How Thinking Inclusively Can Lead to Big Retail Sales (XBIZ)

Read the full article by Victoria Titus-McCrobie at XBIZ.com 

We spent the month of June criss-crossing the country to attend Pride events in many different cities, and the energy was incredible! The LGBTQ community made this straight woman feel so welcome and at home in every way that I was proud to be an ally, and happy to give out thousands of free samples! I guess it’s not surprising that inclusivity is at the top of my mind for this sex toy issue. I think it’s about time that sexual wellness products reflect the beautiful diversity of our culture.

We have a long way to go, and I personally think that the answer to the question “How do you become more inclusive as a company?” is to actually become inclusive. We also need to keep this in mind in our day-to-day business when working with consumers. I know it sounds cliché, but do not judge a book by its cover. One day when I was doing commission sales, a gentleman walked into the store who looked homeless. He asked about products, so I took him to our most expensive items, and he walked out spending more than $2,000. It turned out he had just traveled across the country to move and hadn’t had time to stop by his new place to shower and clean up. Making assumptions would have lost a big sale.

Listen carefully when people tell you what they like, what they don’t like, what they wish for, and how they like to play. At one Pride event in Denver, I spoke to a lesbian couple that were intrigued by our “cum play” product because they enjoyed using ejaculating toys together. I never would have thought this could be a “cross-over” product, but then again, I never asked. When you’re working at a booth giving out product, you get to hear about people’s real-life experiences and find out how they’d like to be marketed to, and that’s so important when you’re trying to expand your offerings to reach niche markets.