to you and feel an integrity with how you want to run your"},{"startTime":890.584,"endTime":896.424,"body":"business. And there's more than one way to do that. There's more than one shape that that can take."},{"startTime":897.15,"endTime":903.144,"body":"And I want to challenge you to stretch that creative muscle, even in instances where you"},{"startTime":903.144,"endTime":905.162,"body":"you don't need to make those changes."},{"startTime":905.2239999999999,"endTime":908.619,"body":"Just as a thought exercise, what would it be like to think, okay."},{"startTime":909.492,"endTime":919.102,"body":"If Instagram went away tomorrow, or if I had to move locations, or if I was to start a new,"},{"startTime":919.853,"endTime":924.1419999999999,"body":"revenue channel for my business, what could that be? And I'm not saying you have to implement"},{"startTime":924.1419999999999,"endTime":930.382,"body":"those changes. But getting in the habit of expanding your horizons, and envisioning all"},{"startTime":930.382,"endTime":936.462,"body":"the different tones and forms and shapes and textures that your business could take,"},{"startTime":936.462,"endTime":943.182,"body":"is going to allow you to move more easily into those changes. That's how I'm thinking about"},{"startTime":943.182,"endTime":948.342,"body":"changes around here. What could it be? What would it look like? If I wrote a book, what would it be"},{"startTime":948.342,"endTime":953.742,"body":"called? If I started a different podcast, what would it look like? If I wrote a manifesto,"},{"startTime":953.742,"endTime":957.7819999999999,"body":"what would it look like? If I had a space, what would it look like? What would it feel like?"},{"startTime":957.7819999999999,"endTime":963.382,"body":"What would it function? How would it function? What would it do? And by envisioning all those"},{"startTime":963.382,"endTime":968.286,"body":"different forms, you kind of highlight the function of your business high level, right?"},{"startTime":968.502,"endTime":973.382,"body":"If you're not someone who wants to do our soul statement meditation, which you can go back and"},{"startTime":973.382,"endTime":980.502,"body":"listen to here on this podcast feed, then start experimenting with those shapes. Start thinking"},{"startTime":980.502,"endTime":985.262,"body":"about the functions of each of the things that you're doing every single day inside your business."},{"startTime":985.867,"endTime":989.382,"body":"The way that you're working, the way that you're buying, the way that you're making products,"},{"startTime":989.382,"endTime":994.702,"body":"the way that you're marketing and ask yourself, what is the function of this channel? What is"},{"startTime":994.702,"endTime":1001.342,"body":"the function of this system? And are there any changes we can make to the shape of it to make"},{"startTime":1001.342,"endTime":1008.502,"body":"it feel better for us to make it more effective, to make it more sustainable. And I think that"},{"startTime":1008.502,"endTime":1017.302,"body":"that's how change can excite us as opposed to terrify us might still be scary. And you know,"},{"startTime":1017.302,"endTime":1022.587,"body":"it's vulnerable to change because in some way that makes us think that we were wrong, right?"},{"startTime":1022.942,"endTime":1028.502,"body":"But I don't think that's the case. I think it makes us smart. I think it makes us strategic,"},{"startTime":1028.502,"endTime":1034.982,"body":"and I think it helps us stay really, really creative. So those are my thoughts for today."},{"startTime":1034.982,"endTime":1041.462,"body":"Thank you for being here. Thank you for being in business. Thank you for constantly re-evaluating"},{"startTime":1041.462,"endTime":1046.8220000000001,"body":"and making the small, tiny tweaks that make your business so magical and doing so with"},{"startTime":1046.8220000000001,"endTime":1054.942,"body":"confidence and cheers to feeling good."},{"startTime":1054.942,"endTime":1056.94,"body":"Thanks for listening to Retail for the Rest of Us."},{"startTime":1057.462,"endTime":1061.422,"body":"Find additional information and resources related to this episode in the show notes"},{"startTime":1061.422,"endTime":1063.647,"body":"or on our website feelgoodretail.com."},{"startTime":1064.262,"endTime":1068.706,"body":"This show was lovingly produced and edited by Softer Sounds, a feminist podcast studio."},{"startTime":1069.382,"endTime":1072.865,"body":"If you enjoyed this episode, please take a minute to text it to your business bestie,"},{"startTime":1073.382,"endTime":1075.764,"body":"share it on social media and leave us a rating or review."},{"startTime":1076.302,"endTime":1079.571,"body":"It really helps the show grow organically and we love making new friends."},{"startTime":1080.5529999999999,"endTime":1083.749,"body":"Thank you for being here. Thank you for being in business and cheers to feeling good."},{"startTime":1084.15,"endTime":1099.25,"body":"Music."}]}