The Postal Service Delivers

Have you noticed the latest ads being run by the United States Postal Service? In addition to the “if it fits, it ships” campaign, the new campaign is designed to highlight the security of mail, the personal nature of the friendly letter carrier, and a sense of trust in the whole process. The commercial begins as a woman uses a magnet to put a piece of mail on a refrigerator, “A refrigerator has never been hacked…” The same message – security – as a woman tacks a bill to a cork board; “An online virus has never attacked a cork board.” Finally, “A piece of mail has never disappeared with a click.” The message is that mail is good for business and their customers. If you haven’t seen it yet, you probably will. These are tough times for the USPS, but tough times can also help you re-focus your message.

Meanwhile Facebook has once again announced sweeping new changes to the world-wide social media site. Facebook’s newest idea is to make its platform a 21st century form of scrapbooking, and to help you “scrapbook” your entire life “frictionlessly”. The new “timeline” is designed to help you share more of yourself; your taste in movies, fashion, music and about everything else you might post. It is designed to allow for another level of privacy for Facebook users, while in truth it will generate an enormous amount of critical information for marketers. However, it will present a challenge for your small business page to break through this new gatekeeper. You’re going to have to work harder to get noticed. In the good old days, you know, about two months ago, when you posted on your business “wall” it would show up on all 2375 of your followers “walls”. If you were lucky some of them would share and your “impression count” – the number of walls your message was seen on – might be half again as much, or in some cases, two or three times the number of your fans.

Fast forward a couple of months and you’ll notice your impression counts have sunk like a stone. In some cases we’ve seen Facebook pages with close to 4700 followers receive less than 200 impressions. Ouch! These new changes from Facebook are designed to protect you and your personal Facebook page from all those messages (they decide) you don’t want to see. And for good reason. If you’re like me you have probably noticed some really weird Facebook posts from people you’ve never heard of. So in an effort to improve your quality of life, Facebook has begun to filter your messages for you. I guess you can have too much Facebook.

Wait, haven’t I been here before? They have hacked the code. They’re invading my Facebook page! Just when you thought you’ve got all your bases covered those insidious marketers show up and crash the party. Darn. So Facebook builds a wall, yet another level of privacy settings, that will allow you to block those nuisance messages that have become so pervasive. I guess we will always need some kind of filter to protect us from ourselves.

Remember those annoying phone calls around dinner time? Congress passes the “no call list”. Too many ads on TV? Just set your DVR and speed right past them. More commercials than music on your FM radio? XM radio. As the sheer number of websites grew we had to come up with pop-up blockers, relief from unwanted ‘cookies’ and protection from Spy-ware. E-Mail? Your in-box has become a vast abyss where it takes more time to delete all the mail you don’t want, as it takes to read the stuff you really want to see. Remember how “You’ve got mail!” was kind of neat? Now it has just coined a new phrase in our cultural lexicon – spam.

There is a pattern at work here:
New medium, early adopters, critical mass, exploitation, filters and eventual decline.

Consumers have more power to pick and choose who they want to hear from, and how and when they want to receive the message. Advertising in this new digital age is seen as just a series of interruptions to our daily life. Too much clutter. So we ratchet up our spam filters, watch only the shows we’ve DVR’ed, and tune into music services like iTunes, Rhapsody and Pandora.

“To me, marketing is about values.” – Steve Jobs, Apple CEO, 1997. “This is a very complicated, very noisy world and we’re not going to get a chance to get people to remember us. No company is. So we have to be very clear about what we want people to know about us.”

When Steve Jobs passed the world lost an innovator of the highest order. He is responsible for revolutionary changes in the way we experience the world around us. He was also a great marketer. He was a visionary. He once famously said, “People don’t know what they want until you show it to them.”

Ironically, he was an old-school advertiser. Apple now spends over half a billion dollars in advertising each year and the majority goes to TV, print and billboards. However, Apples spends less than 10% of advertising on the web. They are very specific about ad placement. He carefully crafted each message. From the iconoclastic 1984 Super Bowl ad where a lone woman charges through an audience of drones to smash the status quo of ‘Big Brother’, to the classic Mac and PC ads. He created a culture that cut a clear distinction between Apple and everyone else.

Great marketing is about telling your story. Who you are, what you do, and what you can offer others. A story that’s true. This doesn’t mean you need to write an opus, it just means you need to be clear about what your company stands for, create definition and an engaging message about what makes you and your product better than the next guy.

You know one thing I failed to tag onto that trajectory of technology was nostalgia. What is old is new again. Even in these days of iPods and digital downloads, there is a growing market for vinyl. Those cookie-cutter tract houses that spawned strip malls across America are now sold as “mid-centuries”. Retro is back; which brings us back to the good old USPS. So you have ads from the Post Office that promote the solid, comforting notion of a letter being hand carried to your door.

I have always liked direct mail. I have also been a big advocate of what author Seth Godin coined as “permission marketing”. One of the first things we suggested besides newsletters and postcards was a sign up box. The approach was simple: transparency. Let them know what they will get from you when they give you permission to contact them. Simple. Whether it is a ‘Girls Night Out’ event, a special loyal customer’s only sale, or even just to send them a birthday card, just tell them what they’ll get and keep your word.

5 simple steps to handling negative reviews on search & review sites

Just who is Jessica K. and why should you care? Well if you are the Garden Fever Garden Center you’d be happy to know that she just posted a 5 star review on Yelp. Awesome, but read further down on the reviews and you’ll find Leah L. who wasn’t exactly thrilled. She felt ignored on her visits. While you might not be aware of search and review sites like Yelp, CitySearch, or Foursquare, your customers are. This Garden Center had a 4 star average on 15 reviews.

At the time of this post the Yelp page for that garden center had not yet been claimed. In fact when we run research scans for local garden centers we find that only a small percentage have actually claimed their Yelp page, not to mention more common opportunities like a local.google, local.yahoo, or bing listing. One benefit of claiming your profile is the chance to respond to reviews – both positive and negative.

Statistics show that on average most reviews are four stars or higher. With that said human nature shows that most potential customers scroll down to see what that 1 star customer had to say. Yes, good reviews give us a glow, but bad reviews can send your business into a tail spin. But before you bust out in a class A rant, you need to count to ten and consider these simple tips to handling bad reviews.

1) Be aware. First things first, you need to know what your customers are saying about you. So the first order of business is to focus on the most commonly used search and review sites like those listed earlier in this post. Next, and most importantly, read them and read them often.

2) Be patient. While the natural inclination might be to respond with some form of anger, frustration, or screaming at staff, you need to sleep on it. Let’s face it, nobody likes criticism, but the fact is it is out there. The important thing is to handle it professionally.

3) Be open. While it might not seem like it at the time you can learn a tremendous amount from your customer’s feedback. The irony of course is that more people are going to post on Yelp than fill out your ‘How are we doing?’ cards. So listen and learn. These reviews can be a key tool in improving your business.

4) Be responsive. So once you have slept on it, learned from it and addressed the issues in question, you need to respond to it. Try to resist the urge to be defensive. The best response is short, sweet and to the point. Thank them, confirm the problem and let them know what you are going to do about it. Next, invite them back and tell them to identify themselves to the manager. This can be done with a comp, personal greeting, or a do over.

5) Get better. Reviews, good or bad, are critically important to your business. So take them seriously, identify the problem and fix it. Once you have done that a few times you will probably realize you need to employ a system for regularly scanning sites for reviews on your business. That is another benefit of securing your business profile as you can then get automated e-mails that alert you when a post or review is made on your profile page.

At Sunrise Marketing we’ve helped many small business owners by monitoring and managing their online business reputation. Search and review reports are just one part of a larger program of SMO, or Social Media Optimization. While we may have focused on negative reviews, we can also take the positive reviews and post them on your Facebook page, tweet them on Twitter, publish them in an e-mail newsletter and add them to your website.

The important thing is to learn more about it. At Sunrise Marketing we can provide your business with a FREE snapshot analysis of your business. We’ll help identify ways for you and your business to make the most of social media marketing. Click here to arrange for a free analysis.

Done with deals? Facebook, Yelp scale back on 'Deals'; Groupon down 50%.

Well that didn't take long. Yesterday Facebook announced that it was stepping back from it's 'deal' platform. "After testing Deals for four months, we've decided to end our Deals product in the coming weeks," the company said on Friday in a statement emailed to Reuters.

Scanning through the feeds we follow here at Sunrise Marketing we noticed that Yelp was also scaling back their deal programs. I had spoken with a Yelp representative earlier this week about the enhanced program they are offering retail businesses and restaurants. While there is value in adding video, photos, and ad placement, at Sunrise Marketing we found that the fall back for many of these offers were heavily discounted deals. It didn't seem to help restaurants other than attracting bargain hunters. However, it was viewed as a cash cow for discounters like Groupon.com, Living Social and others.

“The big players are exiting because the business is not making a dent in their revenue numbers,” said Sucharita Mulpuru, an analyst at Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Forrester Research Inc. “The space is not as large as everyone thought it was.”

In related news Hitwise reported that Groupon.com saw sales fall 50% from a highwater mark in June.

"Overall, visits to Hitwise's custom category of Daily Deal & Aggregator sites were down 25% for the same time period. What explains the decline -- and Groupon's in particular?

"Perhaps it is simply a case of increased number of competitors and deal fatigue among consumers or simply not enough of the right deals," Tancer suggests.

At Sunrise Marketing we've helped several retailers experiment with Groupon.com and the results are mixed, but one thing is certain. Sustainable business cannot be built on a foundation of deep discounts.

At Sunrise Marketing we help retailers and restaurants structure their own promotional efforts through mobile marketing, Facebook integration, as well as e-mail marketing and website updates. Providing the small business owner with this level of control allows them to create promotions on their own terms - not Groupon's, Yelp's or Facebook's.

Hammer those Spammers!

Spammers are just like cockroaches. They seem to appear out of nowhere and then they tell their buddies, and before you know it the cockroach party boat is pulling up to your website. Aaaarrggghh! After what seems like a lifetime you finally have this shiny new website, you’ve posted some of your best blogs, and then you get this funky post from immigration lawyers in Texas. OK, at first you just gently scoop up the roach in a tissue and flush it down the toilet. But by the time you’ve tidied up that post you’ve heard from weight loss experts, car insurance salesman, robots – yes, even robots (for sale that is) and made to order curtains. Eeeeekkk! You’ve got cockroaches.

Yes, it was only a matter of time before spammers tried to game your blog site with all types of self-promoting posts. The good news is you can identify the spammers and permanently block them from posting to your blog. Typically, when you establish your WordPress, or similar, blogging site you have the option to establish ‘users’ and assign them roles. These roles can be anything from managing all aspects of the site to the ability to post and edit blog posts. The individual you identify as the ‘administrator’ has complete control. The e-mail address you link to the administrator will be sent posts for reviewing. You can either ‘approve it’, ‘trash it’, or ‘spam’ it.

Marking it as ‘spam’ will bar the individual from that post reply and future posts. It is the equivalent of smashing a cockroach, but beware as more cockroaches will soon follow. Of course, you do want to invite commentary on posts – that was the whole idea – so it is important that you review your posts carefully and in a timely fashion.

Likewise, it is a good idea to pay attention to your Facebook posts. Every once in a while you will get the random post in Chinese, or even another competitor, so it is important to keep on your toes. Just like the WordPress review requests, you, or any of your administrators will get an email notifying you of a new post or reply. If it looks funky then you can also have the option of trashing it, or even marking it as spam and blocking the offending party.

At Sunrise Marketing we serve as the default administrator on new WordPress sites we build, as well as Facebook business pages that we administrate. That serves to make sure all assignments of roles are handled properly, but it also takes one more pain-in-the-neck task off your plate. Of course you could think of us as the Orkin pest control of your business reputation. So relax, we’re here to hammer those spammers!

3 Steps to converting Facebook 'fans' into shoppers!

These days many small business owners either have a Facebook business 'page', or feel guilty because they don't. While many tend to neglect their page, there are plenty of entrepreneurial types that are pouring significant time and effort into building their fan base. But the score card for success seems to be focused on the sheer number of 'fans'. Nothing wrong with that, but could it be that we might be confusing the means with the end? With over 695 million Facebook accounts worldwide (according to Roy Wells over 151 million Americans have Facebook accounts), you'd have to be crazy to ignore the numbers. Don't get me wrong, numbers are great, we love numbers, but at the end of the day the most important number for any sized business is the one at the bottom line.

The frustration for many retailers is how to quantify the results from their Facebook page. Is it really worth all the effort? For now many are using the only measuring stick they have handy - that's right, you guessed, the number of fans. I understand the power of those numbers - each 'fan' (on average) has over 125 friends and all you want to do is connect with those friends, turn them into your 'fans' and watch the 'fan' count like you would an old-school stock ticker. Which brings us back to the "what good are all these fans" question.

What's missing? One word - CONVERSION. You see collecting fans is just one step in monetizing your business Facebook page. First come 'fans', then engagement, brand affinity and hopefully they come in and buy stuff. Of course it isn't enough to just 'hope' for good results, you need a device, a measuring tool, analysis and adjustment. You need a device to facilitate that conversion; and that's where I think mobile marketing comes in. I think it's most obvious advantage is making it easier for your 'fans' to retrieve your offers and ultimately redeem them at your business. How does it work? Thought you would never ask...

Step 1 - Create your offer or message (we use and recommend Fanminder). We recommend either a 'dollars off', percentage off, or Free. It is also important to provide a fixed time period for redemption. You want to create an urgency to your offer.

Step 2 - Choose the Fanminder option to auto-post to your Facebook page. With just a click of a mouse you can choose from a list of subscribers AND select the box to send the message to your Facebook page. And of course we all know that you can tether your Facebook page to your Twitter account. That's right - One Click and done!

Step 3 - 'Grab This' link leads back to landing page where 'fans' can opt-in for one offer, or choose to receive future offers. Speaking for myself, I do find it easier to pull up an offer on my cell phone than to get to a computer, print out the page, clip the coupon, and make sure I have it with me next time I go to that place. Heck, I still have Groupon vouchers from a year ago. Of course, I couldn't tell you where they are. (Guy thing). This way - much easier!

Boom. You've now added some important functionality to your Facebook page. Oh, by the way, a few other reasons we like mobile marketing is that you don't need a smart phone. A simple cell phone will do AND according to the folks at Pew Research Center 85% of all 18+ adults in America have a cell phone.

Ca-Ching! So that is a simple, yet powerful way to turn your Facebook page into a conversion machine. Now, this doesn't mean you confine all of your posts to specials, we recommend that you designate a day each week/month, etc. so that the dynamic is changed from interruption to anticipation. So what are you waiting for? It's time to put your Facebook page to work for your business.

Top 5 Reasons to Get a New Smart Phone.

Good news for all of you on the fence about whether to spring for a new smart phone. I've got 5 good reasons to plunk down some dough on a Droid, iPhone, or Blackberry - and the good news is that it could all be tax deductible. Yes, you could play with your new toy at work, but these things are anything but toys. I received an iPhone for my birthday and it seems like I find a new way to use it every day. Now, of course some are a waste of time, but sometimes you need to kick back and play a little video poker (just the app, not on the web).

You can also experience your business from a totally new perspective. You can find out what your customers have to say about you through search and review sites, see if they can find you on Google Places, and check your Facebook page for check-ins.

I am sure that there are dozens of other applications, but I did promise 5 good reasons. So here goes:

1) QR Codes - Depending upon who you talk to they are either obsolete, or mis-used. QR Codes, which have used in Japan for over 15 years now, are a simple graphic that is linked to a specific web address. That could be anything from a link to a website, video, or photo gallery. Basically these codes can connect people from a single graphic to a wealth of information. What a great way to finally put that silent salesperson - the sign - to work for your business. You could embed the QR code on your sign, handout, or shelf talker. While you need a QR code reader they are easily available for most mobile devices. We use BeeTagg Reader, but there are plenty of other options.

2) Square (see photo) - Square is the simplest way to accept credit cards on the go. It’s easy to use and comes with a free credit card reader for your phone or iPad. Sign-up is quick. No complicated contracts, monthly fees, or merchant account. When you swipe cards with Square there is just one fee: 2.75%. Download the free app from the Android Market or iTunes App Store. Square is currently available in the U.S. This device has the potential to address a real problem for most businesses - how to quickly and safely check out customers from any place at any time. For a garden center that might be at a nursery on a busy weekend.

3) Photos & Videos - If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a video is worth a thousand photos. Many of the latest smart phones feature 8 megapixel cameras, as well as video capability in HD. This is a great way to feature the plate of the day, or the latest delivery of plants. Videos can be used to build your brand as you inform and inspire your customers. Of course you can use those images and videos as part of a receipt with your Square device, or as an information link on your signs with QR codes.

4) Facebook Posts - As more and more of your customers connect with you on Facebook, it has become more important for you to master the medium. With a Facebook app on your Droid or iPhone you can post pictures, promote events and even respond to customers questions or comments. This is a great application for getting the word out quickly on sales and specials, or just passing along something you think your fans would be interested in.

5) Testimonials - Since we already know that a good video clip is worth a thousand pictures (and by extension, a bajillion words), a good testimonial captured on your smart phone can be invaluable. I used it at a recent trade show in Chicago. Capture the video and then upload it to your Facebook page, website, or YouTube channel - all with a click from your smart phone.

So it sounds like a pretty smart decision doesn't it? Even if you use it to a fraction of it's full capabilities, it is worth it. However, if you take some time to learn how to use it effectively, it will become the most valuable device in your toolbox.

One Simple Way to More Facebook Fans.

Success with Facebook begins with your Facebook fan count. Obviously more is better, but if you can't get them to the altar, how can you expect them to say "I do". Putting up a Facebook page without promotion is like having a birthday party but forgetting to send out the invitations. We all understand that the most common criteria for success on Facebook is fans (those who 'like' and follow your business page). While success is not determined simply by the quantity of 'likes' it is an important part of building a solid foundation of followers. It seems easy enough to understand, but why do so many companies ignore one of the most important parts of a Facebook strategy - promotion? At sunrisemarketing.com we've put together a package of promotional pieces that deliver the message. This is helpful in gaining employee involvement, as well as creating a professional and polished look that will reflect positively on your brand.

This can be a simple as a counter mat at the register to window clings for the front door. For larger environments we've seen signs work very well in conjunction with banners, counter mats, and counter top signs. A case in point would be a garden center located in northern New Jersey, Gro-Rite Greenhouses that put our promotional material to work for their company Facebook page. As of this weeks Facebook statistics they saw a growth of 192% in new likes for the past four weeks. In addition they saw a 32% gain in post feedback. Simply translated that means people are engaging the site and that should be the goal of all company Facebook pages. There really is no mystery to growing your Facebook following - promote it, add some personality and content, listen well, and respond in a timely fashion. Works for Gro-Rite Greenhouses and I bet it will work for you. Check out the complete Facebook marketing kit. Now is the time to make it happen for your company.

6 Reasons to use Bonus Bucks to Generate Repeat Business.

It seems like every year I get the same phone call, usually around July. It is from a retailer using Bonus Bucks. They are surprised at how well they work. They will rattle off a number and ask me how it stacks up with other retailers. In most cases it is a really good number. There really isn’t anything magical about it. It is fundamental marketing – get your offer in the hands of your best customers; and with Bonus Bucks it couldn’t be any easier.

It is a simple formula for success: give them away when you’re busy and redeem them when you’re slow. The goal is to give away as many bucks as possible to increase the rate of response. The more people get, the more likely they are to return. Simple. At Sunrise Marketing we’ve been printing money for over 8 years now. Ok, maybe not that kind of money, but Bonus Bucks have sure been golden for our customers. Consider the benefits:

1) 100% deliverability – There is virtually zero cost of distribution and everyone gets them. Typically a retailer will issue one ‘buck’ for every ten dollars a customer spends. Your cashier issues them like change.

2) Rewards the best customers – The more someone spends, the more bucks they receive; and the more they collect, the greater the likelihood they will come back with their bucks. Your top spenders are generally impulse buyers and who couldn’t use more big spenders?

3) Boost sales in slow months – We encourage retailers to schedule their redemption periods within two weeks of the end of the issue period. Typically retailers will issue them in April, May and June with redemption periods in July and August. The same can be done for Fall and Holiday sales.

4) Highest return rates – No doubt about it, Bonus Bucks have extraordinary return rates. It is our experience that retailers can generate 20, 30, and even 40% redemption rates. We suggest that retailers use conditions that cap discounts. For example, Bonus Bucks can be redeemed for up to 50% of pre-tax sale. So, a customer that spends $100 will get $10 in Bonus Bucks. They would need to spend $20 in order to redeem the $10. So the total purchase would be $120 and the discount would be $10 – that’s less than a 10% discount, but many customers spend above and beyond the minimum purchase.

5) Generates good will – You don’t need a loyalty program to reward your best customers. Bonus Bucks are a simple low-tech, high-touch program that is fun for customers, easy to use and really works. In a sense Bonus Bucks become like Monopoly money. Many customers will use them towards a luxury item they might not have otherwise purchased.

6) Attractive designs boost your brand awareness. Let’s face it, why wouldn’t you want your customers looking at your bucks every time they dive into their purse or wallet? The other benefit to great design is that there is absolutely no chance for counterfeiting.

These days, in an age of Facebook and Groupon, there is the tendency to chase something shiny in the place of something tried and true. The irony of course, is that something as low-tech as Bucks will out-perform just about any other type of redemption device around.

Never done bucks? Well, there couldn’t be a better time to start. Used them in the past? Well then it is time to get your order in. We’ve got the presses rolling and we are ready for business. Why not make sure you are too.

Yikes! We've Got Mice!

Niche Marketing

Success in business is a function of finding a need and filling it. The old adage holds true - “Build a better mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door.” Fortunately, the need for mousetraps isn’t as great as it was when that phrase was coined by Ralph Waldo Emerson back in the 19th century. While some things have changed, the notion of connecting with consumers is just as important now as it was back then. The difference is the overwhelming amount of ads that threaten to drown out your marketing message.

Cutting through the clutter calls for a laser sharp focus with a message that resonates with consumers. It will be even more impactful when it touches on issues people care about, and the more specific you can be, the better. Pest control is a fairly general category, but when you mention mice, then you’ve got their attention.

About Niches

Broad niches can appeal to a very broad spectrum of people. However, there are also a lot of players in broad niches and it can be hard to “stand out from the crowd” and get people’s attention. Narrower niches get attention from people who are looking for a specific thing such as our mouse trap. There are fewer prospective customers in narrow niches – but they are often eager buyers!

Generally, people try to choose niches that are smaller and more pin-pointed. These types of niches will bring a smaller audience to your business, but one that is interested in what your niche is about. Niche marketing examples of those types of niches might be:

• Organic Pest Control
• Start a Backyard Apple Orchard
• Starting Plants from Seed
• Composting 101
• Natural Grub Control

Broader niches bring more people to your business, but they might be looking for something other than what you’re offering. Of course, once you get that traffic to your store, you might have something else that they might be interested in. Niche marketing examples of broader niches could be:

• Easy Organic Gardening
• Grow Your Own Fruits & Vegetables
• Sustainable Gardening
• Re-Cycling Saves
• Safer Lawn Care

You get the idea. These niche marketing examples give you a picture of what might be possible when you zero in on your marketing message.

Researching Niche areas

Of course concentrating on specific areas will force you to focus your message. Your first step - understand what’s important to your customers. The success of any marketing campaign starts with knowing your customers, what they want or need, and then finding out how your products or services meet that need. While hosting focus groups might be out of the question, there are some alternatives that might yield you surprising results. You can still get the pulse of a marketplace with some good old fashioned research, and these days there are several phenomenal tools that are just a couple of clicks away.

• Search.twitter.com
• Google Insights
• Facebook Ads
• iVillage Garden Forums

Search phrases on Twitter will give you an idea of how topical your niche is. You might need to drill deeper to connect with consumer interest; the information is there if you are willing to put in the time and effort.

The same is true of experimenting with Facebook ads. When you use Facebook ads you can select the search phrase, the region, sex, age, and more. When I ran ‘organic gardening’ in Connecticut with those parameters I came up with 320 matches.
Running a simple search on Google Insights I searched under ‘organic gardening’, then filtered the results regionally, by time span, and by category. Not surprisingly interest in that niche was a close parallel to garden center sales; it spiked in spring and was fairly consistent from 2004 to 2010. But the top search and rising search categories were led by ‘organic gardening seeds’, ‘organic seeds’ at 190% increase, followed by ‘organic garden soil’, ‘organic soil’ and ‘organic garden’.

These keywords are important in providing an insight into the mind of your consumers. If they search it, they want it.

Timing

As evidenced by our experiment with Google Insights and Google Trends the timing of your message is particularly important in the garden center industry. To lean on another adage, “Fish when the fish are biting.” Again, referring back to our global niche, there is a growing interest in sustainability and organic solutions, but when it comes down to something as specific as “safe lawn care” then the window on that sales opportunity is probably limited to a couple of weeks in the year.

Emotional Triggers

Another benefit of honing in on a niche market like organic gardening is the chance to really connect on people’s concerns and interests. One is a pain principle and the other is a pleasure point. Avoiding chemicals that can cause cancer and poison the environment will trigger a different response than the vision of a utopian landscape complete with colorful butterflies, chirping birds and flowers bending in the breeze. See what I mean?

When you are trying to connect with consumers then the imagery is crucial. You might get better results with happy kids and puppies, and a family running barefoot on the lawn will help reinforce your message.

Putting It All Together

What you might end up with is a visual of a young mother kneeling in the garden. She might have a garden basket filled with a harvest of early season vegetables whose rows are marked with a Popsicle stick and the empty seed package – organic and heirloom seed packages. As she carefully amends her garden bed with organic soil products, we see the kids playing on the lawn and a cat chasing butterflies against a blue sky on a sunny morning in May. Better right?

The right amount of research can take the guess work out of creating an effective marketing campaign. Success is a formula of the right message, to the right people, at the right time. If you put in your homework then you might just ace the test.

5 Engaging Topics for Facebook Posts

Now that the dust has settled from all the trade shows and winter conferences it's time to take stock of what we've learned, and more importantly, how to put it to work for your business. While there was a range of topics covered at industry events the buzz was all around social media. When most people think social media they think of Facebook.

While we all can recognize how a good Facebook page can help you and your business, I have noticed that there are an awful lot of pages that start and stop. Sometimes coming up with the simplest of posts can be daunting.

We all can face writer's block, but I thought I would throw out a few ideas that might help. First, understand who your audience is, and what THEY might be interested in. So you will need to think like your fans. Consider how much time they might spend on Facebook and what generates the most feedback. You might gain some perspective on this by 'liking' some other Facebook sites you like to follow. What do you notice. Is the content conversational and friendly, or just another sales pitch or discount offer. Try to create content that you might like to follow. Keep it light and engaging.I put together a short list of five ideas for Facebook posts that might generate some responses:

Do you have a pizza parlor? How about something as simple as 'what's your favorite topping?' Or 'if you were a pizza, what kind would you be?'

Own a pet store? Why not start a photo contest for owners who look like their dogs (or vice versa). You could have a 'name this pet' in conjunction with a dog adoption event in your community. Nothing tugs on the heartstrings like a puppy dog or kitten picture.

Have a garden center? How about 'If you were a flower what would it be?' Or, how about just asking your followers to share a great photo you post. 'Send this flower to a friend' could be fun. You could also have a plant identification contest.

Looking to grow your following? Why not create a membership drive of sorts where you will give all fans a gift card when a certain milestone is hit? You would be surprised at the response you might get for a $10 gift card. It also allows you to post updates on how it is going.

Finally, I have noticed many pages just selecting a random follower and posting them as your 'Facebook fan of the week'. There might be a gift or incentive attached, or it could just be an opportunity for you to communicate how much you value your customers.

It doesn't always have to be directly about your business. You can comment on things like the weather, pop culture, a local happening, or a sporting event. Just remember the basics - no religion and no politics. The most important thing is to create a schedule that you can maintain. This could be as few as one or two a month, or as often as once a day. The important thing is to connect.

Bills Great Idea Rainy Day Videos!

Is your Facebook page driving you nuts?

Nothing new there. But a thought that is rattling around in my head is...

Isn't Facebook what you hoped your website was going to be?

You know, a place where people would bookmark it (remember bookmarks?) and stop in and visit with you and your website. You spent tons of time, money and energy trying to create a way that your customers could interact with you and your other customers (remember chat rooms?). You might even encourage them to comment on a post, send you a picture, or sign up for your e-mail newsletter. Remember.

Well isn't that what a good Facebook page is supposed to do? The tough question is...

Are you going to be any better on Facebook than you are with your website?

You see both your website and a Facebook page (your business page) require... you guessed it time, money and energy. Free is just another word for valuing your time less than money; and you are going to waste both your time and money if you don't have a plan. We recommend that our clients put together an editorial and promotional calendar for the month, the quarter and the year. What are you going to be promoting when? Please note that I said 'editorial' AND 'promotional' calendar. Let's face it, if you have nothing interesting to say, or others say on your wall, then all you are doing is blasting more ads.

It has to be a blend of information, inspiration and incentive. That's right all the stuff we told you for composing a good e-mail newsletter is true for your Facebook posts. I saw another way to frame it - the 'Old McDonald' method for creating content:

E - Entertain
I - Inspire
E - Educate
I - Inform
O - Outrage

A good Facebook page, and we're assuming we're talking about a 'business page' here, is a place where you share a laugh, learn something you didn't know and saw something worth sharing with a friend. That's how it is supposed to work.

Is your Facebook page working for you? Or is it just another headache... like updating your website? Oh, well. I was afraid of that. But don't despair, I have some ideas percolating. I will keep you posted.

Socially Acceptable

You would be hard-pressed to find a better class of people than garden center owners. Aside from a few frantic weeks in the spring they are generally rational and typically, friendly, optimistic souls. They love to help, give great advice and really know the product.

A recent trip to Lancaster County, Pennsylvania only reinforced that belief. I was invited to join a panel discussion on marketing for retail garden centers. Like many retailers across the country the people in the room were struggling for ideas on how to promote their business in today’s challenging economic environment. Well, the subject soon shifted to websites, e-mail and social media marketing.

Looking out at a room that was probably 60% Amish, I knew I had my work cut out for me. While not every grower/retailer in the room had a website, the fact of the matter is that most attendees have been doing social media marketing long before Facebook. They know their neighbors and the neighbors know and trust them for expert advice and great plants. And over time that expert advice and those great plants have built a level of trust that keeps their customers loyal to their business.

Over the course of the 90 minute presentation the topic of trust and relationship came up over and over again. Of course great relationships with your customers provide the bedrock for your business. I explained that you cannot hope for growth unless you succeed at retaining and growing your existing customers. The response was plenty of heads nodding in agreement. Who could disagree? It’s just plain common sense, isn’t it?

While everyone might recognize the obvious the conversation was stuck. So how does that translate into sales and new customers? The problem, I explained was that garden centers do a great job delivering great service; they just do a poor job at marketing it.

Well, a week later I found myself up in Scarborough, Maine at Highland Avenue Greenhouse and Farm Market. I was meeting with owners Christine and Joe Viscone to help them set up their website, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube accounts. I had brought along my handy-dandy Flip camera and I was sharing some techniques and ideas on how to use video to personalize their website and take advantage of the viral nature of YouTube videos.

They have a nice little garden center and farm market that has been passed along from Joe’s family. Christine and Joe represent the next generation that is excited to bring the business along into this new age of marketing and merchandising. They have expanded their seasonal market to include organically grown local wines, baked goods, even a cooler complete with Gatorade, but the real shining star is the produce.

Joe started growing tomato plants in buckets in a small hoop house behind the market. The fruits of his labor are the most incredible tomatoes you ever saw. I watched as staff lovingly washed and cleaned every practically perfect tomato. Well I quickly pulled out my video camera and started shooting tomatoes.

It didn’t take long for customers to wonder what was up with the guy with the small video camera working the room. Asking a few questions I convinced a couple of customers – I will call them Karen and Larry – to answer a few questions and provide a testimonial. Well we hit the mother lode! Karen could not say enough about the quality of the produce, how much they love Joe and Christine and how excited they were to discover the farm market.

About fifteen minutes later I had enough material to turned into a 45 second clip that we posted on their YouTube channel. Karen has excited to see the results and provided her email address so we could send her the link as soon as it was posted. Now Karen is what author Seth Godin would call a loyal customer. Some customers, he explained in a recent blog post, really like being loyal customers.

Like Karen, they take ownership of the experience. She “discovered” the Farm Market and couldn’t wait to share it with her friends. She had shopped the competition and had pronounced a winner – Christine and Joe’s Highland Avenue Greenhouse & Farm Market.

A little later we talked with another customer, ‘Jackie’, who had known Joe for years. She was a little apprehensive, but agreed to film a quick testimonial. The results? Another great testimonial.

I later explained to Christine and Joe that testimonials like these are what will make your website, and more importantly, your business more interesting. I have no doubt that Karen will visit the website to see her video. She will probably tell all of her friends the story over the dinner she planned later that day. Those friends will probably want to check it out and, who knows, maybe they will tell their friends.

That is how an idea goes viral. That is how you market your business. It is always better for the word to spread from your customers than from you and your ads. (Who believes ads?) That is where tools like Facebook, YouTube and your website can help you spread the word. Now many of you will probably read this and nod in agreement. Sharing a great testimonial is a good idea. It’s obvious.

But it takes some chutzpah to pull out the camera and ask them to share their experience. I run into the same thing when a loyal customer will stop by a trade show booth. I explained to Joe and Christine that I am now in the habit of pulling out the camera and asking them to start over. This always gets a smile… and a great new testimonial.

As I have pointed out, testimonials are a great way for your customers to share your business story. Back to Seth Godin and customer loyalty: “I think there's no doubt that some brands and teams and politicians and yes, people, attract a greater percentage of loyal fans than others. Not because they're bigger or better, but because they reinforce the good feeling some people get when they're being loyal.”

Want to see what that looks like? Then check out the video at youtube.com/highlandghouse, or search YouTube for “Happy Customers at Highland Avenue Greenhouses”.

Why - a trigger point for marketing

Most garden centers I talk to these days are tired of discounting. Newsprint ads continue to spiral into the habitual ‘what’s on sale this week’, and years of a cycle of seasonal markdowns has resulted in a customer base that is conditioned to waiting for ‘what’s on sale.’ We’ve created a monster.

In my experience the garden center industry has created three distinct types of customers: the coupon shopper, the impulse buyer, and the scavenger. While they each might serve a function in the ecology of shopping, the reality is that the most common marketing message is attracting one type of customer more than another… you guessed it, the scavenger. If price is the only distinction you place yourself in the precarious position of a ‘mass marketer’ trading punches with the big box stores – or that other garden center in town that triggers a panic in the market with deep discounts.

Every year I face the same challenge of convincing an industry that there is another way. (It is usually in the fall when they are pressured by their competition to win the race for the half off sale).

Well consider another way...

I recently came across an interview with Les Wunderman. Never heard of Les Wunderman? Well he is the direct marketing genius that came up with such seminal direct-marketing innovations as the 1-800 toll-free number for ordering merchandise, the magazine-subscription card and the first custom-rewards program.

At age 90 Lester explained in a recent interview with Advertising Age that there’s always going to be two forms of selling – mass marketing and personal advertising. ‘The problem with mass marketing, he said, is that people have lost the relationship they once had with both the vendor and what was vended. Things became commodities on supermarket shelves, and as much as advertising tried to identify them and wake them up, they sat there as commodities with all sorts of competitors.’

What’s happening now is ‘a much more personal form of communication. I call it personal advertising, which is forward-looking. We’re not there yet, but we’re moving from mass.’

What personal advertising does is understand, through data and other information, the habits and needs and composition of families. Therefore, we’re not just selling merchandise – we’re selling service’, he said. In other words, we are trying to locate for each family that which they are most likely to be needing or wanting – or when, particularly the when.’

‘If you know when a baby is born, when a marriage takes place, when a house is purchased – there are signals out there. And those signals begin to tell us what the consumer might in need of,’ he added.

I prefer to think as these signals as triggers.

Successful advertising has always been a function of Who, What and When. If you know who your customer is (the list), what will motivate them to buy (the offer), and (when) they are most likely to buy then you stand a good chance of running a winning promotion.

Simple, right? Well after reading the interview with Wunderman I believe there is a much more important function – the Why. ‘Why’ would someone want to buy your product or service? What has happened to a consumer that might ‘trigger’ a need?
Thinking in terms of the ‘why’ creates a potential paradigm shift in how you advertise. Typically a retailer will advertise to solve their issue – we need to reduce inventory, our sales are in the toilet, or the product is perishable and looking tired. In essence the retailer is more intent on crafting a message to solve their problem, rather than considering what the customer might want or need, and when they might want or need it most.

Marketing towards need creates a much more compelling message. Let me give you an example. Living in New England I have become a big fan of L. L. Bean. They are one of the signature direct mail companies that has successfully expanded their marketing message into web and e-mail marketing. I signed up to receive their weekly e-mails because they made the benefits clear and easy to understand. They run a promotion each and every week. It might be backpacks for the back to school markets, snow shoes around Christmas, or shorts for the summer. The key is that they advertise with an understanding of what the customer might want or need WHEN the customer might want or need it. While they also offer seasonal markdowns their primary promotions are geared towards what you are most likely to be in the market for. They give you the good stuff.

They understand the nature of ‘triggers’. When you think in terms of triggers, then you are able to position your product or service as a solution to a need. If your only message is low price or discount then you have boxed yourself in. You also run the risk of targeting the wrong type of customer – the scavenger.

However, if you take the time to research the marketplace you might be able to target to specific needs. Specific ‘triggers’ could include a new home purchase, a real estate transaction (new to the neighborhood), birth of a child (identifying younger families) and birthdays. With a little research you can easily identify these consumers. As a list broker Sunrise Marketing routinely provides a search service that can target these ‘triggers’ to identify new customers for our customers.
With a little creative thinking there are also ‘triggers’ that might not seem so obvious. For home owners in mature markets a ‘trigger’ might be a 20 year old landscape that has overgrown its usefulness. A shift in consumer culture might also reveal a new need. A trend towards a healthier lifestyle can produce an opportunity to expand categories like heirloom seeds, organic fertilizers, compost as well as fruit and vegetable plants. In essence you are still selling the same products, but you are creating new marketing opportunities.

Notice that none of these ‘triggers’ requires a deep discount to tap into a need or desire. Rather it is a function of revamping your message so that it connects on a deeper level than a half off sale. Now thinking in terms of needs won’t solve an inventory problem – that just requires better buying on your part. Perhaps sagging sales, frustrations with customers bent on waiting you out for half off sales, or tired ads might ‘trigger’ a change in the way you craft your next marketing message.

My favorite John Wooden quote...

Recently I received the book A Game Plan for Life: The Power of Mentoring by John Wooden. John Wooden was without a doubt the greatest basketball coach of all time. He recently passed, but he will be long remembered as the Wizard of Westwood coaching the UCLA mens basketball teams to a string of championships that will never be equaled.

But I digress. So I received the book for Father's day. While Mr. Wooden was known for true pearls of wisdom my favorite is "Don't confuse activity with accomplishment".

All too often these days we get caught up in the numbers - how many hits on a website, how many views on a YouTube video, how many 'likes' on a Facebook account. It is all about the numbers, and like so many other things, more must be better. Let's take a closer look. If it were all about the numbers then the undisputed champ would be...

Lady GaGa - hard to argue with 12,008,015 followers and the most downloaded video ever - Bad Romance - with a staggering 243,426,399 views.

However successful she may be Lady GaGa is hardly a role model for marketing your business. Maybe a better example might be...

Whole Foods - with over 286,904 followers they have a lot riding on their Facebook presence. But they represent the potential of a company that has dedicated itself to the brand - and that brand ranks customer loyalty right up there as a top priority. While 286, 904 followers is a big number it is only 1062 'likes' per store. Whole Foods has over 270 stores worldwide.

So let's take a look at our industry. Homestead Gardens in Davidsonville, MD - one of the largest garden centers in the country has 1094 followers. So, on average, they have more than the average Whole Foods store.

With that said Riverside Nursery in Collinsville, CT has 1096 followers - more than Homestead Gardens which is over ten times as big sales and size wise.

While these numbers are certainly interesting, what can we make of them? Has Riverside Nursery done a better job than Homestead Gardens AND Whole Foods? It could be argued they are better at Facebook, or could it be that because of the small size and personal nature of their business mean they ATTRACT a larger following?

And what does this matter if it doesn't translate into sales? Let's get back to John Wooden for a moment. My concern within our industry is that we have put the cart in front of the horse. The number of followers should be a RESULT of great customer service, a terrific experience, and quality products, rather then the result of a campaign to generate more friends. It is a matter of priorities.

Now I have been to Homestead Gardens and Riveside Nursery. While they might differ in size, they share many similar attributes - experience, merchandising, product and staff. They are both the type of place you WANT to go to because the experience is beautiful.

When the experience transcends the expectation than people are moved to action. They will buy, they will return, and they will tell their friends. Now a great Facebook page can come in handy for spreading the word, but first you might want to concentrate on creating a great experience.

I took a quick video, did some rough editing and added some music. I showed it to my wife. After watching the video she HAD to go to Riverside; which we did and we bought a few very nice things to give as a gift to a friend. She is now a fan of Riverside Nursery.

I would recommend that you 'like' some of these Facebook sites. It is important that you 'experience' what customers experience. Let me know what you think.

A relief from information overload

These days you can spend all day (and night) going through all your (wanted and un-wanted) e-mails, facebook updates, twitter posts, and that doesn't even touch the kajillions of videos uploaded to YouTube each day. Actually there are 20 hours of video uploaded to YouTube every minute; over 100 years of video everyday.

Talk about information overload, it is like trying to drink from a fire hydrant. Not to mention the time suck involved. How do you ever expect to get something done when you are perpetually grazing on the web each day?

Now before you shut down your Facebook page, stop Tweeting, and swear off YouTube for a while, consider the option of selectivity. The web is a fantastic swimming pool of ideas, creativity, and crap (and worse). Practicing a little practicality can pay dividends when you are tuned into the right frequencies.

So for that reason I have sampled quite a few blogs, websites, and media outlets to settle on a more manageable amount of feeds. I could probably find more, but I have found my list is a good one. I have developed a routine of skimming through the headlines to find stories I am interested in (and that you might be as well) and saving them to read later. I generally will dedicate around an hour and a half each evening to review emails and dig a little deeper into posts that I find interesting. So I thought, heck, you might be interested in them as well. So here is my list -

Seth Godin - I find his books interesting and thought provoking. His blog posts are short enough to follow daily.

ted.com - Just started visiting this website. You'll find short 6 to 15 minutes talks on everything from the YouTube feature to David Byrne (talking heads) talking about music and architecture to Sir Ken Robinson's classic on improving education. Might not be all that marketing relevant, but definitely gets you thinking out of the box.


CopyBlogger - Although it is about blogging for business and pleasure, I find it extremely relevant to marketing. Good marketing is about communicating your story, and whether you are selling garden hose or gardening articles, a good story will capture the imagination and move people towards action. Good ideas here from a variety of writers.


Social Media Examiner - I really like this site. If you are at all interested in social media matters then you should subscribe to this site feed. They source a wide range of free-lance writers and industry experts. I find that I am constantly referring back to these posts.

Advertising Age - I will always find something interesting in the feeds from Advertising Age. You get a perspective you just don't find following the usual suspects in our industry's trade press. I follow print, media, and interactive.

Fast Company - Re-discovered this old favorite through their e-mail newsletters. Always finding something relevant to the discussion on growing your small business.

So there you have it. Although the grind of the day to day business can sometimes choke off the imagination, it is an important investment in your personal and professional development to keep yourself informed. You'll find that the more that you are interested in, the more you will become interesting to others.

Back to Basics v.2010

It is (has always been) about the customer

After six years of writing over 60 articles for Today’s Garden Center there is always the chance of repeating a message. In researching this month’s article I went back to the archive to reference an older piece and sure enough there was an introduction that should sound familiar:

It went something like this… “This year’s sales figures got you down in the dumps? Wonder what happened to that jackrabbit start this spring? Wouldn’t it be great if all the months were May and everyday was a weekend? I know - it’s tough to keep the momentum going all year round. As a small business owner you face a wide variety of challenges. If it isn’t the weather then it is probably that ‘box’ store that just opened up in town.”

Well, after the past couple of years you might as well throw in “the economy”.

If that isn’t bad enough many retailers are struggling with their marketing message. With the advent of Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube I have witnessed a trend that concerns me, and that is business owners often confuse the means with the end. Facebook is not a strategy, but rather a means toward affecting a strategy of better customer relations.

In the end it will always come back to improving customer relationships, and that means effective communications. At the risk of repeating myself, marketing is just the process of telling your story. However, these days I might clarify to suggest it is about sharing your story.

So maybe it is about time to get back to some basics –

1) It all begins and ends with your customer base, so the most important thing a business can do is to build an up-to-date customer list. This should include a mailing address, e-mail address, shopping interest, and birthday.
2) Connect with your customers. Your communication should be as direct as is possible. A face to face conversation is best, but realistically it can be accomplished with personal correspondence, e-mail, and direct mail marketing.
3) Your communications should inform, inspire, and provide a meaningful incentive to shop your business. Information positions you as the authority, inspiration builds a more personal relationship, and incentives are the necessary ‘call to action’ for any marketing strategy.
4) Connect your marketing with your merchandising. Let’s see if you remember these oldies but goodies…
a. Rule #1 – WIFS – What’s In Flower Sells – That is what you should promote, and how long you should promote it.
b. Rule #2 – updated – People buy what they see. Consumers buy with their eyes. There is a reason why we continue to sell a boat load of Stella D’Oro daylily, and now Knock-Out Roses. People see them, they buy them; more people see them, and then more people buy them.
c. Rule #3 – With that said people (you and your staff) sell what they like. Make sure rule number 2 and 3 are not in conflict. If your staff is not behind a focused message then it could become confusing to the customer.
5) Once the sale is made it is important to convert that shopper into a customer, and a customer into a loyal customer, and a loyal customer into a ‘fan’ of your business. The only way to do this consistently is use a customer loyalty program.
6) Which brings us back to the start of this process – number 1: create a customer list.

While these basics are timeless, let’s supplement them with some other fundamentals that will help for a solid foundation for marketing your business:

7) Create events, not sales. If you are pushing out sales, then you are in the commodity business. If you offer incentives, then you have shifted ‘sales’ into ‘benefits. These days a business owner needs to realize building relationships with their customers (statistically over 75% of which are women) is a critical part of customer retention; and you can’t grow if you don’t keep your customers.
8) Price competitively. In the wake of such a shattering recession consumers are more value conscious than ever. They are more inclined to research a purchase prior to shopping than they are to respond to the typical advertisement. While it should always be part of your marketing strategy, you should complete a competitive analysis annually. It is important to know who your competition is and what are they doing. If you want a refresher on how to create a competitive analysis study then look up the November TGC 2006 article at the Sunrise Marketing website.
9) Stop advertising and start connecting. No, we don’t mean stop your marketing efforts, but rather connect on a more direct and personal basis. These days it just isn’t enough to continue to push information down the hill. You need to create opportunities to communicate as directly as possible with your customers (see basic point # 2). Keep in mind the best type of communication involves a conversation where you can listen, learn and build a relationship made stronger based on trust. Sounds fuzzy, but it is fundamental.
10) Keep up with the times. This is where tools like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and blogging can enhance your communication. But first you need to shift your mindset to understand that these forms of social media are a ‘means’ towards the ‘end’ of creating a community. If you breach a trust by reverting back to advertising then you stand a good chance of losing any and all good will you may have built up. Consider rather promotions like ‘Ladies Night Out’, or ‘Facebook Fridays’. Keep it fun, keep it creative and unique, and keep it personal.

Now, if I could do something about the weather we would all have this thing licked! While we can’t change the weather, we can change with the times, while we maintain the basics of garden center retail. The successful business will survive economic down turns with patience, persistence and a concentrated focus on their customers.

The $64,000 question - and how you can be the answer.

What are you doing this summer? That's the question all friends ask each other, the conversation all neighbors have. Summer is a time to get together and have some fun.

So as Spring stretches into Summer it is time to think about how you are going to get those people talking about you and your garden center. I suggest that (if you haven't done so already) you create reasons for people to shop your business in June, July & August. I know many of you are probably shaking your heads (or worse), but there are genuine opportunities to grow your business in the summer months. You just need to adjust your thinking.

For example, many retailers have started a business Facebook page. In many cases they have built a page, added some pictures, attracted some followers and stopped. It got busy, they lost interest, or they struggled to find something to say.

Unlike traditional advertising (just run the ad we ran last year), maintaining and building a Facebook presence takes time. But as Facebook continues to evolve it is important to learn how to make the most of it - the fact is, it is not going away. It will definitely evolve and perhaps change directions, but the notion that connecting with your customers in meaningful ways is a fad is just sticking your head in the sand.

So what will it take to succeed at Social Media Marketing? You need to think of your marketing in different terms. Creating a good Facebook strategy means you need to become an active listener. You need to learn more about your customers - (like where are they going this Summer?). To succeed you need to initiate conversations and not just with you and your business. The new marketing manager will be more engaged and realize that they can act as a facilitator for their customers (or, as I like to say, their community). Seth Godin calls it a tribe, but the general idea is to create opportunities for you customers to interact with your business (and each other).

Bear in mind this does not replace fundamental advertising, but rather enhances your existing relationships and looks to facilitate word of mouth. You are definitely interested in your customers, but you are also interested in their friends and what they think. Good word of mouth is just good business. So think of yourself in terms of a leader, a host, advisor, and even a gardening buddy. People who love to garden, love to talk about their gardens, share pictures, and invite their friends over to check it out.

Why can't you and your business become the hub of activity in your community? In the end you want your parking lots full of people who love to garden (and spend money) and are motivated to act as ambassadors for your business.

How to avoid mistakes in social media

A common question these days is how often should I (fill in the blank – Facebook, Twitter, Blog, E-mail?). The short answer is as often as you have something meaningful to say; the long answer is as often as is necessary to execute your marketing strategy. But according to social media guru Jay Baer the key is to realize that Twitter, Facebook, and even E-mail Newsletters are ‘tools strategy’, not a ‘social media strategy’. You shouldn’t treat Facebook the same way you would treat a newspaper ad, or even a radio ad. For one thing a traditional ad is usually broadcast (one direction), while the opportunity with Social Media is that it is interactive (send and receive), so you shouldn’t use Social Media to just ‘broadcast’ as you did with TV, radio, and print ads.

What’s important to realize is that technology tools like Twitter and Facebook will certainly evolve, and perhaps even be replaced by something better (remember MySpace, or AOL?). What they represent however is a bell weather change in marketing. Consumer demand is not just a result of how many ads you run, but it is also influenced by input from friends, neighbors, or perhaps, someone providing a review of your business on Yahoo. For retailers in the habit of advertising ‘quality, selection and value’, today’s consumers feel as though they will judge that for themselves.

I have always said that customers come to independent garden centers for advice and inspiration. They want help to solve a problem, and will generally act on that advice. You say use this product to do this, they will buy that product. As long as you give them good advice, they will probably keep coming back. Over time the quality of the relationship you have with your customers should put you in the position of a trusted friend.

Which is why it is so important to keep tools like Social Media in context; they represent a great way to communicate with your customers. But they also are an opportunity to listen and learn. When you read a blog post there is an option to ‘comment’; when you view a YouTube video you can rate it, and when you are looking to decide what hotel to stay at, you can consult a review. You can also learn from your Facebook page. That is if the environment invites contribution. You can create that culture, that sense of community, when you consider yourself a facilitator. When you ask the right questions you can gain tremendous insight into the problems your customers face, as well as what they are interested in.

So, getting back to my long answer: it shouldn’t be a function of how often you post to ‘Facebook’, but rather how often can you use ‘Facebook’ to build that relationship with your customers. It can also provide an environment where your Facebook fans receive perks or special treatment.

In fact, incentives are a key ingredient in successful e-mail newsletters. Incentives are one of the three key categories of content generation for all of your marketing messages. The two others: Information and Relationship.
Eric Groves, in the Constant Contact Guide to E-Mail Marketing suggests creating content that positions you as the expert. This is especially important when you consider how to leverage the trust you’ve built with your customers into business you can take to the bank. An example might be sending an e-mail providing advice on a local frost warning. He suggests that the content of such a communication would be 20% about you (relationship) and 80% on advice (information). I think this is a good strategy for all of your communications. It should be more about your customers than you.

Relationships, Information, and Incentives

With that in mind let’s consider the content of your communications – and I do believe this can be applied to all of your marketing messages, whether they are online, in print, or broadcast. I would take Eric’s formula and tweak it to more of a 20/60/20 – 20% about your business (relationship); 60% information on tips, advice, new offerings, etc., and finally 20% on incentives. While this is not cast in stone, your message needs to be interesting enough for people to follow it. Generally people are interested in you to the degree that it relates to them. They are receptive to information that matters to them – how does it help them, or inspire them; of course most people like a deal, or incentive.

So let’s look at a campaign that employs this strategy using Social Media. The first order of business is to keep the message focused. It needs to present clearly and succinctly the benefit to the customer. Next the message, or content of your communication, should be presented consistently through all channels of communication.

A good way to organize your thinking as it relates to Social Media is to think of Twitter as a tool to point to, or as a means to direct followers to information. Facebook is a good way to integrate relationship building into the conversation, while your website, blog posts and YouTube videos can communicate the information. This doesn’t necessarily mean you need to be only source of content. Meaningful information can be found from a range of sources. So if you come across a cool YouTube video, share it. Same thing with a blog, or gardening article you found online. Your E-mail Newsletter should serve as a place to collect of the individual bits and pieces of information. If you are organized, and do some research, you’ll realize you don’t have to come up with all of the information, you just need to position yourself as a facilitator for sharing cool stuff. According to Jay Baer you should tweet daily, post to Facebook three to four times a week, blog two to three times a month, upload YouTube videos weekly, and finally send out e-mail newsletters monthly. If you need help, assign tasks to staff. Beyond that consider hiring a firm to help with the heavy lifting with items like video formatting, blog content and e-mail newsletter design and fulfillment.

Finally, make sure you have fun, and that your message reflects this. Be social, be interesting and treat your customers like guests. What better way than to organize get-togethers? When Twitter followers organize a get-together they call it a ‘tweet-up’. Why can’t your business organize events with your Facebook fans? What about something like Facebook Fridays? You could schedule events around a ‘happy hour’ type schedule – 5 pm to 7 pm – and offer refreshments, deals, and schmoozing! Social Media is an opportunity for you to think outside the box. So consider ideas that they will never find at a box store; and did I mention have fun?

A City Named Google

Google announced that is planning to build and test "ultra high-speed" broadband networks in a small number of trial locations around the U.S. This means Google will deliver Internet speeds of 100 times faster than what most Americans have access to now, according to the company. View the introductory video. >

My home town of West Hartford, CT is one of the 1100 applicants for the experimental new fiber network. In a town meeting they explained they were excited about the possibility, but weren't prepared to go all youtube on it.

Just like someone buying a lottery ticket, the town is taking a chance on winning a fortune — an opportunity to partner with Google and gain a fiber-optic network with Internet speed and capacity up to 100 times faster than most people use today.

It's the prize the Internet giant plans to give the handful of cities and towns this spring as test sites for high-speed fiber-optic networks.

For example, the government of Topeka, Kansas, temporarily renamed the city Google; city officials from Omaha, Council Bluffs and Carter Lake shot a YouTube video; and the mayor of Sarasota, Florida, even went swimming with sharks to impress Google.

Speed has always been the ultimate currency when it comes to the Internet. Increased bandwidth will allow for the spread of information like nothing else in the history of mankind. It is truly a revolutionary time. So is the new Google Fiber Network coming to a town near you?

What would you do with all that bandwidth?

decide what you are selling

Meeting with garden centers the past few weeks. It is easy to get distracted and lose a general focus on the fundamentals or marketing. If I were to give one bit of advice: decide who you are, who your target audience is, and what it is that you are selling. It really isn't about quality, selection and value (that is assumed). It is about what the customer wants to buy and if your company is in alignment to deliver that consistently. We think people want to buy plants and dirt; I think people want to be beauty, escape, relaxation, creativity, community and friendship. Now the question becomes how can we change the culture at your garden center...

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Remember your pleases and thank yous

I was wandering around the back of the shop this past week when I picked up a press sheet. Even after 16 years I am still captivated by the printing process. It is a lot of fun to see an idea move from concept to design and finally to press. Sometimes in the midst of a busy spring schedule it is nice to take a breather and look at the work. This week it was a simple thank you card we had printed for a garden center on the Cape. If I were to describe it it might seem ordinary. After all there was just a photo on the front with a soft yellow background with the words Thank You set in
a simple, yet elegant font.

Lately I have been giving quite a bit of thought towards the simple act of saying thanks. I do worry about a generation that has never mastered the gracious art of a heart-felt hand written note to a friend or acquaintance. Although the nation's bandwidth is stretched to the brink with millions of tweets, blogs, and facebook posts, it is often the simple act of a hand-written note that is remarkable.

Remarkable should be more than a word, it should be an aspiration as a small business owner. So as you consider the complications of a web gone wild, remember what your Mother taught you (or should have) - receive a visitor with a gift and remember to say thank you. Your marketing can be as personal as an invitation to friends you just haven't met yet.

Now we have printed other thank you pieces, but in the crush of the stampede to e-marketing I think we all could use a reminder of the power of the personal touch.

When the mission becomes more than just business as usual

I am of the mind that people are drawn to a good story, and I believe that our industry has some of the most compelling stories that have never been told. I have been involved in the 'green' industry for over 25 years now and I am of the mind that the industry is populated with some of the nicest, most interesting, and yet most resistant to self promotion. As I was making the rounds of this past winter's trade shows it just reinforced the point. I had some fun taking some rough video clips of friends I have known in the industry. The subject was organic fertilizer products. I was interested in what people in our industry thought about the subject matter. There was a clear consensus that the subject was important and of course everyone agreed that customers were interested, but felt that the consumer needed to become more 'educated'. And it struck me that organic, or more natural, fertilizer alternatives have always been available in one form or another, but it wasn't that important.

Of course now we know (we do know, don't we?) how important the category is. If we don't then consider a recent post on the ClickZ website. The subject was how marketer's were targeting 'green moms'. You can review the article - click here>. It is now a trend that has gained traction and become more important because it has transcended the typical marketing and tapped into a movement that people care about. It is now part of a larger story. While we might shake our heads as to why people would spend $25 for a tomato plant (but thank goodness they do), I think many might still be missing the larger point.

Business can at times connect on a level that is far more personal and relevant to the greater good. As I was eating my cheerios this a.m. I was really captivated by a segment on the CBS Sunday Morning show. It was about Tom's Shoes. Tom's shoes sells shoes online; but that is just half the story. You see the owner Blake Mycoskie, who was once a contestant on the reality show Amazing Race, donates a pair of shoes to the needy for each pair sold on the website. To date, he has donated over 400,000 pair of shoes. Not your typical entrepreneur. Watch the video to get the whole story >

It is an understatement to say he just sells shoes. He has connected with something far greater than himself and the story is quite touching.

So my thought is... what is your story? Who do you know in our industry who is part of your story? What are you interested in? Why do you do it? Now if it is just to make a living, no problem, but I think there is more. There has to be a reason why we suffer through weather that is either too hot, too cold; too wet, or too dry. I know that is a simplification, but you might be surprised to know that your work is important to people... more than just plants, shovels, mulch and fertilizer. I hope you might be inspired by Tom's story and all those 'green moms' you know.

Just a thought, but also... a great story.

Pepsi

In this new topsy-turvy world of ‘new media’ it is the ultimate irony that the large corporations like Ford, Pepsi, and Wal-Mart have made a seismic shift in marketing by pumping millions of dollars into social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. The big want to appear to be small and personal, while some of the small and personal are stuck in a strategy of trying to appear larger and more upscale. How else do you explain the small garden center pumping money into TV and Radio, when the big boys are dumping their national buys? Pepsi is ending a 23 year run of Super Bowl ads in favor of a digital CRM strategy designed to facilitate two-way communications that will invest millions into local communities.

Could it be the same local communities that you and your garden centers have served faithfully for the past 23 years of Pepsi Super Bowl ads? The strategy shift means Pepsi will inject $20 million into its cause-related Refresh Project that helps people improve their communities through a variety of projects funded by the marketer. PepsiCo recently launched a Web site - RefreshEverything.com. On it, consumers can list projects that can improve communities, such as feeding the hungry or teaching people to read. Consumers can vote on the site on projects they think should receive a share of the money. The CRM campaign asks consumers to suggest ways that Pepsi can get involved in social causes.

The goal is not necessarily confined to collecting e-mail addresses, but as Nicole Bradley, spokesperson for PepsiCo explains “it is to further develop our two-way conversation with consumers. Pepsi has always positioned itself as being about the youth market of America, and young people now are inundated with social media," she says. "They are also increasingly involved in sustainability and the greater good and all of those issues. Pepsi is making a big statement that they want to be about all of those things that their target [audience] is about."

Wait a minute… does that include the same environmental causes and issues that small, independent garden centers have been pushing for the past thirty years – Arbor Day, Earth Day and Organic Gardening?

How can this be? Can PepsiCo, and its subsidiaries such as Fritos, Gatorade and Cheetos, really out-small the small? This is not to suggest that Pepsi is not truly committed to social causes, but Pepsi is a gigantic international corporation. What do they know that you don’t know? Is it possible that they are on to something? After all, connecting with consumers, encouraging feedback and pouring money into causes that are important to their customer base doesn’t happen by accident. They recognize a trend.

A trend that says that a movement has more emotional oomph than the giggle generated by a 30 second Super Bowl ad featuring Britney Spears, talking babies, or chimps dressed up in suits. Social causes are important to people. Global warming, Haitian relief funds, and UpCycling are real issues that connect with real people. The shelf life of a TV spot is generally the length of the TV spot. A cause takes on a life of its own.

So what can you, a small, independently owned local business do? For one thing, you need to fully understand the power and value of the trust built up between you and your customers. You need to embrace any method or means for nurturing that relationship and connecting on a deeper level than just the 30 second “See you in the garden” spot on your local TV or radio station.

I would assume that PepsiCo understands that what goes up on the web, stays up on the web. And it doesn’t just sit there dormant, but rather connects when it is a genuine message that is important to people. This can be a clever YouTube spot with a million downloads, or a movie trailer for a documentary on the slaughter of tens of thousands of bottle nosed dolphins that has been viewed over 340,000 times.

I am not suggesting that you cancel all of your TV spots, but rather consider how you can enhance that spot to make a more personal connection between you and your customers. You can increase the shelf life of that TV spot by posting it on your own site and uploading it to YouTube. Now people do not become ‘fans’ of your business to be bombarded with your typical TV spots, they opt-in because they connect with you. So stop talking at them and start talking with them.

The beauty of new media is the opportunity to listen to what your customers are interested in. Make it clear that your business and your customers are part of the same community that shares common interests. That can be as simple as flower gardens, or a little deeper like reducing the use of chemical pesticides and fertilizers. Perhaps they are interested in starting a vegetable garden for different reasons than you think. The only way to find out is to ask them.

Now this is not going to happen overnight. Even Pepsi understands that a movement takes time to generate a base of believers. It takes time to develop a relationship based on trust, rather than a clever appeal that is superficial at best.
It’s time for you to use whatever means are available to build a base of customers that are more than shoppers. The opportunity is there to connect on a more personal level than you could ever achieve with your best radio spot. Let them know you are interested in what’s important to them. Make the commitment to maintain the conversation, especially during those crazy weeks of spring; that’s when your customers are most interested in who you are and what you sell.

You don’t have time to waste. Going small is going to help your largest competitors eat into the hearts and minds of your best customers. It is time to stop talking at them, and begin talking with them.

Hunters and Farmers

I just returned from the New England Grows trade show in Boston. It was a different show for me because I introduced a new element to the booth. I hired a videographer for two days to shoot business owners. The idea was that they could do a short intro, promote the website, and perhaps tell a little bit more about the story of their business. I spent the first day with retailers and the next day shooting growers and wholesalers. Basically one day was spent on people walking the aisles - we'll call them 'Farmers', and the next day filming the people on the other side of the aisle - we'll call them 'Hunters'. In essence the 'Hunters' attempt to entice the 'Farmers' to buy their stuff. The 'Farmers' will do practically anything and everything to avoid making contact with the 'Hunters'.

The frustration for the 'Hunters' is that the 'Farmers' don't seem interested in buying. The 'Hunters' will commiserate with each other about the quantity and quality of the attendees to the show. They will spend time debating whether this show or that show was really worth it. They get frustrated because they don't have immediate success with the 'Farmers'. Meanwhile the 'Farmers' seemed tired of being 'Sold' something. They would rather spend some time kicking the tires, learning more about things, and mulling over the possibilities. Of course the real confusion comes when you realize that the wholesale growers in their trade show booths are really just 'Farmers'. They just sit there and wait for people to buy things. Imagine the scenario when you have 'Farmers' having to sell to other 'Farmers'.

The problem is that the 'Farmers' need to understand their own customers. After all, they need to make buying decisions based on what their customers - their 'Hunters' are interested in buying. And what happens when the 'Farmers' return to their retail business, or landscaping company and realize they have to become the 'Hunter'?

Now the fact is that nothing is as simple as black and white. Usually most companies have a mix of employees that are either a 'Farmer' (growers) or a 'Hunter' (sales person). Now I didn't come up with this notion of 'Farmers' and 'Hunters', but it sure does explain a lot about the process at these seasonal trade shows...

Click here for Seth Godins blog post on Farmers and Hunters >