A customer at the register asks whether you know anywhere that repairs window screens. You've done it in the back for eleven years. They've been shopping here for most of them.
Every hardware store has a version of that conversation. The service is real, the staff know about it, and a good share of the people walking the aisles have no idea it exists. That gap is the most useful thing in-store announcements can close.
Start with what the store already does
Most stores are sitting on more material than they realize.
Services are the first place to look. Key cutting, screen repair, blade sharpening, propane exchange, small engine repair, paint matching, glass cutting, pipe threading, delivery. These are capabilities the store already has, and every one of them is invisible to a customer who has never had a reason to ask.
Departments come next. Rental sits at the back of a lot of stores and gets found by accident. The contractor desk is often unknown to anyone who isn't already a contractor. Seasonal areas move around enough that regulars stop looking for them.
Then there's the practical material. Holiday hours. Special orders for anything not on the shelf. Whether you deliver, and how far. Where to find someone who can actually answer a question.
Product and vendor messaging belongs in the mix as well, and a good deal of it is already written and ready to schedule.
What makes a message land?
One idea per message. A message covering three services is harder to follow and harder to remember than three messages covering one each.
Say where. "Key cutting at the service counter" does more than "we cut keys," because it removes the step where the customer has to go find out.
Be specific about what you actually do. "We sharpen chainsaw chains and mower blades" tells someone whether to come back on Saturday. "Full-service repair shop" does not.
Keep it conversational. Exaggerated sales language is easy to tune out, and a store telling customers something genuinely useful doesn't need it.
Give the customer something to do. Ask at the counter, bring it in, check the back aisle. Make it clear how the customer can act on what they've heard.
How often should messages play?
Most stores using our service run somewhere between one and four an hour.
The tradeoff runs in both directions. Too few and your regulars may never happen to be in the store when one plays. Too many and it starts to feel like an airport terminal, which customers notice even when they can't say why.
How long people stay is part of the calculation. A store where most visits run ten minutes needs a different frequency than one where customers browse for half an hour, and the aim is to reach them without crowding the music.
Timing can be set more precisely than most stores need. If you want the rental message weighted toward Saturday morning, or the delivery message running only in the afternoon, that's a scheduling question rather than a limitation.
Where do the messages come from?
There are three routes, and most stores use more than one.
The library is the simplest. There's a large collection of messaging produced specifically for Do it Best members, covering vendor products, store services, and welcome announcements, and any of it can be scheduled without writing anything.
Custom messaging covers what's specific to your store. Send us copy points, a flyer, a link to a page on your site, or a few bullets on a scrap of paper. We'll write the script at no charge and send it back for your approval. Once you're satisfied, we'll professionally record it for a production fee.
You can also supply your own finished script for us to record at the same production fee, or upload audio you've already produced.
The library is professionally voiced as well. Audio you upload plays as supplied.
Who manages the rotation?
Either you or us, depending on how involved you want to be.
Messages live in an online dashboard where a store can schedule them, change them, and pull them at any point. Each one carries a start date and a stop date, so a message tied to a sale or a season can be set to end on its own. If you'd rather not touch any of it, call and we'll make the change for you.
Where to start
Write down every service your store offers that a first-time customer wouldn't know about. For most stores that list runs longer than expected, and it's a strong starting point.
Learn more about Do it Best Radio or get in touch and we'll go through what's already in the library for your store.
