Welcome the arrival of spring by celebrating the sweet traditions of May Day! May 1 has been long recognized by cultures around the world, marking the return of spring and symbolized by bright colors and fresh flowers.

 

3 Sweet Ways to Celebrate May Day

 

May Day Baskets

During the 19th and 20th centuries, May Day baskets were made of paper and filled with flowers, candies and other treats to be hung on the doors of friends, neighbors and loved ones on May first. The tradition was to knock on the door, shout “May basket,” and then run (nationaltoday.com)—while we are still practicing social distancing, we can't think of a better way to connect with loved ones and friends.

May Day is a great opportunity to encourage customers to creatively gift your confections. Below is inspiration to create your own sweet May Day baskets. Click here to download a cute, printable May Day Basket template. The blog, Skip to My Lou, has shared loads of simple ideas for making your own May Day baskets.

Photos:Skip To My Lou,Regina's Candies,Oh Yay Studio

 

 

Candy Bouquets

May Day is often represented by bouquets of fresh flowers, but with a few supplies you could make paper flowers featuring your confections. If you have individually wrapped candies, like foil-wrapped truffles or caramels or taffy wrapped in wax paper, put your own sweet spin on this Candy Bouquet by It’s Always Autumn. All you need is crepe paper (or tissue paper), a hot glue gun and sucker sticks.

ItsAlwaysAutumn.com

Maypole Dance

 

Although the origin of the maypole is unknown, this tradition is thought to date back to medieval times when people would dance around trees with bright ribbons as a way to welcome good crops (nationaltoday.com).

Invite your social media followers to submit fun photos or videos of their home crew doing their own Maypole dances for a chance to win free treats in return for the ensuing smiles and laughs.

 

via GIPHY

 

This age-old tradition of celebrating the new life, nature's bounty and the sweet surprises it can bring may be just what people need to warm their hearts and put a smile on their faces.

 

Crave more? If you like what you read here, look for the "Subscribe now" box on the right to enter your email address and start receiving weekly tips, like this, delivered straight to your email inbox. RCI's Tip of the Week blog is just one of the many resources we offer to help candy makers refine their craft and build upon their business and marketing practices.

Not a member? Click here to learn how RCI can help you build your sweet business.

Tags:  Holidays  Marketing  May Day  Social Media  Spring 

Now that Easter has passed and we look forward to Mother’s Day, we’re sharing a powerful marketing tool from retail experts, Rich Kizer and Georganne Bender of Kizer & Bender. Take time now to make meaningful connections with customers loyal customers now and reap the benefits for years to come.

 

Years from now someone will spend a gazillion dollars to study American life online and wonder who these people were who desperately need to lose weight, perfect their relationships, look younger, make certain body parts larger than life, buy fake designer goods, and grab those PHDs we so richly deserve but have not earned.

 

Sigh.

 

That’s a typical day of email for us. 700 messages: 80% junk that gets deleted ASAP and 20% actual mail.

 

Snail mail isn’t much better. Our mail box is typically brimming with bills, offers from companies we've never heard of, and lots of “You have already been approved” credit card applications. On a good day there’s mail that arrives in a handwritten envelope.

 

Guess what we open first?

 

The telephone isn’t much better. At least ten times a day we answer the phone with a smile only to be greeted by silence and a recorded message that's supposed to encourage us to act immediately. Instead we just hang up the phone.

 

We all have far too much impersonal communication in our lives. Most of us rarely receive handwritten notes or letters so it’s a big deal when we do. Anything handwritten gets opened first – there are studies that back that up. It’s the personal touch that gets our attention.

 

We have shared our Impact 8 technique in our very first Retail Adventures seminar and have continued to share it ever since. Know why? Because it can make you the most visible person in your company or the most talked about store in your community. Impact 8 has elevated some retailers to celebrity status and all in the amount of time it takes to have a cup of coffee each morning.

 

There are two parts to Impact 8. Part I involves a personal telephone call to four customers you spoke to or worked with the day before. This isn’t telemarketing – you are not allowed to talk about business unless the customer brings it up. If you happen to get the customer’s answering machine it’s okay to leave a message – you’ll make their day.

 

Here’s a sample conversation:

 

“Hello Mrs. Customer? This is Your Name at _________________.”

 

After the customer has had a chance to respond, you say:

 

“I enjoyed speaking with you yesterday and I just wanted to take a moment and thank you for your business. I know that you have lots of choices, and I thank you for choosing my store. If there is ever anything, I can do for you, please do not hesitate to call me anytime.”

 

Call four customers per day and watch what happens. But that’s only the first part of Impact 8.

 

To implement Part II, you’re going to need note cards that are blank on the inside. Go for standard greeting card size, not the smaller common “Thank You” card version. You can use fun off the rack cards or create a custom version – it’s up to you. You will also need the names and addresses of four customers you spoke or worked with the day before because these customers are going to get a personal note from you.

 

There are a few rules:

 

1. Each note must be handwritten. Remember, handwritten mail is always the first mail to be opened. It’s easy to try and fake it with a service that imitates real handwriting but trust us, people know the difference.

 

2. You must address the envelope by hand. You’re only doing four a day so this isn't a big deal.

 

3. You must use real stamps. Weird or interesting stamps – The USPS offers lots to choose from, you can check them out here. You might even consider using different denominations to make your envelope really stand out.

 

Your note can say something like this:

 

“Dear Mrs. Customer,

 

I just wanted to take a moment to thank you for your business. I know that you have a lot of stores to choose from and I appreciate your choosing _________________. I have enclosed my business card, if there is ever anything, I can do for you please do not hesitate to call me anytime!”

 

If you implement Impact 8 just four days a week, you will impact 32 customers per week; 128 customers per month; and 1536 customers per year. And if those customers tell just ten others that’s 15,360 people. The word of mouth advertising and good will you will generate is immeasurable.

 

The cool thing about Impact 8 is that it operates under the radar so it’s rarely noticed by your competition – they’re busy looking at your ads and social media posts. All they will notice is less cars in their parking lot and more cars in yours.

 

Copyright Kizer & Bender | All rights reserved.

Rich Kizer and Georganne Bender are consumer anthropologists, keynote speakers, authors, consultants who have helped thousands of businesses in the retail and service industries since 1990. Gain more expert advice on what retailers can be doing right from Kizer & Bender’s Retail Adventures podcast and weekly webinar.

 

Crave more? If you like what you read here, look for the "Subscribe now" box on the right to enter your email address and start receiving weekly tips, like this, delivered straight to your email inbox. RCI's Tip of the Week blog is just one of the many resources we offer to help candy makers refine their craft and build upon their business and marketing practices.

Not a member? Click here to learn how RCI can help you build your sweet business.

Tags:  Customer Service  Loyalty  Marketing 

 

 

 

Despite all the uncertainty that comes with the COVID-19 crisis, we are certain this will pass. We are also certain that things are and will continue to change. But change is normal and change can be good. Take this opportunity to embrace change and your business could change for the better.

Here’s a list of recommendations to help your business survive the weeks ahead and come out of this better than ever. Stay connected with RCI’s community and email us with any questions you need answered or suggestions you’d like to share.

Leadership

 

• Know that this isn’t going to be easy, but you didn’t become an entrepreneur because it was the easy route. Trust your instincts and lean on the support of your RCI community, your local community and your team.
• Take care of yourself. If you don’t take care of yourself, you certainly won’t be able to take care of your business and your team. Be intentional about getting enough sleep, eat healthy, drink plenty of water and move your body a minimum of 20 minutes a day. You got this!
• Stay positive. According to Bob Phibbs, The Retail Doctor, “People are still buying things, and they are buying things for two reasons right now: (1) To get them through their day, so they are shopping for the things they need to make life work for them right now. (2) To help them escape from their day, so they are shopping for pleasures and fun things that will bring them joy and keep them busy,” (retaildoc.com).
• Take this time to educate yourself and your team. Explore online education opportunities to learn more on the topics of business, leadership, candy making and marketing. RCI members can login to view past education presentations.
• Connect with fellow RCI members to ask and answer questions on RCI’s online forum, List Serve.
• Curb thoughts of uncertainty and anxiety during downtime by reading books to help you grow as a business leader. Click here to read RCI’s recommended reading list.
• Get inspired to become a better leader by getting plugged into to some great podcasts.  Learn from expert business leaders, many of which are navigating some of the same challenges right now that you are. Check out RCI’s list of 10business-related podcasts.

COVID-19 Education & Staff

• Go straight to the source for updates on COVID-19 from health and governmental agencies, such as The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and your state and local health agencies. Review the CDC’s Interim Guidance forBusinesses and Employers to plan, prepare and respond to COVID-19.
• Employ strict protocols for preventing exposure in the workplace and reporting symptoms. See below for links to additional resources addressing common questions:
  • https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/downloads/2019-ncov-factsheet.pdf
  • https://www.fda.gov/emergency-preparedness-and-response/mcm-issues/coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19-frequently-asked-questions.
• Do not disclose an employee's name if they have contracted COVID-19. You may have to disclose to other employees that they may have been exposed.
• To prevent stigma and discrimination in the workplace, the CDC recommends using only the guidance provided on its COVID-19 web page to properly determine risk. Do not make determinations of risk based on race or country of origin.

 

Operations

 

• Be aware of temporary guidance put in place by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regarding preventive controls, food supplier verification and onsite audits.
• Get your products in customers’ hands safely. If your retail store is open, this may require that you limit the number of individuals in your store at one time or encourage shoppers to call ahead for curbside pickup or delivery.
• Develop your own delivery program or look into local delivery services to partner with if your team doesn’t have the capability to deliver. See what Doordash, Grubhub and UberEats are doing to support local businesses.
• Keep staff busy tackling tasks that had previously been put off, because everyone was too busy—tasks like organizing inventory, reorganizing the store, cleaning, refreshing the website and creating lots of social media and email content.

Cleaning

 

• Create a new cleaning schedule and update procedures on employee hygiene practices (i.e., handwashing, etc.) as well as cleaning and disinfecting surfaces and equipment. Clickhere for guidance from the CDC.
• The most effective way to clean most equipment is with soap and water. Just scraping or using water alone will not be effective.
• Cleaning equipment with an all-oil-based product (and no sugars to help dissolve the product away) may require several oil flushes before introducing water or chemicals. Without the oil flushes, cleaning chemicals can extract the oil, leaving behind solid masses cemented to the pipes or agitators in equipment.
• Educate yourself on action steps required in the case someone with a suspected or confirmed case of COVID-19 was in your facility, follow these CDCguidelines.

Online Sales

 

• Find new ways to sell your product. Aside from selling product on your website and over the phone, reach new and existing customers where they’re already spending time—on social media. Click here to learn how you can start selling your products on Facebook and Instagram.
• If you don’t already have the capability to sell products on your website, Ecwid is a user-friendly option for creating an online store—with free and paid versions available. Click here for step-by-step instructionsfor setting up an online store for free.
• Learn how to take better advantage of marketing on Pinterest, including how to sell products. Click here to learn more.
• Make it easy for consumers to view your website on their mobile devices. Click here for RCI’s blog post on how tooptimize your website for mobile in three steps.

Marketing & Promotion

 

• Use all forms of communication to let shoppers know you are open and what you are doing to ensure the cleanliness of your facility, staff and products. Where appropriate, share your cleaning protocols and photos of your clean candy kitchen and retail store.
• Don’t stop marketing your business! Create content that appeals to consumers by offering a way to escape the chaos through fun, comfort and joy.
• Think of members in your community who need to know someone is thinking of them. Consider a promotion to support the elderly quarantined in their homes and in nursing homes. Think of ways to thank those on the front lines—the medical workers and first responders, who are working hard to keep our communities safe and healthy.
• Invite shoppers to purchase gift cards from you and other local businesses as a way to support local. Some businesses are offering discounted gift cards to generate cash flow.
• Create eye-catching graphics for your store, website and social media outlets using free and user-friendly tools like Canva or Adobe Spark. Both sites have hundreds of professionally designed templates and layouts, making it easy for non-designers to create impressive, custom designs.
• Share easy recipes for followers to make at home with their kids, featuring your products. Consumers with kids out of school are looking for fun and easy ways to pass time as a family. Check out KidsActivities.net for easy candy recipes for kids using five ingredients or less. Substitute candy ingredients to make recipes your own. Considering bundling ingredients for one recipe and selling it as a “take-and-make kit.”
• Bundle products together by theme to help generate ideas of who your followers can shop for. RCI member, Bon Bon’s Candy House, has had success promoting care packages for “Peanut Butter Lovers,” “Grandpa’s Favorites,” and more.
• Host a Facebook Live event to get face-to-face with your followers even if your retail store is closed. RCI member, Dolle’s Candyland, has regularly scheduled Facebook Live videos to promote Easter items, new products and other merchandise that can be ordered through their virtual shopper service. Click here for tips from The Retail Doctor for using Facebook Live successfully.
• Host a contest on social media. RCI member, Mister Ed’s Elephant Museum and Candy Emporium is encouraging their followers to share positive thoughts for a chance to win their sweet treats. Check out this blog post by Hootsuitefor creative social media contest ideas.
• Encourage customers to host virtual tasting parties. Sell a tasting party bundle of your products and provide content on the tasting experience or lead a virtual tasting on Facebook Live or try Zoom for video conferencing (free and tiered pricing is available).
• Have a branded delivery vehicle? Consider visiting local neighborhoods, musical ice-cream-truck style, to sell your products. Other businesses have asked their social media followers to private message their addresses to be added to the delivery route. Share your route on social media and let people know when to expect you. First, check local regulations to ensure this activity is permitted.
• Educate and entertain social media followers by creating behind-the-scenes videos showing how your businesses makes some of your signature confections.
• Encourage customers to share photos of themselves enjoying your products from home and ask them to tag your business and/or use a creative hashtag.
• Offering curbside pickup is a great way to ensure the health and safety of your staff and customers, while continuing to do business. Perform practice runs to ensure an excellent customer experience. If taking orders by phone, have a checklist of important questions to ask customers—such as, “what color and model of car will you be arriving in?” making it easy to find them. Coach staff to thank every customer for their business over the phone and at pick up.
• Include handwritten notes along with all pickup and delivery orders, personally thanking customers for supporting your business.
• Update your store hours on your website, social media pages and all other third-party sites, such as your Google listing.
• If your retail store is closed or partially closed, start planning and preparing for a grand re-opening now. Be open with your staff about your plans and seek their input.

Closing thoughts

Doing business during times of uncertainty is going to be hard, but you are not alone. If business has slowed down for you (and it probably has—unless, of course, your business involves toilet paper or hand sanitizer), take advantage of the down time to learn, try new things and cross items off your list.

If you ran a successful business prior to this crisis, chances are you have a community of people who will be happy to support your business now. Now, more than ever, consumers are looking for ways to support local businesses. Find new ways to engage with consumers and remember that your sweet treats offer people comfort and hope, and help express gratitude, kindness and love to each other.

As you navigate these unprecedented times, we hope this offers you ways to challenge yourself and your business to grow and learn—so you and your business can come out of this better than ever.

Crave more? If you like what you read here, look for the "Subscribe now" box on the right to enter your email address and start receiving weekly tips, like this, delivered straight to your email inbox. RCI's Tip of the Week blog is just one of the many resources we offer to help candy makers refine their craft and build upon their business and marketing practices.

Not a member? Click here to learn how RCI can help you build your sweet business.

Tags:  Cleaning  COVID-19  E-Commerce  Education  Leadership  Marketing  online shopping  Operations  Promotion  Resources  Social Media 

 

Customers are essential to any business. Finding ways to make them feel valued is key to creating return customers and champions for your business. Below we’ve shared five easy and inexpensive customer appreciation ideas to show your customers some love today.

 

Choose a Customer of the Day

Use the element of surprise to delight your customers. Use your POS system or an old-school tally counter to identify your 10^th customer and surprise them with one of your signature products for free or a discount on their purchase. Post a photo of the lucky winner on social media to drive in-store traffic. Let customers know they’re just as appreciated during busy holidays as they are on a random Tuesday.

Think of the kids

Being part of an industry that relies heavily on gifting holidays, consider ways to cater to shoppers with kids. By simply creating a space for kids to color and enjoy a snack, parents will be able to shop more privately for Christmas/Valentine’s Day/Easter gifts in peace. Share photos of the space on social media with details on what parents can expect and watch as grateful parents thank you with their business.

 

Bon Bon's Candy Housecreated this space for kids to color and enjoy snacks while grateful parents shopped for their Easter gifts in peace.

Send a handwritten thank you card

It may be old school, but a thoughtful handwritten note is one of the easiest and inexpensive ways to show you care. If you have access to your customers’ mailing addresses through a loyalty program or corporate accounts, consider making it a habit each week to mail a few handwritten notes to your customers. Try to make it personal or include a coupon to use on their next visit. You may be surprised how much of an impact this simple act of kindness will make.

 

Train your team to call customers by their first name

Calling customers by their first name makes their shopping experience personal. Train your staff to look for customers’ first names on their credit card and, then, call customers by name when thanking them for their purchase. Over time, staff are more likely to remember repeat customers and will be able to recall their names without even looking.

 

Say “thanks” with a video

A study by TD Banks revealed, more than 80% of customers like getting thanked in person. Since this isn’t always possible, a thank-you video from you may be the next best (and certainly memorable) option. If you request data, like customer birthdays, consider creating an email template with a video or GIF (create your own GIFs with the app, Giphy Cam) of you wishing customers a happy birthday and send it to a group of customers who all share the same birthday month. Even though it’s a template, the message will feel more personal and special with a video coming from you.

Bufferis a social media management business that used this fun GIF to thank customers for their business.

You don't have to wait for Customer Appreciation Day on April 18 to celebrate your customers. That's why we've shared ideas easy enough to start incorporating into your business today or any day. How do you show your customers you care? Share in the comments below.

Crave more? If you like what you read here, look for the "Subscribe now" box on the right to enter your email address and start receiving weekly tips, like this, delivered straight to your email inbox. RCI's Tip of the Week blog is just one of the many resources we offer to help candy makers refine their craft and build upon their business and marketing practices.
Not a member? Click here to learn how RCI can help you build your sweet business.

Tags:  Customer Appreciation  email marketing  Holidays  Marketing 

Does your New Year’s resolution include improving your brand’s social media presence? If not, maybe it should. Did you know that 78% of consumers’ purchases are impacted by companies’ social media posts, according to a study conducted by customer intelligence company, Market Force.

 

A great first step towards improvement is to rate your social media presence as a consumer, right now.

 

Wait. Before you start tallying the number of followers on your Facebook page, I’m not referring to your numbers. I’m referring more to the aesthetics and the content provided on your social pages. Sure, these things are important to assess the overall performance of your social media efforts, but for now, just focus on the overall look and feel of your social media pages.

 

For example, how do your posts and product photos look? Are they visually appealing? Bright and colorful? Do they make you want to buy what you see? Are your followers engaged (liking or sharing your posts)? Are comments being replied to within 24-48 hours? How often are you posting? If you’re on Facebook or Instagram, you should make it a goal to post at least once a day. Do your posts always include images or videos? Did you know your posts will see more than two times more engagement if images or videos are included? Do your posts only include sales or do you offer inspiration for celebrating various holidays (from Valentine’s Day to National Potato Chip Day)? Beware: If you’re only posting when your products are on sale, you will attract followers who do not want to pay full price or are conditioned to expect reduced prices. Instead, focus on other areas of your business that make you stand out…like the fact that you make your own confections! “Behind the scenes” photos and video from the candy kitchen are as good as gold.

While assessing your social media page(s), the goal is to be as neutral as possible. If this difficult for you, ask a trusted friend, staff or family member who matches your ideal target market and will give you honest and constructive feedback. Note: If teenagers aren’t your target market, don’t ask your 16-year-old niece/neighbor/employee for feedback.

 

Next, focus on your company information. Imagine you’re a consumer interested in purchasing your products. What could a consumer learn about your business from your social media page? Are your physical and web addresses present? Are your store hours listed and up-to-date? How can they contact you? Is a phone number and email address listed? Next, your social media pages are, yet, another opportunity to tell your story. Make sure there is at least a short blurb about your company story, which may include when and how your business was started, what makes your products special? Do you hand-dip your chocolates or use state-of-the-art machinery? Do you like to experiment with unique flavors or use centuries-old, family recipes?

 

Once the questions above have been answered, assess what your business is doing well and what areas could be improved. This will help you determine your next steps. If done well, managing your social media page(s) will require an investment of time—especially if you post one day at a time. Improve efficiency by creating and scheduling social media in batches—such as a week or month at a time.

 

Careful consideration of the details reviewed in this week’s post will help you to improve your social media presence and create a strong brand for your business in the coming year! Let us know in the comments below if you assess your social media presence on a regular basis and what tactics you have found successful.

 

Crave more? If you like what you read here, look for the "Subscribe now" box on the right to enter your email address and start receiving weekly tips, like this, delivered straight to your email inbox. RCI's Tip of the Week blog is just one of the many resources we offer to help candy makers refine their craft and build upon their business and marketing practices.

Not a member? Click here to learn how RCI can help you build your sweet business.

Tags:  Marketing  Social Media