Religions and religious bodies seem to be becoming all prevalent and omnipresent once again. It is unbelievable that Best Buy should get flak for greeting US Muslims Happy Eid on 27th Nov and Gap should inform AFA (American Family Association) about its holiday campaign. Times are changing but this religious fervor will only take us back to medieval era. Best Buy though has stood by its decision which has of course pleased Muslim community.

AFA had called for a boycott of some brands which don’t focus on words ‘Christ’ and ‘Christmas’ in their holiday special campaigns. Apparently they are staying the ban because GAP has clarified matters with them. Last year they had boycotted GAP because it chose secular tagline which said, “Merry Gap-mas”. The AFA seems to have targetted ads even in the past – Sears and Target have faced similar boycott.

It is unfortunate that religious shadow is falling on retailers and their advertising campaign. Retailers are here for business and it is a wise move to be secular by greeting customers of all faiths or choosing not to be religion specific. Religious bodies should not expect advertisements to make propaganda of any religion.Their meddling does not come as a surprise though for they are the ones who turn even God into brand ambassadors.

Hope creative advertising souls and business houses will keep away religious-bias and do a great service to mankind by downplaying religion for we have seen enough wars triggered by them.

Small retailers are in for some tough time this year and 2009 seems way too difficult for the usual mom-and-pop kind of retailers. Mostly, people would be unwilling to spend much and those that used to buy in bulk may never come back again. The ones that bought in bulk and used credit to do so shouldn’t be given preference and instead, encouraging customers who buy in small quantities but keep coming back must be seen as a future customer base.

Unconventional wisdom may also play a part in the success of small retailers and those who will stick to age old methods may lose the race. Having a strong presence online may be a good thing because survival needs online presence. Moreover, it has been noticed that most people would spend online this year.

Revealing credit crunches and cash strapped conditions to creditors before hand would be a good idea and waiting till defaulting wouldn’t be a great idea. Small retailers would definitely need to consider their strengths and weaknesses and plan the year accordingly. However, a little intelligence and wisdom and a certain open mindedness would take small businesses a long way in 2009.

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Via: Forbes