Gift Baskets Newsletter

Do You Wrap Other People’s Gift Baskets?

Shirley George Frazier — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 20:02:50 +0000

When I arrived at a bookstore to promote the book, How to Start a Home-Based Gift Basket Business, a woman attending the event asked me to use the gift basket she brought to show people how to make and wrap it.

I declined her request, as I had my own gift basket with me. In addition, my policy at the time was to only wrap my gift baskets and not ones presented elsewhere or brought into my store.

Within months my policy changed because I began receiving many cellophane wrapping and bowmaking requests. It became a lucrative part of business because customers preferred my professional styling.

You’ll find cellophane wrapping tips and a video at CellophaneWrapTips.com.

What’s your policy on wrapping gift baskets that you didn’t make?

© 2008-2010 Shirley George Frazier. All rights reserved. Shirley George Frazier is the world's expert on the gift basket industry, professional speaker, and author of How to Start a Home-Based Gift Basket Business, The Gift Basket Design Book, and Marketing Strategies for the Home-Based Business: Solutions You Can Use Today. Visit GiftBasketBusiness.com for DVDs, CDs, reports, tips, and more to learn, grow, and profit with gift baskets.

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Make Marketing Your Gift Baskets an Easy Process

Shirley George Frazier — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 18:01:54 +0000

Your own sales records of who’s purchased gift baskets from you in the past gives you reliable information about three marketing must haves:

1. The market that currently buys so that you can target similar people.

2. Knowledge about which gift baskets sell most often versus which ones are lagging in sales.

3. Mailing addresses and/or Email addresses to notify customers and prospects about reasons to buy.

These elements help you develop a solid strategy for connecting with people who are most likely to purchase every month.

What’s your marketing plan to show how valuable your gift baskets are in the lives of people you serve?

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Who Thinks You’re Wasting Time with Gift Baskets?

Shirley George Frazier — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 22:00:53 +0000

You’re surrounded by two types of people: the ones who believe in your dreams and the others who can find every reason why your goals won’t work.

It seems that the people who are negative about what you want to accomplish make the most impact on your decisions. Why is that?

My gift basket business may not have started if I had listened to an uncle who was dead-set against it. Read the story here entitled, Who’s Telling You Not to Start a Gift Basket Business?”

If you’re surrounded by people who put down your dream, how do you plan to push your fears aside and begin turning your dream into a reality?

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How Do You Price Your Gift Baskets?

Shirley George Frazier — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 19:24:10 +0000

Many pricing formulas exist for gift basket designers. The best way to decide how much to charge is to balance value with profitability.

For example, some home-based designers keystone their costs to arrive at each gift basket’s retail price.

Other designers triple their wholesale costs.

Retailers who maintain storefronts abide by a different formula, as they must account for store upkeep.

How do you decide what to charge for your gift baskets?

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Five Steps to Achieve Success with Gift Baskets

Shirley George Frazier — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 17:16:16 +0000

Designers whom I mentor asked me to put together a report to help them build a better business in 2010. That special report was created late last year and is now available to you.

To receive your report, join the Gift Basket Business fan page on Facebook. The fan page is the only place where you’ll have access to links to receive additional reports available throughout the year.

Here’s the link to join the page and download the report, Five Steps to Achieve Success with Gift Baskets:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Gift-Basket-Business/271093563655

Also, be sure to follow BasketSupplies on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/BasketSupplies for tips, techniques, and links to your favorite wholesalers with products and supplies to grow your business.

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How Would You Shop The Fancy Food Show?

Shirley George Frazier — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 22:00:43 +0000

The Fancy Food Show, currently underway in San Francisco, is a true culinary experience.

It’s said that if you cannot find a particular food or beverage there, it doesn’t exist.

What would be on your list of “must haves” at the show if you attended? That’s the question posed on the Gift Basket Business Facebook group page.

There are many answers and room for yours, too. Join the conversation through this link:

http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=74453386284&topic=12685

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Is a Gift Basket Franchise in Your Future?

Shirley George Frazier — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 17:23:15 +0000

Many gift basket designers believe that their businesses can stand on its own, selling to individuals and corporations who believe in their products.

Others feel that working with a franchise is a great option because the franchise name is instantly recognized, bringing many more sales than a standalone business may achieve.

While that may be true, there are many pros and cons to joining a franchise that go far beyond money.

You’ll learn more about this topic on the Gift Basket Business Facebook group page.

If franchises are not for you right now, perhaps being a member of a drop ship firm is more appealing. Drop ship membership pros and cons are found on several pages at GiftBasketBusiness.com, which also includes an introductory video.

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What Do Hospital Gift Shops Buy?

Shirley George Frazier — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 20:06:16 +0000

After speaking with a hospital gift shop manager, I realized that many of them are open to gift basket designers supplying the shops with certain types of gifts that are quick and easy to make.

These shops aren’t looking for the gift baskets we normally design, as they’re too expensive for customers coming in for a quick get well or congratulations gift.

For example, the baby gift shown at RetailWraps.com is one that’s simple to create and affordable for you to sell to hospital shops that re-sell such gifts.

Visit local hospital gift shops to see their merchandise. Then decide if supplying them with bundled gifts is for you, and add this lucrative niche to your plan.

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Join the BasketSupplies Group on Twitter

Shirley George Frazier — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 20:19:57 +0000

I’m hosting a Twitter group called BasketSupplies to inform you about wholesale products, supplies, services, discounts/sales, and more to keep your inventory filled with items customers prefer receiving and appreciate giving.

Click the following link to join the BasketSupplies group and stay informed:

http://www.twitter.com/BasketSupplies

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Create a Web Site Contact Form

Shirley George Frazier — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:03:33 +0000

Helping visitors to contact you quickly after reviewing your Web site is as easy as creating a detailed form available through a “contact us” link on each site page.

This form requests concise information that lets you determine what prospects require (the number of gifts or baskets needed), the time frame (when), the event (corporate, wedding, etc.), and how to contact them (Email, phone, etc.).

Check the applications available through your Web site’s host. You may be pleasantly surprised to find a contact form to copy and paste within your site.

If a form is not available, look at forms found on competing and non-gift basket sites to find alternative form tools and to determine how to structure your own.

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