When your business faces possible extinction, you better start re-evolving. That’s what Blockbuster Inc. seems to be doing, according to this article in the Dallas Morning News. With killer competition from the likes of Netflix and online movie sites such as Hulu.com, Blockbuster’s chief exec wants his store to become retail destinations—sort of like Borders and Barnes & Noble. I didn’t even realize that “Video” isn’t part of the stores’ name anymore. According to Wikipedia, it was Blockbuster Entertainment for a while, but now it’s just Blockbuster.

With features like kids’ play areas, a tech lounge, soda fountains and gaming consoles, Blockbuster is giving the concept a try at a 12 Dallas-area stores before it rolls them out at all 4,800 in the chain.

At the risk of every big-box retailer becoming a destination, I think Blockbuster is on the right track. At least they’re thinking out of the big box, which could help jumpstart their revival. They’ll have to really set themselves apart from the bookstores mentioned also, which also happen to sell DVDs. The concept-store photo in the article looks pretty much like any consumer electronics store’s interior.

With consumers itching to download movies from the web, Blockbuster will soon start offering an online service for that very purpose. Will that keep consumer traffic from the new stores? That chapter has yet to be written.

I wish Blockbuster all the best with their concept stores. It will be interesting to see if they’re the blockbuster idea their chief executive will be remembered for.

You don’t have to be a Gucci or Tiffany to make customers feel at home. While those high-end stores might offer champagne and caviar to their high-end customers, you can do perfectly fine with cookies and coffee.

Improving the customer experience should begin with a good look at your customer base. Let’s say you own a greeting card-and-gifts shop. You find a lot of young mothers with small children come in but tend to leave early because the kids start acting up. Do what stores like Barnes & Noble do. Set up a play area with a toy train town. Put it within site of the cash wrap so you and your sales staff can always keep an eye on the kids if the mother can’t. Make her feel secure that her little ones are always being monitored. And be sure to glue the tracks and accessories to the table so they don’t go flying around the store. Now Mom has more time to browse and buy.

It all boils down to keeping your customers engaged. Investing in things like TVs and Wi-Fi shows them that you care about their comfort, and that you’re tuned in to their lifestyle.

Visit an Apple store to see how kids have their own games area: Macs on a low table with pillows for seats and oversized mice to make it easy for little hands to navigate. Some Gymboree stores play DVDs of the latest kids’ movies, with tot-size chairs and TVs on low tables. It’s all in the back of the store, again so Mom knows where the kids are at all times. You say you can’t afford new Macs or PCs? Sure you can! Check on Craigslist.com for used machines that have enough memory to run kids’ games.

Since men are noticeably less comfortable in a women’s clothing store than vice versa, it should be easy to keep them from fidgeting—and in a more receptive mood for paying for her wardrobe! Let them know you have free Wi-Fi so they can log in while she dresses up. Promote it in your ads, emails and even with a sticker on your store windows. For those who don’t tote their laptops everywhere, set up an internet station so they can surf on your turf. Again, check around for used machines if your budget doesn’t allow for new ones.

Consider installing a gaming console with earphones so as not to bother other customers. Install cable or satellite TV so the monitor can double as an entertainment center. Keep it tuned to ESPN or CNN so guys feel like they’re not missing anything. A refrigerator stocked with soft drinks, juices and water bottles will keep guys and gals hydrated. Free snacks like cookies, pretzels and mini-candies show them you’re hungry for their business.

Speaking of TVs, with so many flat-screen versions available, you can now put small TVs in or near dressing rooms, and larger TVs in waiting areas. If you can get HDTV, so much the better.

If you can’t afford any of the above, at least provide current issues of magazines that interest your customers. Nothing turns them off more than a 5-year-old copy of National Geographic or even a 2-month-old People. And don’t let daily newspapers accumulate around waiting areas. They look messy, so customers will think your store is messy as well.

It all boils down to keeping your customers engaged. Investing in things like TVs and Wi-Fi shows them that you care about their comfort, and that you’re tuned in to their lifestyle. They will thank you with great word-of-mouth and reward you with long-term loyalty—two things that, in this case, money can buy.

I like this article for two reasons: It’s a great story about how the couple found a retail niche and stuck with it, and it’s a story that generated news about the business.

The store stocks things like table lamps made from tripods and other pieces fashioned from sturdy, leftover items found in old foundries, factories and farms. It built a reputation for offering well-made, eclectic furnishings. It has moved to larger locations twice since its inception, now encompassing 12,000 square feet of floor space. The store and its products have also earned a nice reputation in the community.

The owners were able to capitalize on the place’s popularity by convincing The Columbus Dispatch to write an article about it. What’s great is that the owners were able to provide customers for the writer to interview, all of whom talked about how happy they are with what they bought from the store.

Not only that, but the story has some great news hooks as well: The owners are high-school sweethearts who first met in kindergarten. Each item sold has its own distinctive serial number. The store is promoted as “where the Corn Belt embraces the Rust Belt.” Robert De Niro bought a table there for his new hotel in New York City.

These are the kinds of things that interest reporters and editors. All it takes is for an owner to recognize the things that turn a store into a story. If you advertise in the local media, let your ad rep know that you’d really like to see your store covered as a successful or interesting business (avoid advertorials as they have less credibility). If you don’t advertise with them, craft a short, well-written email/voicemail/phone script about your place. Find out who covers local businesses, then call or mail them. You often can find their contact information at the end of an article online or in print.

It might take a while for you to find the right words to tell the right editor at the right time. But keep at it. Sooner or later, they’re going to see that you have “the write stuff.”