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Planning for holiday success
Get organized now to profit later |
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Written by Bernice Klassen
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Aug. 12, 2011 - Last year's holiday season was a tough market for many flower shops. Making the most of the time and money dedicated to such an event requires thorough planning. We need to get our business back from the mass markets. To do this we need to be better and different then them, and be well-executed in our planning. By the end of the summer everything should be planned. Last minute always looks that way!
Finding avenues to promote the personality of your shop will set you apart from other shops. Here’s how you can kick off the 2011 holiday season with a plan:
Go with a theme
My number one suggestion for any shop to build excitement during the holiday season is to pick a theme. Your theme will show off your design style. It can be whimsical (still huge this year) or very elegant and stylish. And no, red and green is NOT a Christmas theme! Be creative and think past the traditional – spice up with red and lime green instead. I like using one basic theme and then mini themes blocked throughout the store.
Your main theme should be included in all advertising, main window displays, featured designs, and throughout your large store displays. Let’s use the lime green and red as an example. How better to attract attention to your shop with a bright, vibrant colouring in your front window. Whether you go with simplicity or way over the top, it screams “come in a check us out!” Next, your main in-store display could be a Christmas tree or just a series of nicely stacked tables. Bringing the display into the centre of the store draws your customer further into your shop, which means more of a commitment to a purchase. Doing complementary vignettes around it helps to spread the colour around the shop. You could easily lead your customer to a turquoise and lime green display, then to a turquoise and chocolate area, and onto a chocolate and gold theme. Putting your ideas on a floor plan helps to understand the flow and allows your staff to comprehend your vision. It will help when you need them to work the displays. Be sure as the season progresses you add fresh greens with those colours into your vignettes. Not only will they be suggestions for orders, but the scent will enhance the total experience.
Using the same idea on your letterhead, advertising and signage, in this case lime green and red, brings that eclectic mix and continuity to your shop. Don’t forget your website and your Facebook page. Even your packaging should reflect your look. Many shops forget that packaging is the first thing customers see when they order or receive flowers. The packaging also works to help advertise a flower shop.
Knowing your themes ahead of time focuses your purchasing. Purchasing something ”because I love it” then requires justification that it will fit into your theme. I know we come from creative genes, but “I’ll make it work” doesn’t always fly! Now, all this planning and work is worth nothing of no one sees it.
Promote your offerings
Having a special open house for your loyal customers not only makes them feel special and gets you sales right then, but nine times out of 10, your customers will tell someone they know – free advertising! Once again you are promoting yourself and your shop personality. This doesn’t need to be fancy. Don’t forget the focus to sell. The event can be as simple as a non-alcoholic punch and cookies or as fancy as wine and cheese with entertainment. Perhaps you have “help” that would love to show off some of their Christmas baking!
Send invitations at least two to three weeks in advance because during the holidays, people’s calendars begin to book up. Create a sense of urgency to purchase by inserting a coupon or special promotion to purchase. Some shops choose a full Sunday, where they are closed to the public while others opt for an evening. Hiding displays until “reveal” day promotes anticipation. Opening it to the public as an advertised open house through signage on your door or promotions on your Facebook page, website and even local radio/TV announcements can double the impact. By partnering with a charity, you may get this announcement for free.
Making the experience special includes music and scents. Many years ago, before potpourri was invented, I used a mixture of pickling spices, apple juice and cinnamon sticks, in a pot on a hot plate in my back room. The scent was amazing and customers actually asked the following year if I was going to have that scent in my shop again for Christmas. I also sold out of all my artificial pieces on my client night and had to begin creating all over again the next day!
Music has always been one of my bones of contention in a shop. I did a final for a course using the effects of music in the work place. There is such a thing as “shopable” music. AC/DC, much as I love some of their songs, does not fall into that category! Music should be non-obtrusive and should encourage people to browse, not flee! Everything points to a great shopping experience.
Teach customers about your product
Have exciting workshops selling product can be just as profitable as selling the end designs. Create afternoon, evening, weekend and children’s workshops. I can already hear some of you say “I’m not going to teach someone else how to design… they won’t need me anymore.” I have found that once you give a class on design, there is a much higher level of appreciation for what it is we do and these people are willing to spend more on a design because they understand what it takes to make it. Christmas in particular is a season where people love to have homemade items and keepsakes for the next generation. Depending on your location, you can charge for the course or just for the materials, though they would need to be all products purchased within your store. Find interesting ways to entice customers – here’s a few examples:
-Coffee, cake and Christmas – Bring in your coffee gang and let’s create!
-Finding your own festivities with fresh wreaths designed by you
-Create a memory with our Mother and daughter Christmas event
Spread the word about these events using your web page, Facebook page and e-mail list and by also supporting local businesses. Create a special spot in your store designated to the class by laying out the tools and showing a variety of products to choose from. Put sign-up sheets beside your cash register. By using a sign-up method, it makes customers understand this is a commitment of your time and they need to make a commitment in return. If you don’t have room in your shop, host these classes inside the local museum, library, or even right in the centre of the mall!
Make your decisions now
Decide in August what changes you’ll make to your shop for Christmas and if you’d like to host workshops or an open house event. Set a date, make a list of what the event will look like and what it will entail and outline you need to make it happen. Designate staff to help so they become involved and help promote the event. Keep a running list and check off tasks that have been completed as you go along. If you have space, designate an area for your stock so it is priced, organized and ready to be put on the floor
Entice your customers with a teaser like “keep an eye out from an upcoming announcement on our Christmas open house.” One shop I visited was doing window displays and covered their windows with paper and a sign that said look for our new display coming soon! Everything was hidden, but you knew they were working on a great display behind the paper. You could hardly wait to see what creative display was coming!
Success doesn’t just happen. It takes planning. You are in the business of selling so sell your shop with activities and events that showcase how wonderful you really are. The after effects last all year. The bride that can’t decide who to book flowers might choose you once she sees how creative your displays are. You never know how your extra work affects your bottom line until you make the effort.
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