For the past 10 years or so, the final weeks of August have been overtaken by preparations for my daughter’s big back-to-school event. Our shopping list may have progressed from pencil cases, lunch boxes and cute outfits to iWatches and designer backpacks – not to mention the latest in jeans that at around $230 feature a built-in mobile device battery charger – but the principle has not changed. We apparently need this stuff to fit in and be successful.
But where does a “Back-to-school Mattress Sale” or a “Huge Back-to-school minivan clearance” fit in? Is it just me, or do you get the feeling that BTS is now an official holiday shopping season, not unlike the US Black Friday that we seem to have embraced as a Canadian tradition?
I see a few forces at play:
1. The power of the academic year cycle
2. The severe challenges of retail, both physical and online, to compete in an oversaturated, mass-merchandised environment
3. The consumer mindset that we must have the latest and best everything but, driven by non-stop sales, always for a bargain
4. The teenage years. Sigh
For anyone who has ever been a student or a supporter of one (read: all of us), the psychology of September is powerful It’s a time for new beginnings, first impressions and exciting challenge.
So how will you make the most of this mindset in your practice? As we all settle back into our routines, might this be a good opportunity to organize some classroom training to refresh your staff competency and ensure the best possible productivity and workflow?
A series of Lunch and Learn seminars can go a long way in refreshing your team’s knowledge. MyABEL is a wonderful resource for self or group study. And there’s never a bad time to invite one of our Trainers to present an on-site or online reinforcement of best-practice use of ABELDent. Call us – we’ll pack a lunch.
