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Posted By RCI,
Tuesday, September 2, 2014
Updated: Thursday, April 30, 2020
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Looking for a new idea for your fall product list? How about a Smash Pumpkin?
Smash Pumpkins are simple hollow pumpkin or jack o’lantern moulds that are filled with additional goodies of your choice. Customers get to ‘smash’ the pumpkin open after purchase to see what’s inside.
Package your pumpkins in cellophane with beautiful bows and they become a gift of candies within a gift of chocolate! Be sure to explain on your packaging what this new product is and what’s inside so that customers understand what they’re purchasing. Have fun with it!
P.S. Next week RCI is exhibiting at the Philadelphia Candy Gift & Gourmet Show in Atlantic City. Be sure to stop by booth #512 and say hello if you’ll be there, too!
Tags:
Candy Making
Creativity
Holidays
Moulds
Photos
Seasonal
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Posted By RCI,
Tuesday, July 22, 2014
Updated: Thursday, April 30, 2020
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While we’re all enjoying the fun of summer, the holidays will be upon us before we know it! This means that you should be making a plan now for how you’re going to spread the word that your candy store is THE place to get chocolate and gifts for the holidays. Therefore, this week’s tip is to write a marketing plan.
Typical marketing plans include an analysis of the market and details of the marketing methods. Section headings often include:
- Executive Summary
- Situation Analysis (includes marketing, industry and competitor analysis)
- Target Market
- Marketing Methods with Completion Dates
- Results Evaluation
The great news is that you have time to complete your plan for the 2014 holiday season. View a few samples here and then set aside a few days to focus on preparing your plan. When you complete the plan, it will still be summer so you can keep enjoying the sun and fun knowing you are ready for the holidays!
This week’s tip was part of an article in a past issue of Kettle Talk, RCI’s quarterly newsletter magazine for members. Join RCI to begin receiving Kettle Talk in your mailbox!
Tags:
Holidays
Marketing
Owning a Business
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Posted By RCI,
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
Updated: Thursday, April 30, 2020
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Nutter Butters are a delicious treat all by themselves. This week’s tip is to take this beloved favorite cookie, dip it in chocolate and create seasonally themed products throughout the year. Below are a few ideas but the possibilities are endless. Therefore, let these ideas just be a starting point for your creativity!
Tags:
Candy Making
Creativity
Holidays
Merchandising
Seasonal
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Posted By RCI,
Tuesday, June 17, 2014
Updated: Thursday, April 30, 2020
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Have you heard of a Pinterest party? Based on ideas found on the online idea-sharing board, Pinterest, it’s a chance for “pinners” to get together for a time of crafty fun. They get the chance to bring ideas to life that they’ve found on Pinterest.
Hosting a candy-themed Pinterest party at your store is a great way to get new potential customers in your store and to showcase that your products make great gifts and crafts. You can choose some great pins from Pinterest and then create a space in your store to allow customers to get crafty.
After a quick Pinterest search for candy themed gifts and crafts, we found the following ideas to get you started:
So, how do you host a Pinterest party? There are a variety of ways! You could make it an all-day event; customers can drop in at their leisure to make a fun candy themed craft. Or, make it a more formal event that requires signing up ahead of time. Of course, which way you decide to do that will help determine your craft. A simple craft is better for drop-ins and a more involved craft is better for the latter. Either way, provide a coupon or shopping discount for purchases made in your store by anyone who participates in the party.
Happy Pinning!
P.S. We're in St. Louis this week for the RCI Annual Convention & Industry Expo. Check out photos on our Facebook page throughout the week!
Tags:
Candy Making
Holidays
Marketing
Merchandising
Seasonal
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Posted By RCI,
Tuesday, May 27, 2014
Updated: Thursday, April 30, 2020
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Father’s Day is just a few weeks away (June 15) so this week’s tip is to utilize social media to help your customers honor their fathers – and hopefully they’ll come in to buy your sweets in the process.
Below find a few ideas for some of the most popular social media tools. Take one and use it, or take a combination approach for the social media avenues your customers use most.
Facebook – For the week leading up to the holiday, have followers post their favorite sayings or lessons learned from their dad. Make a daily post and have followers comment in the post with their sayings or lessons. Then, choose your favorite at the end of the week to win a Father’s Day gift basket. You could take a humorous or sentimental approach with this one!
Twitter – Use a custom hashtag to encourage followers to post about their dad. Similar to the Facebook suggestion, you can take a humorous or sentimental approach here. Be sure to promote the hashtag so you can view all participant submissions.
Pinterest – Have a Dad’s Sweet Dream Gifts contest that requires entrants to have a Pinterest board full of their dad’s favorite items from your website or online store. Require the board to include your company name (awareness builder!) and then have entrants submit the URL to their board by emailing you or posting the link on your Facebook page. (Check out this Pinterest contest for an idea of how it to communicate the idea to customers.)
Instagram – Photo contest! Have customers submit photos of themselves with their dads holding their favorite chocolates or candies from your store. Just as with Twitter, encourage a custom hashtag so that you can easily view the submissions.
For each of these items, you could say that if they come to your store before Father’s Day and show their comment, Tweet, etc. on their phone then they receive a free piece of fudge, truffle, etc. As you know, once you get them in your store, they’re likely to purchase your irresistible treats!
Tags:
Holidays
Marketing
Social Media
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Posted By RCI,
Tuesday, May 20, 2014
Updated: Thursday, April 30, 2020
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It is almost June, also known as National Candy Month! This week’s tip is to have some fun with a month-long celebration of all things candy.
Ideas for fun candy month celebrations include:
- Specials and coupons, of course!
- Interactive in-store contests. For example, coloring contests for kids is a great way to get the entire family in your store. Display the submissions in your store throughout the month, letting other customers vote for their favorites. The winning prize could be a fun candy-filled gift basket.
- Limited edition candy. What about getting your staff involved and asking them to create a new product inspired by their own favorite confections that’s only available for the month of June?
- Host a Candy Making Camp where kids can sign up for a day of candy making at your store for a fee.
- Have a new candy contest, encouraging customers to contribute ideas for a new chocolate or candy to be made by your company. They can come up with creative names, or you could even name the winning idea after the winning contributor.
The key here is to have fun celebrating because candy really does make life more sweet – and fun!
Tags:
Candy Holidays
Holidays
Marketing
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Posted By RCI,
Tuesday, March 4, 2014
Updated: Thursday, April 30, 2020
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| Rheo Thompson Candies (Taken at RCI 2012 Fall Regional) |
Wedding season is just a few months away which is what brought this week’s tip to mind. If you offer wedding or party favors, create a space in your store to let customers know!
By having a small display in your store of the types of favors available as well as the unique ways they can be packaged, you can easily showcase your offerings and potentially bring in additional revenue year-round by providing favors at events of all kinds.
You could even take it one step further and providing a pricing sheet. Some RCI members have a ‘menu’ of items that customers can take with them that lists what’s available as well as the prices associated with each item. Be sure to offer customized options as well – you never know what creative idea may spark a new product or offering you could add to your menu!
Tags:
Holidays
Marketing
Merchandising
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Posted By RCI,
Tuesday, February 4, 2014
Updated: Thursday, April 30, 2020
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Conversation hearts have been around for more than 100 years and are still an extremely popular candy around Valentine’s Day. This week’s tip is to make a larger version of this seasonal favorite using Rice Krispy treats.
You can easily do this by taking a sheet of Rice Krispy treats and using a heart-shaped cookie cutter and then dipping the hearts in colored confectionery coating. After the coating has set for a bit, write custom sayings on the hearts using another different color of coating.
Another quick idea – allow shoppers to customize their treat with a personalized saying! Now you have a quick and easy Valentine’s product and your customers will love the chance to get their valentine a custom treat.
Tags:
Candy Making
Colors
Holidays
Seasonal
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Posted By RCI,
Tuesday, January 28, 2014
Updated: Thursday, April 30, 2020
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Here’s a quick and easy tip for you! Looking for an easy way to add color to your chocolates and decorate your moulds? Nonpareils are a great option and a little bit goes a long way!
For example, decorate Easter eggs and bunnies using nonpareils to add Spring colors. Or, since Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, use a mixture of pink and red nonpareils to decorate chocolate lips and hearts. And later in the year, place a bit of melted chocolate on the eyes of a moulded jack-o-lantern after it is set and and then sprinkle with orange and yellow nonpareils for a spooky Halloween glow.
You can get creative and have fun with this tip at each holiday!
Last week RCI was on a Winter Getaway in Barbados, building connections with fellow candy makers and suppliers. Check out photos on the RCI Facebook page!
Tags:
Candy Making
Colors
Holidays
Photos
Seasonal
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Posted By RCI,
Tuesday, December 24, 2013
Updated: Thursday, April 30, 2020
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From home to home, and heart to heart, from one place to another. The warmth and joy of Christmas brings us closer to each other. - Emily Matthews
Today is Christmas Eve!
While we know you are likely still working hard to get your customers home with their favorite sweet treats for their families, today’s tip is to enjoy Christmas with your own loved ones. When you walk out the door of your office or store today, take a deep breath and leave everything else behind you to deal with on December 26 (or whenever you return to work). Focus on being 100% present to enjoy this special season with the ones you love most.
Merry Christmas, sweet friends!
Tags:
Holidays
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