How Do You Market Your Gift Basket Web Site?
What are some of the more-successful ways you get customers to visit your Web site?
Is it through postcard marketing, word-of-mouth promotions, your social media page, or contacting them by Email?
It’s important to establish at least two methods that you consistently deliver to your audience that convince them to see your Web site on a monthly basis.
There are many reasons to share with them on how your site delivers benefits, including:
- Finding a one-of-a-kind birthday gift
- Surprising a friend with a basket of cheer
- Thanking a neighbor for watching your property during a vacation
Chapter 7 of How to Start a Home-Based Gift Basket Business is newly expanded with strategies that capture customers online.
What’s your secret for getting people to your site?
How to Find Expert Help for Your Gift Basket Business
When my business first started, I knew it was possible to find business advisors to help me with generic information on marketing, competition, and funding, but who could possibly help me with the specific needs of creating and growing a gift basket business?
My first try at finding a business-specific mentor was through a New York-based organization that I believed had at least one option for me to speak with a person already in the business. I asked them point blank, “Does this person, at a minimum, have retail business experience?” to which the answer was “Yes.”
Who did they pair me with? A man in his 80s who advised me to buy jewelry and perfume as part of my inventory.
I’m not knocking this person’s age, but I have to give you his vitals to understand why this man recommended items that don’t sell in this market. His “Mad Men” frame of mind doesn’t work for gift baskets, so I walked out of that meeting shaking my head and vowing not to trust that organization’s mentor recommendation again.
Thinking back, the industry had no mentors at that time. The Internet wasn’t yet available, so there was no way to uncover gift basket-specific experts (which didn’t exist anyway).
Finding help today is still somewhat difficult because of one main reason: most gift basket designers are not willing to share the knowledge that makes you a competitor. You may not like that answer, but that’s the bottom line.
Thankfully, there are business experts who are more in tuned to today’s marketplace and are found:
- At libraries
- Through small business development centers
- In adult school classes
My local facilities are often the place where one-to-one business meetings are held between mentors and new owners.
Their staff has connections that will lead you to a person with the retail experience I couldn’t get years ago.
You’ll spend a few dollars and time (a night session or a few weeks) learning tips from a business person who’s been where you want to be.
I wanted my mentor to help me understand certain requirements that are still valuable today such as:
- What questions do I ask an accountant to qualify him/her to help me keep my finances updated and keep track of laws that affect my business?
- How can I quickly research and list all of the companies in my area that are buying candidates, and how do I approach them?
- What do I say to prospects during a meeting that will get them to say “yes” and place orders?
If finding a mentor is key to building your business, I’m offering 30-minute expert help sessions throughout August that will end nagging problems so that your business moves forward in the manner you envision.
This summer service is just $1 a minute, a hefty discount from the regular prices listed for one question ($47) and general consulting help (starting at $350/hour) at GiftBasketBusiness.com. Now’s your chance to get the advice you want without traveling – just make an appointment through the setster link below. We’ll talk by phone and get your business on track in time for the busy holiday season.
From the feedback I’ve received through surveys about this help line, it’s almost guaranteed that spaces through August 31 will fill quickly, so please, book your session today. Once booked, you can pay quickly by Email.
Your questions are welcomed through the comments section of this post so that you’re assured that your time and money are spent wisely.
How to Raise Money for Your Gift Basket Business
While the old saying, “It takes money to make money” is still true, the Internet has opened the doors for you to uncover money sources that increase your investment capital.
You may have read in the past how I was pleasantly surprised when a gift basket designer contacted me after entering a contest I featured in a blog post and winning $3,000.
That story still amazes me, and even though that happened about 10 years ago, the same types of winning continue happening today.
One way to keep yourself in the loop of event sponsors with lots of giveaway cash is to practice three habits each month:
- Review the business section of your local newspaper.
- Check credit card Web sites.
- Find cash through search engines.
Corporations in your area are often highlighted when they announce an event that assists small businesses.
These firms are collecting merchant fees as you read this, and some of those fees come back to small businesses as a stipend through events and contests you’ll learn about on their sites.
Try a variety of terms to discover which companies and institutions are planning events you can enter in the fall or early 2011. These events won’t arrive by Email; you must search for them.
More ideas for finding cash for your business are in the the money sources section at GiftBasketBusiness.com.
These money-generating opportunities are for beginners and veterans alike, so don’t count yourself out in either case.
I started my business by cashing in an insurance policy I no longer needed. Where did you find money to start making gift baskets?
Four Ways to Woo Corporate Clients
Finding, courting, and adding corporations to your list of accounts is a hot topic according to the questions submitted last year in the blog post, Your Feedback as We Move into Fall.
This valuable group continues to be our main focus of concern, so let me share some tips that hopefully put more of these accounts into your baskets.
- An introduction to corporate folks by people you already know (family, friends) is your best chance at signing up such accounts.
- You may have to spend money by advertising in the publications they read most to get their attention.
- Popular morning television and radio shows can help you make connections.
- Want to gain accounts that once belonged to competitors that are going out of business?
What’s most important is to not just meet a person but also find out where they work and the position they hold. That information opens the door to opportunities.
I still believe that personal connections are your best line of defense, but the possibility of getting noticed through newspapers and/or magazines is another option.
Research will help you uncover which broadcasts are right for you and how to approach the producer to convince him or her to invite you as a guest. The influence here is that if you’re on television or radio, you must be important.
As with the second option above, you’ll have to spend money through advertising to have them reveal themselves or pay the defunct competitor for their account list. The latter option may get you the list, but it may not be updated, leaving you with a lot of names of companies that are also out of business.
What’s your best tip for capturing corporate clients?
Wholesaler Wednesday, 4 More Questions for…Bomba Insurance Agency
Last week’s questions and answers with Bomba Insurance Agency helped demystify why gift basket insurance provides peace of mind for our personal and professional lives.
The last four questions continues this valuable education.
Q: Can I deduct the cost of business insurance on my income taxes?
A: Yes; this cost is part of doing business and is deductible.
Q: What else is covered in a business insurance policy?
A: There’s lots of coverage, including:
- Liability for bodily injury
- Property damage, including losses that occur after the sale (also known as product liability)
- Personal/advertising injury in case of slander or defamation of character (you are dealing with the public and false advertising claims)
- Some form of no-fault medical payment coverage
- Other types of coverage that can insure your business property, equipment, inventory, supplies, and loss of business income
Q: If I’m sued, what about attorney or lawyer costs?
A: These costs are included with the insurance policy, but it’s wise to ask your agent or company if the cost of defense is what’s known as “inside or outside of the policy limits.”
If inside the policy limits, that means they subtract the cost of defense from your insurance coverage. That’s not the best way to go, as the cost of defense is usually more than the lost, and you may run out of coverage.
Outside the policy limit coverage is best. That means all legal fees are covered with no limit, and it is not subtracted from your liability coverage.
Q: What else should I look for in an insurance policy?
A: Make sure that the insurance company is an “admitted” company to your state and that they are at least an A-rated company.
Admitted means they maintain offices in your state and therefore are usually covered by your own state’s “insurance guarantee fund” in case they become insolvent when you have a loss.
This information, as well as an insurance company’s rating, should be available from your agent and can also be checked by a reputable rating company such as A.M. Best, an independent rating company that is not funded by insurance companies.
Most importantly, ask lots of questions, and make sure you understand what you are buying. There is no such thing as a stupid question because you’re smart enough to ask!
What questions or comments do you have? I encourage you to share your feedback in the comments section below.
My thanks to Bomba Insurance Agency for their participation in this Q&A, being a partner of this blog, and sponsor of the fifth edition of How to Start a Home-Based Gift Basket Business.
Gift Basket Books
-
-
Visit Our Sponsors
