Oct

28

How to Get Rid of Inventory and Other Business Problems

Filed Under Personal Development | 2 Comments

Are you looking to discard inventory that simply doesn’t sell but don’t know how to do it quickly and profitably?

That’s what a gift basket designer wanted to do last week when she called for our Golden Basket Club mastermind session.

“I made some bad decisions about what to buy, and now this stuff is in the way,” she told me. “It’s got to go.”

The same situation happened to me years ago when I purchased my beginning inventory. At first it wasn’t easy to let the items go, as I had spent money on it and wanted my investment back. But sometimes you have to just get rid of it in whatever way possible.

If you’re hanging on to gift items that are getting old or food items near expiration, make a decision now about how it will be discarded. This will be one of the best decisions you make for your future success.

LEARN MORE: Some of you who are interested in joining the Golden Basket Club have asked me to offer a trial session so you can decide if the program will benefit your business, and that mini program is now available for you.

For three days, I’m offering 30-minute coaching sessions so you and I can work together on a problem that’s stopping you from accomplishing your goals.

This page at the Golden Basket Club site explains what to expect and how to sign up.

The offer ends on Saturday, October 29, and your 30-minute session will be scheduled for the week of Monday, November 1. If you’re ready to stop thinking about the same problem day after day, this coaching session is the solution. There are a limited number of spots open, so don’t delay. Click here for details.

Oct

21

Recruiting Help When You Need It

Filed Under Employees | Comments Off

Can you imagine creating 300 gift baskets all by yourself?

When an order for that quantity arrived in my office, that’s when I drew the line on doing everything myself.

On one hand, it was thrilling to receive such an order. It was the big sale I dreamed about when I first started making gift baskets.

But then reality set in. I remember asking myself:

  • How will I get the order ready?
  • Where will the gift baskets be made?
  • Where in the world will I store them?

One thing I didn’t do, as I realized the big jump my business was taking, was panic. Other designers made their way through this hurdle. It was now my turn.

How would you address this situation? Here are three things to keep in mind.

1. Space. A dedicated place that is available solely for gift basket making is critical. This cannot be done in an area that disrupts daily life, as either your family relationships or love for making gift baskets will suffer.

2. Help. Part timers, interns, and family members are the first candidates to support this effort. Without them, you will neither eat nor sleep to complete the order, and that will negatively affect your health.

3. Storage. Clothes closets and bathtubs are not the place for this order. A separate section in the place where the baskets are designed is appropriate, but if there’s no room, look for another location outside of your living space.

Start planning now on where large orders will be completed, because if the order hasn’t arrived yet, it will soon come your way.

LEARN MORE: If you want to know more about hiring part timers and interns for a wage you can absolutely afford to pay, join me on Thursday, October 28 for the one-hour teleseminar, How to Get All the Gift Basket Business You Need and Still Enjoy Your Life.

The free 20-minute preview call is scheduled for Monday, October 25 at 8:55 pm EST. Click here for all the details (including the one-hour business makeover bonus) at GiftBasketRadio.com so you can boost this necessary part of your business today.

Oct

14

How a Bad Start Turned into Good Orders

Filed Under Sales-Increasing Strategies | Comments Off

“I mailed 600 introduction letters to corporate executives to let them know about my gift baskets, and no one responded. What do I do now?“

Just a few months ago, a designer said these words to me through a telephone call. She was heartbroken and didn’t know if she should call them, send something else as an introduction, or turn her back on them and start going after other prospects.

You may think that mailing this amount of letters to executives was a waste of money, but think again.

We began working together, and once we developed her second strategy for connecting with them again, 600 leads turned into 30 sales netting the designer $7,800 in sales and more orders lined up for the holiday season.

What made the difference? We:

  • Uncovered a common reason as to why all of them had sales potential
  • Mapped out a plan that didn’t take lots of time or money to complete
  • Determined how to organize a one-year plan to easily increase revenue

Turning risk into reward takes a few hours of savvy planning, so try your best not to give up before showing prospects just how valuable your service will be to them in the long run.

LEARN MORE: Are you trying to get your holiday sales underway but are finding no success? A new mentoring program holds your hand step by step to minimize mistakes and maximize your ability to gain clients and revenue.

This page at GiftBasketBusiness.com provides you with more information so you can choose the program that suits your needs.

End the frustration now so this holiday season doesn’t end with you saying, “Bah humbug!”

Learn about our quick-start programs through this link:

http://www.GiftBasketBusiness.com/helpwanted.htm

Oct

7

How to Solve Problems By Addressing What Works

Filed Under Personal Development | Comments Off

Let’s face it: when you’re busily setting up the business, reading about other gift basket designers, creating a website, or working for someone else, who has time to make money?

You do and must if you plan to create a great life for yourself and the people who request your gorgeous designs.

But how do you get out of all the busy stuff and into generating sales for the masses that want your gift baskets? Here are three ways.

  • Perform one social media or direct mail task each day.
  • Connect with a potential client that’s experiencing a downturn in business.
  • Take a current client to lunch.

If all of this sounds like marketing, you’re right. Promotion is key to building a business that thrives. Without it, your gift baskets will sit in your studio gathering dust.

Choose a project that you can do quickly and easily. That one task will become a building block that lessens “busy going nowhere” and increases “busy getting business.”

LEARN MORE: If your daily routine resembles a never-ending circle with no sales in sight, the business planning portion of the Golden Basket Club will quickly change your outlook and revenue.

Business planning uncovers everything about your current and perceived clients and specific, yet proven methods to market directly to them so the phone starts ringing with orders on the other end.

Want more information? Read all about the Golden Basket Club here. The Club isn’t for everyone; however, every designer deserves to see their business as it can be, with a mentor’s help, not the way it is now and may stay for years.