What could Office Depot do to assist Home School groups?
Wednesday, April 15th, 2009 @ 6:39 pm | Shopping
Norman asked:
I work at Office Depot, and we’re about to rent a booth out at a local Home School conference and tell different home school teachers and groups some of the advantages we can offer them.
I work at Office Depot, and we’re about to rent a booth out at a local Home School conference and tell different home school teachers and groups some of the advantages we can offer them.
Assuming you’re a home school teacher, what sort of benefits would you be interested in? We give home school teachers our normal Worklife Rewards, as well as Star Teacher discounts and Back To School donations that go straight to the teacher.
But as an employee that has limited ability in creating actual discounts and the like, what services can I offer to home schoolers to show Office Depot’s support? What would be helpful from an office supply store?
Andrea
April 18th, 2009 at 7:12 pm
Why not do what Home Depot does and have a kids workshop once a month. Children of a certain age can come in and do art-crafts-etc and that way you can promote any new products you may have-etc. Make it a Free thing with something substantial that they can take home with them- free new pen, pencil, crayons, a folder.
April 19th, 2009 at 9:52 pm
1. I would love it if my Office Depot was able to laminate larger items. When I have brought poster-sized items to my Office Depot, they weren’t even nice about telling me that they couldn’t do it. I would even be willing to leave the item and have it sent to another store for lamination and pick it up several days later. Taking a special trip to the teacher supply store is a BIG deal.
2. It would be nice if you had a special order catalog geared to the homeschool teacher. When I have had to look for classroom furniture that met the unique needs of my school (I can’t afford the expense of the typical classroom furniture which is durable beyond my needs.)
3. A homeschool liasion employee? Someone whose job it is to get to know the homeschooling customers and help them get any educator discounts they might be eligible for and not know about? Someone who knows educational software, educational supplies and might be able to match products to needs? That should be the employee your put in the booth at your homeschool conference. ASK the parents there what they would like to see in your community.
April 21st, 2009 at 12:42 pm
I teach in a top teacher education program (ranked in top ten by US News), and I openly wonder…what is Office Depot’s goal? I presume to sell stuff. I am not sure this is in the best interest of any student or home school teacher. You could offer discounts, but my experience in the field show that such discounts are not significant enough to make much difference. Frankly, my guess is, and this is not discourage you, for you have shown an interest in education and should be commended, that Office Depot has little real interest in anything beyond profit. Buyer beware! Big business should not, in my opinion, have a defining role in the education of our children in exchange for corporate profits.
April 24th, 2009 at 10:14 pm
Strait out.. Ever so offend give us something for free!!
April 27th, 2009 at 5:28 am
Set up a display of all project supplies you carry, many homeschoolers make posters and bulletin boards just like public schools do. Most homeschooling children also do projects like public school children, so anything that may be useful for them as well.. paperboard, scissors that cut decoratively, etc..
Various supplies we use are chalk boards, white boards and the accessories to go with them (though not all of us do). Just like any school we use, pencils, pens, paper, sharpeners, folders, notebooks, crayons, markers..
Also include in the display any computer software that the store stocks that is educational, and maybe even have a computer set up and running to show you offer them as well as having some kind of software running to be tried.
And as a homeschooler I never knew Office Depot offered anything to us, why not make a nice poster with everything you do offer homeschoolers and how to go about getting them (ie: contact a manager or customer service or web site) and if you can have a paper or card handout for them to take home.. and use it not just at the booth, but post it in your store as well so we can see it.
April 30th, 2009 at 9:29 am
I really think you need to market the Star Teacher program to HS’ers more. It seems all public/private school teachers know about it, but I’m constantly running into other HS’ers who don’t know it exists. They’re so afraid they aren’t a “real” teacher. We’re even *more* so because we get NO gov’t support for curriculum and materials - we have to purchase it all!
I didn’t know about Worklife Rewards. I’ll head up to our store this week to find out more!
Another thing to market is the Star Teacher breakfast/sale in August and the other special sales events. I LOVE the bkft each year and getting my free tote bag and samples!! I’m always spreading the word locally and online about the event!!!
I think for the booth just letting HS teachers know they are real, true, bonafide teachers and you see them as such ;-).
Also, make sure to market your services like lamination, binding (I love coil binding), hole drilling (for student workbooks), poster printing, etc., and any new educational products. For instance, if you have the retractable white board markers (great for HS!), or small lap-size white boards. Shelving, organizational products, MS Office student/teacher edition, etc.
I would market comb binders and small laminators. Those are two things I cannot live without when HS’ing. Oh, and my electric pencil sharpener, and this is from Staples (gasp!) but my Desk Apprentice. I also have a lot of the cork strips (both wall size and small ones) for hanging posters on the wall (w/o damaging the wall). I also love 3M’s Command Strips.
Another product I’ve only seen at Office Depot and I’m *always* telling HS’ers about is the GoWrite! paper. It is AWESOME!!!
I suggest you have a demonstration of the product. We love the small sheets as “portable” write on boards. They stick well to storage clip boards (another product I can’t live w/o!). The GoWrite! site has a ton of great templates, too.
I would also market any art supplies, stickers, workbooks, and the like you have in-store. I’m amazed at how many HS’ers don’t realize the selection that is there.
Also make sure to talk about your email newsletters with their great coupons!!!
Have lots of Star Teacher forms to fill out! I know there used to be a check box for “homeschool” and I think that’s great. Many bookstores want proof or act like you’re not a “real” teacher.
Have fun and thanks for looking out for us!!!
May 1st, 2009 at 8:55 am
You all do all that for homeschoolers??? Let them know THAT, even if nothing else. I didn’t know that. I’ll be more likely to frequent O.D now. Anyway, you can offer to let them know in advance what the school supply prices will be on back to school sales. Give them maybe a sneak preview day, before the masses. (you could include school teachers on that too….to be fair)