Visit from Beth Groundwater, Author of the Claire Hanover Gift Basket Designer Mystery Series
Many thanks to Lorie for inviting me to submit a guest article to her blog as part of my virtual book tour to promote the second book in my series, To Hell in a Handbasket. This book, along with the first, A Real Basket Case, stars a Colorado Springs gift basket designer as an amateur sleuth who solves murders that fall in her lap (literally, in the first book!). Claire has a part-time gift basket business in the basement of her home and puts together different types of baskets in the books.
I’d love to answer any questions you have about what it’s like to write a mystery series based on someone in your profession, and anything else you want to talk about. Every person who comments is automatically entered into a contest for a free set of both books autographed by me. If you have any funny or embarrassing stories to tell me about baskets or deliveries gone wrong, I’d love to read those, too, and may even use them in a future book!
Here’s a favorite gift basket recipe that I hope you’ll enjoy and use for someone who adores all things mysterious.
Recipe for a Mystery Lover’s Gift Basket
Color scheme: black, red, and either white or gray
Container: black-painted basket, bucket or box, with a lid or handle sticking up, from which you hang fake spider webbing
Stuffing: dried Spanish moss or red-dyed tissue paper, shreds, or wood shavings
Contents:
- A Real Basket Case and/or To Hell in a Handbasket mystery books (email me at beth07@bethgroundwater.com to find out how to obtain discounted copies)
- CD of eerie music such as Mystery Movie Scores or Mystery Sound Effects
- Pocket-sized mystery party game or travel Clue game
- Movie DVD: Clue, Mousetrap, an Alfred Hitchcock or Sherlock Holmes movie, or a movie collection (Mystery Classics: 50 Movie Pack)
- Chocolate or bubble gum coins or other mystery-related chocolate shapes such as blood drops, knives, or guns (see http://www.chocolatepen.com/pieces.html for a sample vendor)
- And a selection from the following list:
– Magnifying glass
– Pair of play handcuffs and/or sheriff’s badge
– Rubber knife
– Glasses, nose, mustache disguise
– Skull-shaped/logo item(s): tea-light candle holder, squeeze ball, notepad, drinking cup (see the Halloween collection at www.orientaltrading.com)
– Bottle of stage blood from a costume or makeup supply store, or make your own (see chemistry.about.com/cs/howtos/ht/fakeblood.htm)
I hope many of you gift basket designers will use this idea for a Mystery Lover’s Gift Basket, and don’t worry, you won’t have any competition from me! Unlike my amateur sleuth, Claire Hanover, I do not have a gift basket business of my own. My business is writing mystery novels. My debut, A Real Basket Case, was released in March, 2007 and was nominated for a 2007 Best First Novel Agatha Award (named for Agatha Christie). To Hell in a Handbasket, the second in the Claire Hanover gift basket designer mystery series, was released May 15th.
I live in Colorado Springs, where I defend my garden from marauding mule deer and wild rabbits and try to avoid getting black-and-blue on Colorado’s black and blue ski slopes. I have loved to read since I was a child and savor those monthly meetings with my Book Club, and not just for the gossip and wine. For more information about me and my books, and to sign up for my email newsletter and enter a contest for free books, go to: http://bethgroundwater.com/. You’ll also find the schedule for my blog book tour there.
So, readers of Lorie’s blog, do you have any more ideas for creative ingredients to add to a Mystery Lover’s Gift Basket? Do you have any interesting stories that I can use in future Claire Hanover novels?
May 29th, 2009
Looking for fresh ideas for your gift basket business? Think about attending the Summer Fancy Food Show, June 28-30, at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York City. There will be over 100,000 products on display from 2,300 exhibitors representing more than 70 countries.
You can also take advantage of a great educational program that starts on June 26th. Learn from industry experts in more than 20 seminars. Check out special showcases for natural and organic foods. See the hottest, newest products that your customers will want to buy.
Get more information and details for registration and hotels at NASFT FANCY FOOD SHOW.
May 25th, 2009
As we try to regain our share of the market and keep our customers coming back, we often turn to strategies for advertising and marketing. And many of these approaches cost money which we might not have in our budgets during these tough economic times.
In the May issue of Specialty Food Magazine, author Ari Weinzweig offers some “no cost” ideas for attracting and keeping customers. Here’s some ideas that you can easily implement.
- Make Your Customers Feel Welcome. Whether you have a “brick and mortar” store, or you do most of your business by phone, it’s critical that we make our customers “feel good” as soon as they contact us. If you have a store, this can be easily accomplished by greeting each customer with a smile and a big “hello”. Make sure that your employees don’t assume that someone else is taking care of the customer. Every employee should stop what they’re doing for a moment to say hello and inquire as to whether the customer needs some help. Likewise, your employees need to be attentive when they answer the phone. I’ve had many experiences when I’ve called a business and the person answering the phone sounds harried or bored or generally, less than enthusiastic. Frankly, that type of greeting makes me cranky (not a good attitude for a customer)! Ask your employees to stop what they’re doing when they answer the phone and act as if the person is right in front of them. In other words, smile and say hello with warmth…and mean it!
- Actively Engage the Customer. Whether the customer is in your store or on the phone, your employees should spend as much time with them as possible (instead of trying to finish up the sale quickly). Taking some time to “chat”, and using good questioning techniques coupled with good listening, an employee can learn a lot. While the customer might be purchasing a gift for her mother, she might remark while chatting that her husband’s birthday is around the corner or a friend just had a baby. These could be two more opportunities to sell a gourmet basket.
- Make Time for Employee “Tune-ups”. While we might do an excellent job with orientation and training with our new employees, we sometimes forget that our long-term employees could also use a refresher course in customer service. In addition to traditional training opportunities such as workshops, have your older employees help train the new recruits. Ask them to tell the “newbies” how they treat new customers: what they do to keep the customers happy and coming back. This might be just the reminder they need to “perk up” when they are greeting and waiting on your customers.
Read the full article and take advantage of these “no cost” ways that you can increase customer loyalty and satisfaction AND see the results in your bottom line. Please share your ideas on “no cost” ways to make your business grow.
May 16th, 2009
I was contacted a couple of months ago by Beth Groundwater, the author of two mystery books. Beth just published her second novel: “To Hell in a Handbasket” and the principle character in the book is a gift basket designer. To promote her new book, Beth has offered to write a post for this blog that will be posted on Thursday, May 28th.
Join Beth Groundwater on her book blog tour right here at Apexgiftbasketpros.com. She’ll discuss her new book release, “To Hell in a Handbasket“, give behind-the-scenes glimpses of how the book was created, her life as an author, and answer your questions about her blog posts. You may even get a chance to chat with her protagonist, Claire Hanover, and other characters from the book!
In addition to discussing her book, Beth will make some suggestions for creating a Mystery Lover’s Gift Basket. With summer quickly approaching, customers start to ponder their “beach reading” and this might be a great gift idea for your customers who want to share a new mystery novel with their best friend, spouse, boss or anyone who is a lover of mysteries.
If you comment on Beth’s blog post, which will appear here on May 28th, you will be entered into a drawing for an autographed set of both books in the Claire Hanover gift basket designer mystery series: “A Real Basket Case” and “To Hell in a Handbasket”.
May 11th, 2009
As small business owners, we manage many facets of our businesses. Processing credit cards for customers seems like one of the easy parts: we swipe the card, get electronic approval from the bank, and everyone’s happy. But, “according to the Merchant Risk Council (MRC), Seattle, a trade association focused on e-commerce risk, small businesses in particular are at jeopardy because many are overly confident or under informed about how common fraud is.”
There are many ways that we can experience credit card fraud. And it goes far beyond a customer using a credit card that has been stolen. I was especially surprised (and dismayed) to learn that “in-house” fraud was one of the most common problems that small business owners face!
Read the full article in Specialty Foods Magazine, “Credit Card Fraud: What You Need to Know”. Learn the most common types of fraud and some ways that you can protect your customers and your business.
May 5th, 2009
