Know-How Exchange : Branding

Why not simply, "The Best Furniture For Less (24/7/365)"?

Thanks Phil, very eloquent and I agree with you. However, we've done our homework with the business plan. We are known distributors of furniture in Puerto Rico. We cater retailers, we don' sell furniture directly to customers. We deal primarily on sets (living, dining and bedrooms sets). Established retailers know furniture market specifications and materials, concentrating on the value of whats is been offered. Our our customers (ratailers) buy on price-value for their price concious clients.
Our business propossal is: "first come first serve". There is usually limited quantities on certain furniture segments. Selling and distributing furniture from wholesalers and furniture is our target, but with this new brand we want to "fast forward" the selling part. We want to present our products virtually, comunicating via email and social media the deals or lots we have available with a delivery time frame and process order thru our portal. Price and quantities are important for some customers, so been able to have first option to buy is an incentive for closing the sale without receiving the sales pitch directly from us. We have spoken to several potencial customers and they approved of the idea. However, we want to reach other potencial customers with a marketing campaign. We think we have a great name and we need a slogan or tag that describe us. I appreciate your insight, hope what I just stated stimulate you to give it another look. Thanks again.

My first suggestion - before going to the taglines - is that since your customers can't actually see what you are selling, you need some good copy for your website (and emails/other advertising). You can compare the new with the old too - as this will be familiar to them.

One thought - what else can you supply instead of "being cheaper"? It isn't the strongest asset that a business has, and someone could find a way to be even cheaper. I am quite sure that there is something else you can also use - just ask your clients (do a mailshot and just ask them! - the results may astonish you). You can use that in future marketing strategies, and thereby thwart any serious competition.

Taglines:

We have the best, and there's only so much!
Bringing you the best, so be first!
The best in furniture - today. Don't wait for tomorrow

What do you think? Is this in the lines of what you were thinking? If not, please tell us and we can have another go.

Thanks for your response Moriarty. I think I'm getting there. I see your point. We know we have to be price conscious to cater our clients. How ever, Retailers buy from different distributors to fulfill their inventory requirements. Our competitors' strategies are rudimentary, although effective, and relay on word of mouth, visiting furniture retailers, phone calls, etc. We believe we could communicate with prospective clients faster utilizing the web, social media, newsletters and email. Instead of waiting to be contacted in person or waiting for the next business day to call and place orders, we thought It would be a good business idea having a virtual store, with photos and product specifications, as any other web store. Prospective client (retailer) could be expose to the product almost simultaneously as we get the deal and publish it. Since we live on an island (PR), almost everything we consume has to be imported. Waiting for it to arrive to the Island could take up to 90 days. We have identify a way to shorten this period by pre selling the products while on transit or by identifying wholesalers with inventory who want to do business with os by offering their furniture products to our clients. We expect to reach close to 200 clients. Instead of calling all our clients one by one to offer our deals, we though we could reach them as noted before, thus selling our "virtual" inventory faster and let them fulfill the ordering forms themselves, any day, any hour. So yes, we think we are selling more than "price".

Is a combination of all your suggested tags. Price, time response, first to come-first to get the offer...Since the name "mobiliaria" already evokes "furniture", how about something like: Best deal...today! (El mejor negocio ¡Hoy!); Best deal...at any hour (El mejor negocio...a cualquier hora) or something like that. I think that could be the right path to go. What do you think?

Radames.

P.S.
I must then translate it to spanish. That's why I wrote the translation, to visualize it.

I'm forming a picture here of someone who is getting in there first. Given that your competitors aren't doing this, it's a pretty bright idea. Be warned that they might just decide to copy you - so prepare your strategies as you get the ideas, and once someone starts copying, spring your new idea!

Just as an aside - how much quicker can you deliver? Is it days or ... weeks? How long does it take from harbourside to the door of their warehouse - is it hours or days? Not that this matters for a tagline, it just gives me more idea of what you might say. Do your containers come direct - or are they unloaded onto smaller ships that cruise the Caribbean ports from Houston (or wherever they land)?

As to Spanish - most of my ideas are visual, so should translate fairly easily. I am working with a Spanish client at the moment, and my copy translates fairly well for him - he needs to add the Spanish flourish, the basic ideas are the same.

At the moment, I have this image of your furniture sitting on a boat in the sea, waiting for a new owner. Do your emails have "arriving in three weeks, arriving in two weeks" and so on? Naturally the amounts on offer will decline each week as they get sold - that in itself may encourage people to get in quick. Of course you can also have a red stripe through several that are already sold out! It's worth a try - are your emails weekly?? Are your deliveries weekly?? I know the route from Shanghai to Rotterdam is very well organized.

Taglines:
Arriving soon! Make sure it's yours!
New Styles On Their Way: will they be yours?
New Styles coming - don't let anyone else have them!
What you need, when you need it - as soon as it arrives!
Book online and you'll be first to get them!



I want to add that a tanker carrying crude oil will change course two if not three times in its voyage - because its cargo has been sold on to a different buyer - and hence needs to go to a different port!

Thanks again Moriarty,

Delivery times vary, from days to weeks. It depends what deal we've identified, were is located or the route it is on. Once we have identified it, we calculate when it could be available at our port, and once there it takes us 3-5 days to deliver. Hence, 3-5 days plus time to get to port. Our message should be (hopefully) our clients could have a scoop of what's coming and have a chance to grab it without "human intervention" thru our "virtual distribution portal". Our "virtual inventory" is for sale before it gets to shore. They could order during business hours, receiving an automated response of their order immediately, or even on a holiday or while on vacation, and receiving order feedback first thing in the morning thru email or phone contact. "What you need, when you need it - as soon as it arrives!"
i'll be working on the translation of it. Thanks. If you have any other suggestions it would be greatly appreciated.