Posts filed under 'Promotions'
Every month in Gourmet Retailer Magazine, a promotional calendar lists special events and holidays for upcoming months. Create and send your own calendar to your customers by email or direct mail so that they are aware of your creative promotions.
Here are some interesting and fun promotional ideas that you can use to spruce up summer sales.
June 9th is Donald Duck’s birthday. How about a newborn baby basket that includes duckie toys, bibs, cups, and other baby gifts? A cartoon video for older brothers and sisters would also be appreciated!
June 13th is the only Friday the 13th in 2008. Offer a 13% off sale on some of your newest basket designs.
Strawberry season starts on June 22nd. Design a basket that include all of your strawberry flavored items: tea, hard candies, cookies.
One hundred forty nine years ago, on June 27th, the “Happy Birthday to You” song was composed. Offer special pricing on all your birthday baskets during the last week of June.
One last note: June is Effective Communications Month. This might be a good time to have a staff training session that focuses on learning new customer service skills.
May 13th, 2008
In the past, I have written posts on this blog about attending trade shows and how you can make the most of that experience. But, have you ever considered setting up your own booth at a trade show in order to sell your products?
I just read an interesting article “Escaping the Trade Show Money Pit”, that offers excellent advice on this topic. Granted, participating in trade shows as a vendor can be a very expensive and time consuming endeavor. But if you prepare correctly, you can make the most of this opportunity to get your product line in front of buyers.
- Set the Right Objectives. Keep in mind that your trade show experience offers more than just a way to market your product line. In addition to connecting with potential customers, do your homework before the show to find out what other vendors will be participating. You may find new suppliers for your own business. At the gourmet shows that I attend, I meet vendors who sell insurance, equipment, computer software and other products that can help me run my business better.
- Pick the Right Show. Make sure that the buyers who will be attending the show comprise the market that you want to reach. Contact the trade show management to get names of other vendors who will have booths and have participated in prior years. Make a few calls to those vendors and inquire about the types of buyers who attended past shows. Also, ask your current “good” customers which shows they attend and why they like to go to those shows.
- Do Some Pre-Show Marketing. You may be able to get a list of registered buyers from the trade show management. Contact potential buyers through email, direct mail or telemarketing to let them know that you’ll be there. Include your booth number and a short description of the products you’ll be showing. Consider offering a special promotion or giveaway to buyers who come to your booth.
Read the full article to learn more ways to make your trade show experience a success!
April 10th, 2008
This year, Administrative Professionals Week will be celebrated April 20th-26th. It is always observed during the last full week in April. According to IAAP, the International Association of Administrative Professionals, “this annual event was originally organized in 1952 as National Secretaries Week. It was established as an effort to recognize secretaries for their contributions in the workplace and to attract people to secretarial/administrative careers”.
In Volume 5, Issue 1 of Rave Reviews Magazine, author Gayle Gallager gives some great advice about how to make the most of this holiday. “You have to please two bosses on this occasion. Your gift recipient is the boss you have to please with your gift. Your customer is the BIG BOSS who must be pleased with the convenience, service and value that you provide.”
With this mind, take the time to investigate what will work best by interviewing both the “bosses”. Talk to some business owners that you know and find out what they would be willing to spend for a gift. Then talk to some administrative professionals and find out what type of gifts they would prefer to receive. By doing some informal research, you can please both “bosses” and make this a profitable holiday for your gift basket business.
March 25th, 2008
On the Gourmet Retailer web site, you can learn how to execute promotions that work! Several retailers shared their ideas about creative and fun promotions that have worked for them.
Chris Beykirch, a retailer who offered some ideas for the article suggests the following ideas that will help you be successful. Here are a few of his tips. Read the full article for more great ideas.
“Place someone outside your store to help people remember to come in that day. Ask vendors to provide merchandise to give away throughout the day. Free items always attract crowds.”
“HAVE FUN. No event should ever be so stressful that you hate it. Bring in balloons, set up posters and treat your staff to a catered lunch.”
“Get things ready at least two weeks before the event so that it is a low-stress day. Make sure the entire staff is on hand to help customers on the day of the promotion.”
I’ve also mentioned before that Gourmet Retailer Magazine includes a promotional calendar in every issue that highlights special holidays and events for each month of the year. Here are some ideas to help you plan great promotions for May, 2008.
May 5th is Cinco de Mayo. a Mexican holiday that celebrates freedom and liberty! Create a basket of Mexican gourmet favorites and promote this to your customers. If you have a Mexican grocery store or restaurant in your neighborhood, join forces to promote both your businesses.
May 7th is National Nurses Day. For any of your customers who work in the health care industry, offer a discount on a basket of their choice.
National Chocolate Chip Day is May 15th. Just imagine a whole basket full of delicious chocolate chip cookies. Include your favorites from a variety of manufacturers and ask your customers to vote for their favorites.
May is also Family Wellness Month, National Barbeque Month, and National Military Appreciation Day. Share your ideas with others for unique baskets and promotions that you can build around these holidays.
March 19th, 2008
You may be looking forward to some quiet time after the holiday rush is over. But with 7 weeks between Christmas and Valentines Day, there’s lots of opportunity for some fun promotions to boost your sales in January.
Here’s a list of events that you can promote with your gift basket business.
- January 9: Elvis Presley’s Birthday. Include some CD’s in your basket along with Elvis paraphernalia. The official Elvis Web Site has lots of ideas for other items you might include in your designs.
- January 15: In honor of Pizza Week, join together with your local pizza shop and put some pizza gift certificates in your baskets and showcase a basket in that shop!
January is also National Hot Tea Month, National Soup Month and National Book Month. Please share your ideas for baskets you could design for these special occasions.And of course, don’t forget that Super Bowl XLII will be held on February 3rd. Buy your football baskets and snacks to be ready for this ever popular event.
January 7th, 2008
Apex Gift Foods has remodeled the web site! Many new features will make shopping easier for you.
Find what you want more quickly!
See suggestions for other products you might like!
Faster, more streamlined check-out! All information is on one page!
Featured Products: See what other customers are buying!
Easy shipment tracking!
Keep up with the trends: Connect to our blog from every page!
Three days only: October 16, 17, 18, 2007.
Save 15% when you make a purchase on the
new web site!
Write APEX15 in the coupon code on the new order form.
October 15th, 2007
The latest research from Colloquy, a loyalty marketing consulting business, indicates that a “surprisingly high number of young adults and middle income Hispanics identify themselves as loyalty program participants”. Simply put, loyalty programs recognize and reward the best customers of a business.
Furthermore, “despite the hype about loyalty programs featuring charity rewards, consumers among all demographic groups are “me” oriented when it comes to redemption of their rewards”. In other words, those redeeming loyal points are most often getting things for themselves.
As business owners, we are always looking for new ways to increase our business. Loyalty programs offer a way to give something back to our customers who keep giving us business.
Apex Gift Foods has recently set up a loyalty program for customers that has attracted many old and new customers. Customers earn points for purchases and can redeem those for gift cards for major retailers and restaurants. Go to Apex to find out more about the way the program works and the “rules” for participants. Please share your ideas about how you might adapt this idea for your business.
September 27th, 2007
I recently posted a blog about running promotions for gift basket businesses and also a blog about gift baskets for Halloween. One reader commented that she would like to do promotions, but needed some ideas. I read an article in Florist Review Magazine titled “Hype Halloween” by Teresa Lanker (August, 2007) that included some ideas for Halloween promotions for retail florists. I think some of these can be adapted for gift basket businesses.
Tricks and Treats Halloween Baskets. Encourage halloween gift giving by including “tricks” in with your basket of treats. Allow your customers to provide their own “gag gift” that you will include in a gourmet basket. Or offer silly options such as “wind up witches, bobble-head jack-o-lanterns or plastic spiders” tucked around your gourmet treats.
Costumed Deliveries. “Make deliveries during Halloween week dressed as a vampire, black cat or superhero.” Customers will be sure to remember you. If you have a storefront, offer special discounts to customers who come to your store in a costume.
Halloween Cards. “In 2000, 28 million Halloween cards were sent throughout the U.S.” Use this opportunity to send a greeting to your customers and remind that that you offer Halloween gourmet baskets!
Don’t forget to stock up on Halloween novelties that you can add to your baskets: scarecrows and pumpkins on wood pics, and seasonal ribbons can add a touch of the season to your baskets, but not add a lot of expense.
September 19th, 2007
The fourth Sunday in September is National Good Neighbor Day. Here’s an idea for a promotion that will benefit your customers, your business, and your community.
Talk to other local businesses about joining together to create a promotion. Design a “Good Neighbor” gift basket, including your gourmet treats plus coupons or products from other local businesses. Offer your customers an incentive to purchase these baskets for their neighbors: include a coupon for a discount on future gift basket purchases. Be a “good neighbor” by donating a portion of the profits to a local charity.
For more information and ideas about the history of National Good Neighbor Day, go to the official web site. And don’t forget to offer a smile and a friendly hello to your neighbors!
September 7th, 2007
Crispy Greens, a manufacturer of a new style of freeze dried fruit was a winner in the Outstanding Snacks category at the Fancy Food Show held earlier this year in Chicago.
Apex Gift Foods now has these fabulous snacks in three popular fruits: peaches, apricots, and apples. Attractively packaged in silver mylar bags, with colorful fruits displayed on the bag, these healthy snacks are now on sale!
These dried fruits are very different from other fruit products you may have tried. The manufacturer uses a “sophisticated freeze-drying process where water is removed from the fresh fruit in a cold (freezing) vacuum condition, leaving behind the true essence of the fruit in a light and crispy texture.” Be sure to check out these new items at Apex!
September 5th, 2007
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