Around the Workstand
89 episodes - English - Latest episode: 13 days ago - ★★★★★ - 3 ratingsAround the Workstand is our podcast where we discuss the work done here at Workstand. Workstand is the only all-in-one commerce solution built exclusively for local bike shops. Our technology powered the ecommerce revolution for the IBD channel and is trusted by one out of four shops. Every subscription includes an optional point of sale at no extra cost. Workstand helps local bicycle retailers leverage the power of our industry-leading data network to run a more efficient business and expand sales opportunities.
We offer the most complete catalog of product data, including images and descriptions, expanded sales potential, and improved efficiency for both retailers and suppliers. Included drop shipping and brand marketing partnerships to build powerful relationships.
To complement our software services, Workstand is also a complete digital marketing partner. We work with over 400 bike shops, including many of the nation’s largest, offering website maintenance, Google Ads, SEO, graphic design, custom websites, and more.
Contact us anytime for more information: [email protected]
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Episodes
SmartEtailing 10-Minute Tuesday: 4/4/2023 National sales extended, Tax Jar integration enhanced, Busy Season Special for Maintenance program, Direct Mail works!
April 04, 2023 17:00 - 13 minutes - 9.04 MBThere is a lot going on this week in the SmartEtailing world. Let's get to it! TrekFest extended Our team took care of installs based on a list we received from Trek Updated landing page live in the page library - Sales and Promotions folder How To: Holiday Library Content - find, preview, and install holiday content - this works for any library content in Page Editor Santa Cruz factory sale extended Pricing - if you want to maintain the sale price on your website, make sure your POS ...
SmartEtailing 10-Minute Tuesday: 3/28/2023 J&B Drop Shipping is live, limited use discounts, changes to site manager, and Spring Sales are being extended
March 28, 2023 22:00 - 7 minutes - 5.12 MBJ&B Drop Shipping is live! If you don't already have a SmartEtailing website, use this form to get started with a special promotion. If you have a SmartEtailing website but are NOT at the Professional package level, email Client Success to upgrade to Pro, it's required to use J&B Drop Shipping. Already at Pro? There is no additional cost to enable J&B Drop Shipping. Fill out this form and we'll handle the rest. Limited use discounts allow you to set some limits on the number of times a ...
SmartEtailing 10-Minute Tuesday: 3/21/2023 Google local inventory, spring sales, and Discounts migration
March 21, 2023 16:00 - 9 minutes - 6.45 MBGoogle Ads is often a key strategy for bicycle retailers with sales growth goals. We have our own three-person team in our marketing agency who manage paid ads campaigns for SmartEtailing retailers. The leader of that team, Matt Viara, joins Up Next today to talk about his work and how Google Local Inventory ads can be a game changer for local retailers. Spring Sales continue to show strong results. Don't forget about migrating your Discounts to your upgraded Discounts feature. Be sure ...
Google Ads and Local Inventory Feeds: Sales growth for local bicycle merchants
March 21, 2023 16:00 - 30 minutes - 20.7 MBPaid Google Ads are perhaps the most effective way to reach new customers and engage existing customers expressing the intent to purchase. We have our own three-person team in our marketing agency who manage paid ads campaigns for SmartEtailing retailers. The leader of that team, Matt Viara, joins Up Next today to talk about his work and how Google Local Inventory ads can be a game changer for local retailers. That is what's Up Next! Google Merchant Center Setup Google Shopping Be sure to...
SmartEtailing 10-Minute Tuesday: 3/14/2023 Rental bike fleets return, service department wins, automated emails, and Buy Local Now
March 14, 2023 16:00 - 12 minutes - 8.34 MBWe talked about the return, of sorts, of rental bike fleets and mentioned our Integrations page. You'll find rental management apps and much more there. Automated emails can turn existing customers into repeat buyers more often with less effort. What is in your POS system that isn't on your website? Use the 'Download Mapping Report' function in your POS Sync Settings. Buy Local Now helps brands funnel their website traffic to local merchants. Buy Local Now is included in all SmartEtailing...
SmartEtailing 10-Minute Tuesday: 3/7/2023 Payment options, catalog sections, and keeping your catalog healthy
March 07, 2023 17:00 - 10 minutes - 7.56 MBHaving good payment options for your customers at checkout can increase conversions. Start with WePay and add PayPal and Klarna for maximum versatility. Catalog health matters and it starts with good POS Sync management. Let Supplier Sync do its thing rather than manually importing catalog items whenever possible. Be sure to email your questions to [email protected]. We read all emails sent and we look forward to hearing from you. If you're a Workstand client with questions about you...
SmartEtailing 10-Minute Tuesday: 2/28/2023 Direct mail, big brands promotions, ensuring accurate pricing
February 28, 2023 17:00 - 9 minutes - 6.69 MBWe've got an excellent direct mail program going and it's seeing success. We are working with the Bike Coop and NBDA so if you're interested in using direct mail to grow your sales, reach out to your agency rep (if you're using our Maintenance, Marketing, or Partner level marketing programs) or email Lauren Webb to get started. Trek, Specialized, Santa Cruz, and Cannondale all have promotional activities going and we've got great content for your website. Look for email communication from t...
SmartEtailing 10-Minute Tuesday: 2/21/2023 Shipping methods, Discounts migration reminder, spring sales, and tough love for your website
February 21, 2023 17:00 - 11 minutes - 7.83 MBShipping Methods can become complicated. Let us know if you need help configuring yours. Changes to Discount methods are coming so take a few minutes and get your Discounts migrated. Learn more about using new Discounts. Spring sales are coming. Learn more about using Supplier Promotions. Be sure to email your questions to [email protected]. We read all emails sent and we look forward to hearing from you. If you're a Workstand client with questions about your subscription, email supp...
SmartEtailing 10-Minute Tuesday: 2/14/2023 Quotes and Orders new internal note, turning on shopping carts, Discounts, and Home Screen
February 14, 2023 17:00 - 10 minutes - 6.98 MBHappy Valentine's Day! We released an enhancement to Orders and Quotes that allow for internal notes to be added. You can see the updated options for both customer-facing and internal notes in any order and as you create new quotes. The Discounts function has been updated and we're reaching out to those who have not migrated to the new Discounts tool asking them to do so by March 15th. Don't forget to check out the helpful tips on the Home Screen when you log into your SmartEtailing sit...
SmartEtailing 10-Minute Tuesday: 2/7/2023 Internal links, referral credits, custom website projects, and shopping starts online
February 07, 2023 17:00 - 10 minutes - 7.39 MBThere is a lot going on this week! Internal links on ecommerce websites can be effective in helping your customers find what they want and in helping search engines see the value you are providing to shoppers. It isn't uncommon for an ecommerce website to have hundreds or even thousands of pages when catalog pages are included. Internal links can make it easier for shoppers to see all that you offer. We now offer a Dealer Referral! If you are a current SmartEtailing merchant and refer a fr...
SmartEtailing 10-Minute Tuesday: 1/31/2023 Email tips, pre-designed library pages, and other website admin notes
January 31, 2023 20:00 - 9 minutes - 6.38 MBWe've got some great tips for email marketing, using our pre-designed library content, handling returns and refunds, and making changes to your SmartEtailing account options. Happy Tuesday! If you send out regular or even sporadic email newsletters, it's a good idea to send a test email first to yourself to see exactly how that email will appear to your customers on both desktop and mobile devices. Handling returns and refunds isn't difficult in your SmartEtailing Order management tools b...
SmartEtailing 10-Minute Tuesday: 1/24/2023 WePay, Drop Shipping, Promo Pricing, and Shop Dogs
January 24, 2023 17:00 - 12 minutes - 8.63 MBThere was an issue with WePay payment processing yesterday. It's been resolved but it brought up a thought about having a backup option available. As suppliers have more inventory in their warehouses, drop shipping, what we call Supplier Fulfillment becomes an even more valuable feature. If you work with Trek, Specialized, HLC, or QBP in the US or LTP Sports or HLC in Canada, and aren't already using this feature, consider setting it up on your Professional level website. If you aren't usin...
10-Minute Tuesday: 1/17/2023 Important tips for Lightspeed and WePay users, email popups, and big improvements for using Apple Maps and business services
January 17, 2023 18:00 - 12 minutes - 8.76 MBWe have had a couple of unusual topics come up this last week Lightspeed POS connection - when connecting or if access is revoked and needs to be reconnected, remember the user who connects must have the admin role which is different from owner or any other role. WePay - we had a couple of requests to un-refund refunds that were issued - there is no way to do that. If you refund an incorrect amount or just mistakenly refunded a sale, there is no way to pull back that refund. You’d just hav...
SmartEtailing 10-Minute Tuesday: 1/17/2023 Important tips for Lightspeed and WePay users, email popups, and big improvements for using Apple Maps and business services
January 17, 2023 18:00 - 12 minutes - 8.76 MBWe have had a couple of unusual topics come up this last week Lightspeed POS connection - when connecting or if access is revoked and needs to be reconnected, remember the user who connects must have the admin role which is different from owner or any other role. WePay - we had a couple of requests to un-refund refunds that were issued - there is no way to do that. If you refund an incorrect amount or just mistakenly refunded a sale, there is no way to pull back that refund. You’d just hav...
SmartEtailing 10-Minute Tuesday: 1/10/2023 Promoting services, clinics, classes and getting ahead of the spring riding season
January 10, 2023 16:00 - 8 minutes - 5.91 MBServices have been a popular topic early in 2023. If services matter to our 2023 plans, promote them on your website. Further, whatever goals come from your planning for the year, be sure to address website and social content to support them because most people will meet your website before meeting you. Our January Marketing Blog might be helpful too. Let us know how we can help. Want to talk about marketing budgets or how to plan a marketing calendar? We can help! Be sure to email your qu...
SmartEtailing 10-Minute Tuesday: 1/3/2023 Website tips to start the year off right!
January 03, 2023 18:00 - 9 minutes - 6.3 MBAt the change of every season and certainly more so as a new year begins, there are some housekeeping items that can really help your website communicate more effectively with your customers. Let's talk about those tips! Here's the January Marketing Blog Suzie mentions during the episode. Talk to you next Tuesday! Be sure to email your questions to [email protected]. We read all emails sent and we look forward to hearing from you. If you're a Workstand client with questions about you...
SmartEtailing 10-Minute Tuesday: 12/27/2022 The post holiday bike shop lull, SEO, and what national retailers are pushing
December 27, 2022 17:00 - 11 minutes - 7.64 MBIt's a little bit quiet here at SmartEtailing this post-holiday week. That could mean our merchants are so busy that they don't have time to ask us questions, but it feels more like a lull and perhaps a welcomed one. In the last few weeks, we've talked about merchandising and telling your holiday story. Merchandising is always essential but it will shift from a pure holiday story to ensuring your inventory is displayed to move as the new year begins and spring begins to loom large along wit...
SmartEtailing 10-Minute Tuesday: 12/20/2022 - 2023 is almost here. Let's button up 2022 and get to planning for next year!
December 20, 2022 22:00 - 12 minutes - 8.36 MBWe are really getting close to waving goodbye to 2022 so we're hearing tons of questions about how to finish strong and how to start planning for 2023. Today we talk about the right content steps to ensure the products, categories, and topics you care about are in place to grow your organic search reach and to be ready for receiving the paid traffic you're planning for next year. 2023 will be here before you know it and if you are just now thinking about what will happen in January, you're...
Community and Inclusion - Tell the story of your bike shop and how you intend to serve
December 16, 2022 19:00 - 19 minutes - 13.6 MBYour website is often the first part of your business that new customers meet before visiting your store. It makes sense to do your best to align your website with your physical business as best you can. Does the website reflect your store's personality? Will site visitors get a feel for who you are as a business if they choose to visit? Are you inviting everyone in and welcoming them? You're probably doing beautiful things in your community. It isn't bragging to share that, it's letting ...
SmartEtailing 10-Minute Tuesday: December 13, 2022 Holiday Crunch Time Tips
December 13, 2022 22:00 - 5 minutes - 4.05 MBAs the holiday season continues to motor by, crunch time gets closer and the benefit of being a local retailer with great gifts in-stock and ready for pickup becomes even more valuable to you and your customers. Be sure to provide a clear path to those products that you have in stock. If your business hours are changing, update them on the website, socials, and Google My Business, and don't forget to reset them after the holidays if they can't be scheduled ahead of time. Reach out if you...
SmartEtailing 10-Minute Tuesday: December 6, 2022 - Website Cache, Catalog Changes, Start and End Dates
December 06, 2022 22:00 - 6 minutes - 4.31 MBRaquel from the SmartEtailing Client Success Team joins 10-Minute Tuesday to talk about what we are hearing from our merchants this week. Ensure the changes made on your website display as expected by remembering to reset your site cache after making those changes. Remember that we systematically reset all website caches overnight so if you don't want those changes to be public yet, be sure to deactivate the page or set a start date farther off in the future. Catalog changes take longer s...
SmartEtailing 10-Minute Tuesday: November 29, 2022
November 29, 2022 23:00 - 10 minutes - 7.06 MBThis week, we talk about important steps to take with your website now that we're deep into the holiday season. If it's popular in the store, it needs to be represented on your website. What products are people asking about, what is your staff hearing on the floor, and what do you want shoppers to know about when they find your website? Seasonally relevant content helps too so use the great landing pages and homepage graphics we have pre-designed for your use. Help Center: Using Page Editor...
SmartEtailing 10-Minute Tuesday: November 22, 2022
November 15, 2022 23:00 - 8 minutes - 5.91 MBHere's a new twist on our Up Next podcast that hopes to provide some quick, actionable tips every week. This week we introduce this new type of Up Next episode. The first big note is that our Client Success Team has extended their support hours and will now be available from 7:00am - 6:00pm MST. We talk about retail trends and mention an article Ryan Atkinson shared with us this week from the National Retail Federation that suggests an optimistic holiday shopping season. We also touch ...
SmartEtailing Feature + Enhancement Spotlight: Q3 2022 Edition
October 11, 2022 17:00 - 23 minutes - 16.5 MBWelcome to the Q3 2022 Features and Enhancements Spotlight. We released some exciting new features and enhancements for SmartEtailing website clients in the third quarter of 2022. Here's a short video with Suzie and Mark outlining notable updates for websites. Join us at the beginning of every quarter to look back on the Features + Enhancements we've released. Links to resources mentioned: How To: Klarna Setup How To: Klarna On-Site Messaging and Placements Maintenance and Marketing Progra...
Social Media Marketing for Local Bike Shops - A little goes a long way
August 24, 2022 11:00 - 26 minutes - 18.5 MBSocial media is everywhere. What is it good for in your local business? How often should you post to Facebook, Instagram, TikTok? TikTok, really? You've got a lot going on in the store and it takes all you have to run the business so is it worth your time or the time of your staff to add social media to the mix? For most, the answer is yes. Also for most, there is already some activity on social media platforms. Today, Julie Walsh from our Marketing Agency joins Suzie and Mark to talk about...
SmartEtailing Feature + Enhancement Spotlight: Q2 2022 Edition
July 13, 2022 02:00 - 16 minutes - 11.1 MBWelcome to the Q2 2022 Features and Enhancements recap. Links to resources mentioned: How To: Home Screen How To: Discounts Up Next Podcast on YouTube Up Next Podcast on your favorite podcast app We released some exciting new features and enhancements for SmartEtailing website clients in the second quarter of 2022. Here's a short video with Suzie and Mark outlining notable updates for websites. Our plan is to release one of these videos each quarter to ensure our clients are as informed as...
Website Homepage Merchandising is Valuable Marketing
June 01, 2022 22:00 - 26 minutes - 18.4 MBHomepage merchandising is a popular topic here at SmartEtailing and we spend a lot of time talking about it. Homepages, far and away, receive more visits than any other page on your site so it is important to display the content there that tells the story that consumers need to hear about your business. We (Ryan Atkinson, President + Co-Owner - Suzie Livingston, Marketing + Communications - Mark Still, Business Development) talk through general and seasonal merchandising tips and best practi...
Feature + Enhancement Spotlight for the first quarter of 2022
April 11, 2022 17:00 - 22 minutes - 15.4 MBWe released some exciting new features and enhancements for SmartEtailing website clients in the first three months of 2022. Here's a short podcast with Suzie and Mark outlining notable updates for websites. Our plan is to release one of these podcasts each quarter to ensure our clients are as informed as possible and know about the work we've done on their behalf. Let us know at [email protected] if you have any questions about the features and enhancements shown. We'd also love to h...
Email Marketing
March 08, 2022 13:00 - 19 minutes - 13.6 MBEmail marketing remains an effective, approachable, and affordable tool to market products and services. We asked Hannah Dittmar, an Account Manager from our Marketing Agency, to join us to talk about the work she does with SmartEtailing clients in email marketing. Hannah and Suzie were both presenters at Frost Bike this year and Hannah's session was specifically about email marketing so it was great to get tips from someone immersed in modern email marketing - along with Google Ads, content...
2021 In Review
February 09, 2022 21:00 - 28 minutes - 19.4 MBCan you believe it's already 2022 and we're already a month into 2022? It's all moving fast in the cycling industry as it is in many parts of the economy. How's your business? What did you learn in 2021? We learned a lot and the data has some interesting stories to tell from another tumultuous year. So, we wanted to do a quick recap and talk about that and what might be coming ... and maybe how Ryan and Suzie have too many bikes to keep up with. That's what's Up Next! If you're a current...
The Benefits of Drop Shipping
November 02, 2021 21:00 - 14 minutes - 10.3 MBShoppers today understand that the products they buy from a retailer's website may be coming from supplier warehouses and they expect a broad selection and excellent execution. Selling both in-store inventory and supplier-held inventory is just an efficient way to help manage inventory dollars and meet demand. We talk about the details and advantages of using drop shipping to sell more and to find and retain more customers. That's what's Up Next! If you're a current SmartEtailing website...
Holiday Marketing - If it's not all about the sales and deals this season, what is it about?
October 06, 2021 21:00 - 19 minutes - 13.6 MBHoliday marketing is normally about sales, discounts, and promos but the times we're living in are anything but normal. If marketing isn't about deals this year, what is it about? How should retailers look at marketing their businesses when inventory is scarce and shoppers are plentiful? Could holiday time be a prep time for spring? Inventory has been super scarce but we're hearing more and more that, at least in some categories, levels are starting to build. We invited Jenna Poppenhagen,...
Have You Met Dave?
September 23, 2021 20:00 - 27 minutes - 19.1 MBWe have a great team here at SmartEtailing. One of our newest editions to the team, David DeKeyser, has a very interesting history in bicycle retail that has resulted in him joining SmartEtailing as part of our recent merger with Retail Tool Kit. So, we invited him on to talk about how he got started in retail, his decision after 18 years as a business owner to step away, and how he ended up work with Retail Tool Kit. That's what's Up Next! Oh, and if you want to connect with David to tal...
How Google Can Help Your Business
September 09, 2021 17:00 - 24 minutes - 16.8 MBWhat do you think of when you hear, Google? It's complicated, right? That's why we brought our in-house Google expert, Jack, in. He takes us through some of the work we do with bicycle retailers using both free and paid Google applications to promote their businesses, grow their customer base, and sell more. You may not use everything Google in your store and not everything with the Google name on it is necessary. Jack talks about the key apps that matter - Google My Business, Google Merch...
Streamline with Service Scheduling
August 26, 2021 17:00 - 10 minutes - 7.44 MBAll of the retailers we work with are so busy. The service department seems to be a universal challenge for all - staffing, sourcing parts for repairs, scheduling and communicating with customers, walk-ups... these are wild times for sure. While discussing ways we can help, our recently released Service Appointments tool came up as a way to possibly reduce phone calls and walk-ups for service by offering a simple way for customers to book dropoff times for repairs and service. This feature ...
Bonus Custom Chat - Homepage Makeovers and More
August 12, 2021 17:00 - 4 minutes - 2.92 MBAs we were signing off from our last episode, the one about custom websites, we asked each other if we were forgetting anything. Well, we certainly were forgetting something that is important in our opinion so we turned the cameras back on and hit record. Homepage makeovers, free library marketing content, and more. Wow. We forgot a lot of great information. We also publish Up Next on our YouTube channel if you'd like to watch while you listen. Here is our Up Next playlist and a link to thi...
Why Go Custom with Your Website?
August 05, 2021 14:00 - 15 minutes - 10.5 MBSmartEtailing builds website tools and content so that almost anyone can create and maintain a professional eCommerce website. We also work with roughly 50 retailers each year to create completely custom websites. Why? Well, that is what's up next. Custom Website Examples: https://www.racepacebicycles.com/ https://www.cahabacycles.com/ https://www.cyclingforza.com/ https://www.methowcyclesport.com/ https://www.americancycleandfitness.com/ Other Marketing Offerings - https://marketing.smart...
Ryan's Dealer Tour
July 22, 2021 17:00 - 26 minutes - 17.9 MBSmartEtailing has clients all over North America and the pandemic interrupted one of Ryan's favorite work activities - visiting stores and talking to retailers about their businesses. While the pandemic is certainly not 'over', there has been enough improvement that he felt good about testing the traveling waters and he recently returned from a few dealer visits in Southern California. We're anxious to hear what he learned .... and that's what's up next! We also publish Up Next on our YouTu...
Introduction and Loyalty Marketing
July 16, 2021 15:00 - 11 minutes - 7.67 MBUp Next is our podcast where Ryan Atkinson, Suzie Livingston, and Mark Still from SmartEtailing discuss topics pertinent to our bicycle retail clients, industry suppliers and brands, and service providers in the cycling industry. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, impromptu gatherings around a table or a desk in our office were the norm. Now that we're all working remotely, we have to work a little harder to make those moments happen and that's where this podcast comes in. Short and to the point...