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Get These Books to Prosper!
Dec
16
Three Ways to Get Those Orders You’re Waiting For
Filed Under Planning | Comments Off
Right now, you’re monitoring the phone and watching your Email to learn if the customers you’ve contacted will soon place gift basket orders.
And it’s not coming.
Is there anything you can do right now to get those customers off the fence and into the order line? Here are three things to do as soon as you can.
1. Call them directly.
No, you’re not pushy. In fact, the call is a service that helps them get this all-important task off their desk. Remember that your customers are busy people. A call from you helps them finalize this one detail. You get the order; they get appreciation from receivers.
2. Participate in Friday’s free shipping day.
I mention this upcoming event in an article at GiftBasketBusiness.com. If you participate, your offer can be contained within a certain geographic location rather than provide free shipping globally. There are other ways to modify this offer, as 18 of my designer clients will pursue. Be sure to let clients know about your one day event.
3. Make them aware of your deadline.
Most of us won’t be making and delivering gift baskets in a Santa-like frenzy, cranking out custom designs and getting them to addresses by Christmas morning. No, we’ve long realized that setting a deadline day encourages early orders or at least orders that arrive before our posted deadlines. Be sure that customers know your schedule.
There’s not much time left to put one or all of these practices in motion. Take action now, because your customers deserve to make family and friends happy with your beautiful gifts made just for them.
IMPORTANT CHANGE: As of January 2011 this newsletter, Basket Biz, will be delivered through a new system rather than through the method you receive it now. Sign up here today for the new, updated newsletter.
What’s the difference between the old and new? The new delivery method of Basket Biz will include videos and audios directly in the newsletter, where the old method will not.
Thank you in advance for your continued subscription to Basket Biz, the free newsletter that connects you with the latest tips, trends, and ideas to make gift baskets and grow a successful business.
Dec
9
How the Holidays Help to Boost Your Business Next Year
Filed Under Competition, Display Techniques | Comments Off
Holidays are not only a beautiful time to enjoy the sights and sounds of the season, it’s also a time to see gift basket designing at its best and most bountiful.
This is when you see how your designs stack up next to the competition.
- Do they use design elements you’ve not considered? Take note of that styling for future implementation in a manner you see fit.
- Are their baskets and containers the type you haven’t seen in the past? Make mental note of those vessels to search for them through wholesale sources.
- Can customers choose their own products for custom designs? Perhaps you can offer the same in some capacity at your store or online.
Consider this season as more than what the media tells you it is. It’s certainly a time to be with family and friends, giving and receiving when seeing each other.
It’s also the perfect season to view the artistry offered by competitors who sell gift baskets so you can set a great plan to capture more sales next year.
LAST CHANCE FOR TONIGHT’S TELESEMINAR: Join me this evening (Thursday) at 8:15 pm EST to hear nine secrets I learned to finally work for myself, making gorgeous gift baskets on a full time basis without depending on outside employers and how you can do the same.
Can’t attend the hour-long event? Sign up, and you’ll receive the audio CD by mail, which is sent out to you the very next day. Click here for more information and to register.
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
Aug
19
“Sending your deluxe thank you gift basket to the nurses was the first thing on my mind when I heard that my aunt was recovering from surgery. How fast can you get it there?”
That’s one customer’s telephone conversation a gift basket designer shared with me during our weekly mentorship meeting.
She’s noticed a big and positive change in her sales since she began contacting customers, online and offline, to remind them about her gift basket service.
Notice that the above doesn’t state that she talks about gift baskets. Instead, she reminds them about the reasons for giving and the value that her gifts represent both to the customer and recipient.
The more she positions her gifts and baskets in that manner, the more calls, customers, and sales she receives.
Like this designer, when you focus on benefits, your sales will rise. That’s the key to increasing profits in every economy.
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Need to re-position your business or want to talk about another problem that’s keeping sales stagnant?
You still have time to speak with me (this special service ends on August 31). Just click the Setster link below to make an appointment, and we’ll talk by phone at the time you choose. It’s just $1 a minute, and you’ll have one or several great solutions in 30 minutes or less.
Aug
12
How to Plan Now for Christmas Gift Basket Orders
Filed Under Corporate Baskets, Sales-Increasing Strategies | Comments Off
Even if you’re the greatest designer in your region, customers will not line up at your door to buy gift baskets! There are simply too many competitors for them to choose from whether due to convenience or budget.
This means you must create a step-by-step campaign by computer or on paper to contact your customers every two or three weeks starting now to get attention and sales.
The need for such a campaign is necessary today as it was years ago.
A gift basket store owner I interviewed in 2001 gained most of her Christmas orders by sending customers a Year 2000 printout in early October showing who received past orders along with an easy way to order new gift baskets with delivery instructions on the same printout.
Yesterday, I delivered a customized snack bag to a bank teller, something I promised to create because of the teller’s impeccable service. The cellophane-wrapped gift included multiple snacks, bowls, and napkins for every employee’s enjoyment, including the branch manager who requested my services on the spot to create holidays gift baskets for her top clients.
Whether by mail or in person, the time is now to develop and launch your Christmas action plan to encourage customers to order holiday gift baskets.
You’ll find ‘Tis the Season to Start Selling and Pre-Holiday Q&A Part 1 and Part 2 helpful with this mission.
How will you proceed? Share your plans in the comment section below, or ask questions here to get your plan underway.
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