Macy’s recently reported that sales for its online properties Macys.com and Bloomingdales.com grew by 50.3 percent compared to the same period last year. Much of the stellar sales jump is credited to Macy’s social media push on Facebook over the last year. Yes, we know Macy’s has much more marketing muscle and money than most of us—however, there’s much we can learn (and imitate) from Macy’s successful social media campaigns.

Lesson #1 – Run campaigns to gain new “Likes.”
Macy’s attracted 800,000 Likes this year for a total fan base of 1.8 million. The larger the number of fans you have, the greater the impact of your campaigns. So consider regularly running contests and drawings to continually grow your fan base. For example, Macy’s launched a contest to giveaway free style makeovers by a celebrity fashion expert where the winners were flown to New York for their makeover. The campaign garnered thousands of Likes per day.

Lesson #2 – Create goodwill marketing campaigns.
Macy’s created campaigns that drew traffic to their Facebook Page and website, but were what I’d call a soft sell. For example, one campaign was called “Thank a Mom.” The campaign raised over $400,000 for charity and created website traffic by offering Mother’s Day e-cards. Of course, while sending out their e-card, visitors to the website could also browse a listing of Mother’s Day gift ideas.

Lesson #3 – Link between Facebook Page and website.
Get the most from your marketing campaigns by promoting them across all of your available platforms. For example, Macy’s placed a Mother’s Day Gift Guide button on its Facebook page to drive traffic (and sales) to its website. In another successful campaign, Macy’s combined use of Foursquare, Twitter and outdoor advertising (on buses, etc.) to promote its Annual Flower Show. In kind, you can make sure the look and feel of your marketing is consistent between your website, Facebook page, e-newsletters, blog, etc.

If you’ve seen any of the financial news lately, it looks like we’re not quite out of the woods economically in this country. This fact has reminded me that I need to be ever vigilant with where my money is going.

Here are a few of the most common places retailers tend to spend funds unnecessarily:

Paying the wrong person for the job. As we all know, our staff’s salaries are a major expense. Take a look at what you’re paying people to do. Do you have the right folks in the right positions? Are you paying managers to do tasks that support-level people could do? Are you spending more than necessary outsourcing something that could be done in-house at a lower cost? Are your people trained to know how to do their job efficiently and independently?

Paying for more space than you need. Rent is also a major expense for most retailers. Now is the time to examine whether you need all the space that you have. Could you rent part of your space to a complimentary retailer or merge with another shop? Perhaps you could negotiate a better deal with your landlord? Yes, moving is expensive, however you may want to run the numbers and see if over the long-term it makes sense.

Keep an eye on the little things. Take a look at all of your ancillary expenses from items like office supplies to your phone and internet service. Shop around a bit and see if you can get some better deals. You may have features on your phone and internet plan that you don’t need, or those that you are using à la carte, but could be included in a bundle pricing deal. Remember that phone and internet are often negotiable so try and negotiate yourself a better deal.

If you’ve posted a job opening lately you’ve likely been flooded by more resumes, applications and eager candidates than in years past. So, how do you effectively wade through all the resumes, culling out those that are not ideal? Here are some tips to keep in mind while reading through that stack.

Attention to detail – Look for resumes that are in a proper, coherent format. With all the resume templates out there, it’s not hard for an eager, diligent individual to find a well-organized template appropriate for the job for which they are applying. Make sure the resume does not have spelling or major grammatical errors. Resumes free of obvious errors show an applicant that has attention to detail and cares about making a good first impression, both good qualities in an employee.

A path of advancement – Read each resume with an eye toward whether the individual has experienced a path of advancement in their lives and career. This type of candidate is more likely to approach their job with a desire to learn and grow. Look for advancing job titles, even if it seems there’s been some job hopping with varied companies. Try not to hold it against the candidate if they have moved to different companies (if it appears it has been in the name of advancing a career). You can ask for further details during the interview process. Remember that in this day and age it’s less likely for motivated individuals to stay with just one company.

Interesting backgrounds – Look for candidates with varied backgrounds, career paths, interests and hobbies that not only show some depth of character, but may bring some interesting capabilities and perspectives to your staff. Take inventory of your team and consider which candidates could add a new perspective to better your business and move them to the next step in your hiring process.

Other important items to look for are a well thought out cover letter that really sells you on why they want to join your retail team. Considering these tips should help you whittle down that stack of resumes to a smaller group of really great candidates.

This week Google launched its new mobile wallet and daily deals strategy, Google Wallet, in New York and San Francisco. The application allows users to buy daily deals online from the deal network and store them in their Google Wallet. When they visit the retailer to redeem the deal, the “coupon” is in their “wallet” on their Android phone and the deal is applied to their purchase using Google’s single tap technology and a contactless PIN pad.

Google cites the fact that 80 percent of commerce is local as the reason for making the investment in their Groupon-killer app. Interestingly, Google will not be charging transaction fees to retailers for accepting the Google Wallet payments. They say they will instead be making money on the deals network.

What can you do? As a retailer, you already know that you want to be able to accept payments in as many ways as possible so that you never have to turn away a customer. Here are some first steps:

Get a contactless PIN pad
As mobile commerce continues to grow, you can begin to get ready for contactless payments, meaning payments where customers run their credit card or mobile phone across a contactless PIN pad. Contact your payment processor for more information. (According to the Google Wallet website you can get a free contactless PIN pad from First Data, Google’s payment processing partner.)

Learn more
You can learn more about the Google Wallet app by visiting the special website they have created for merchants. Also, you can search your ZIP code on the website to view fellow merchants that are already able to accept Google Wallet payments.

Sign up for updates
On the Google Wallet website, sign up to receive updates so that you’re among the first to know when Google’s deals network and other features are available in your area.

Hopefully you are now collecting customer reviews and using them on your website and in all of your marketing efforts. Having customer reviews readily available can improve your credibility and increase sales by as much as 12 percent or more. However, I recently read about a research study that says that well-written reviews — cogent and free of major grammatical and spelling errors, whether positive or negative — increase sales more than those that are not well-written, even if positive. According to the research, conducted by Panos Ipeirotis of NYU’s Stern School of Business, well-written reviews inspire confidence in the reviewer and in the company and product, even if the review is negative.

So, what does this mean for you? Well, Ipeirotis goes on to give an example of an online retailer, Zappos, which also recognized that well-written reviews increase sales. He says that Zappos corrects the grammatical errors — not the content — in consumer reviews to create higher-quality reviews and thus increased sales. I think this is a brilliant observation and great idea and would recommend that you too, when possible, edit customer reviews for grammar and spelling and see if it helps increase sales for your business.

Read more about Panos Ipeirotis’s research.

In all of our lives there are times and events that cause us to reflect and make adjustments. I’ve been reminded recently of the importance of taking time to regularly recharge my batteries. Recharging your batteries doesn’t (only) mean taking a vacation once a year, it means carving out time on a daily basis to unwind and reflect. Studies show that those who make themselves available 24/7 to their work are less productive, less creative and more ill. Those that work 11 or 12 hour days increase their risk of coronary events by 56 percent!

As I have been inspired, I hope to inspire you to consider taking these three steps to being a more creative, healthier, more productive business person.

1. Create boundaries
Have the courage to carve out times of the day in which you refuse to be bombarded by the 24/7 world of emails, texts, tweets, phone calls, news feeds, etc. It may take some time, but practice the art of being unplugged and see what happens. It's a struggle for me to be unplugged, because I feel I’m being non-productive. What I have to do is repeat to myself over and over that “taking time for myself and my family is OK… doing this will help me be better at everything else I do today.” So, build that wall, create some boundaries!

2. Create a schedule
For me, having a schedule is of utmost importance. Whether it’s scheduling time to workout each day or making a personal rule to turn off email, phone etc. between certain hours or on certain days, try creating a schedule. I find that if I have a schedule it is empowering and makes it easier to support the boundaries I’ve created. Anytime someone makes a request of you, you can say “let me check my schedule.”

3. Learn the word “no” and gain respect
As business owners and entrepreneurs we may often feel that if we say “no” to someone or something (or miss a phone call or email) we will lose out on an opportunity or close a door. However, psychologists say that often the opposite is true. Saying “no,” politely of course, can garner more respect for you and your business. If you can say “no” in a confident manner and offer solutions such as, “no, I can’t speak with you at 10 tonight but I can put you on my schedule for tomorrow morning,” you are letting the other party know that you respect them and yourself.

Try recharging your batteries more frequently, see how it changes you, and let me know.

You may have seen the ads on TV or heard about Best Buy’s buyback program, where they will give customers a percentage of the purchase price of an obsolete gadget toward its newer version. Although Best Buy’s program is more well known, more and more retailers are taking advantage of buyback programs to create good will among customers and keep them coming back to spend money on new items.

Retailers with buyback programs have now created a whole new revenue stream from selling those used goods online and in-store… it's called re-commerce. Could any of your store’s items be perfect for a buyback program? You don’t have to sell expensive electronics, but what about other expensive or rapidly obsolete products? Products such as jewelry, designer clothing and accessories would be perfect candidates, or fine china, housewares and kitchen appliances and gadgets? They could be a good reason for creating your own buyback program.

The way most buyback programs work is that the customer pays an upfront fee at purchase to be a part of the buyback program, and is then guaranteed a resale price depending on the product. Best Buy gives customers 10 to 50 percent of an item’s original price. Items also have to be sold back within two to four years. Best Buy then sells those items through its outlet centers or online.

Last week we wrapped up the largest, most successful SPREE to date. I met, spoke to, shook hands, and shared ideas with more inspiring, intelligent specialty retail entrepreneurs than ever before. This week is back to work at the office and I now find myself at my desk with pockets full of business cards and notes… which got me thinking about the importance of follow through in business.

It seems to me that we're more closely connected in business than ever, which makes staying in touch and following through on promises more important to our businesses. Here are some tips on improving follow through and customer service to build and nurture all the business relationships that are so important.

Keep up with contacts as you go
I used to think that saving important emails and follow up calls for a quieter point in my day was the best way to handle them. However, that catch up time never seemed to materialize and I would get more and more backlogged. Since then I’ve found that it’s easier to keep up with people and handle issues as I go along—although it doesn’t always happen this way. Life and schedules move quickly, so enter new contacts in your database and/or social media right away. This is also a great policy with customer and client service issues—handling them right away will let others know that they're important to you.

Never let anyone fall through the cracks
Create a well-planned system that works for you and your business to take in new contacts and follow up on customer/client inquiries. A recent study by Forbes showed that 69 percent of businesses have customer retention/service as a top priority, but only 18 percent have a company-wide strategy. That’s a recipe for customers and issues to fall through the cracks. If customer service is a priority, you must have a system in place to provide superior service.

Use social networks
Communications are increasingly happening online and using social media. People appreciate knowing they are being thought of. Use these networks to help you save time and keep in contact with your customers and business contacts. It’s a great way to keep your business front-of-mind for your customers and send quick notes to contacts that you want to keep up with.

Becoming a good communicator with great follow through will always work in your favor, and is critical to building a lasting business.

We heard in the news a few days back that Harry & David filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. That’s the bad news. The good news is that the company believes it will survive, once given some breathing room, and continue shipping its famous pears and other assorted treats. For us in “the business” one lesson to learn from Harry & David is that having a great brand is not the end all, be all. Although there are probably many factors at play in Harry & David’s financial woes, from what I’ve read poor customer service may be one of them.

So, how can you collect, monitor and address customer service issues that may be affecting your business? Here are some thoughts:

Monitor social networks
One failure of Harry & David may have been that they didn't monitor what shoppers thought of them online. These days shoppers are more likely to record their experiences with your store online… as a popular shopping blogger did, posting a scathing review of Harry & David’s customer service.

A great place for you to get a read on the quality of your customer service is to regularly scan the Internet for customer feedback. Set up a Google Alert for your store’s name (and your name) and when just about anything is posted on the Internet that includes your search terms, you'll receive an email. If you see a negative review online, don’t panic, deal with the complaint in the same public fashion so that those reading the post will see that you care and respectfully handle customer complaints.

Go out of your way to let customers know you want to hear from them
Make sure you're asking for customer feedback at all points of your customer touch. Ask for it on your website, in your email marketing, on your social networks… and make it simple and easy for customers to offer feedback both online and in-store. Of course, make sure your staff explicitly tells customers that you desire their feedback. Customers want to know they’re important to you and generally like being asked for their opinion.

Spend time speaking with your staff
As we know, asking customers what they think is important, but remember that your staff collects customer feedback constantly, even when they’re not at work. Take time to pick their brains and create an atmosphere where they feel comfortable sharing negative comments with you. Perhaps have an off-site, roundtable meeting at a local coffee shop to share comments and brainstorm ideas to improve customers’ experiences.

Paying special attention to offering exemplary customer service will help ensure your store doesn’t go the way of Harry & David.

A retailer’s dream came true last week when AT&T announced the launch of its ShopAlert service, a service that matches a consumer’s location with special offers available at near-by retailers. What’s more, the alerts are matched to the customer’s age, gender and interests. All AT&T customers have to do is opt-in to the service and they will begin receiving mobile messages from retailers in a certain perimeter around their location.

For now the service is rolling out only in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and San Francisco but I imagine once all the kinks are worked out the service will continue to be rolled out nationwide. What a great way to draw in new customers!