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Posted By RCI,
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Updated: Monday, May 4, 2020
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Has one of your Facebook strategies for your business been to grow sales? If so, we hope these tips help you meet that goal!
- Share Specials That Are Just for Facebook Fans
For holidays or even just fun days, post specials with fun keywords that fans can redeem in your store. For example, for Talk Like a Pirate Day on September 19, promote sales by creating a special they’ll receive in store if they use the words “Arrrrgh” or “Ahoy” in a sentence. Then, only promote this special on Facebook to draw your fans into your store. Be sure to specify any limits, etc. associated with the special.
- Encourage Sharing
How many Facebook likes do you have? If you’re aiming for a certain goal number, let your fans know and encourage them to invite their friends to like your Facebook page. You could even provide a coupon prize for the xxth like along with the person who invited them to like your page. By increasing your likes you will be expanding your reach and with the coupon you will be drawing them into your store.
- Use Pictures to Entice Appetite (and Sales)
As chocolate and candy makers, you have a great opportunity to entice appetites for your treats by using images. Research has confirmed that food images can stimulate the “crave” part of the brain which could entice them to visit your store (in person or online) to purchase your products. Take advantage of this by posting beautiful pictures of your products to remind your fans why they should visit your store. Pay attention to the quality of your photos before posting them – if you don’t think they look beautiful and enticing, your potential customers probably won’t think so either and won’t be encouraged to pay your store a visit. If you need high quality photos, consider asking your suppliers if they have product photos you can use to promote sales in your store.
If you have more tips to increase sales, please share them with our blog community and post them below!
Tags:
Marketing
Merchandising
Owning a Business
Social Media
Technology
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Posted By RCI,
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Updated: Monday, May 4, 2020
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Research has shown that customers typically subscribe to business emails for coupons and specials. While those are great things to provide to recipients of your emails, Constant Contact, an email marketing service, shared at our Spring Regional Institute this past April that your emails should actually contain 80% content and 20% promotions to be the most effective.
If your customers believe that every email they open from you will contain a bunch of promotional material, they’ll likely just delete the email without even opening it, especially if they know they won’t be purchasing your products at this time. However, if you are consistently providing valuable content within your emails, they are more likely to open your email and read it. What good does that do you, you ask? As they become regular readers of your emails, when they decide to go buy candy and chocolates, guess who they’ll think of first?
So, how does a candy store provide valuable content? Here are a few ideas to get you started:
- 10 ways to save money this week (one of the ten tips could be a special you have in your store)
- How to make your dad (or mom or grandparent) feel special
- 5 things to cover in chocolate for your next holiday party
You work so hard to get your emails opened, so be sure you work just as hard at the content within your emails so they keep opening them and get inspired to visit your store!
RCI Members: Did you know you receive a discount on email marketing through Constant Contact as a benefit of membership? Visit the ‘Member Resources’ tab on the member side of the RCIwebsite for more info.
Tags:
Marketing
Merchandising
Owning a Business
Social Media
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Posted By RCI,
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Updated: Monday, May 4, 2020
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It is officially summer now and many chocolate and candy stores choose not to ship their products in warm weather. Whether it’s because the cost of shipping in heat is prohibitive for their customers or because they don’t want to risk their products melting in transit, it’s completely understandable. However, we also know that many stores continue to ship in warm weather. If you are considering shipping your product, here are a few tips we’ve learned from our members that may help protect the quality of your products:
- Choose a packing box large enough to surround the product with ice packs and bubble wrap.
- Consider using styrofoam insulated boxes.
- Place the ice packs at the bottom of the box, not on top.
- If you aren’t using non-sweating ice packs, wrap the ice packs in newspaper to absorb the moisture.
- Wrap the product package in bubble wrap to protect it.
Do you have additional tips and tricks for shipping in warm weather? Please leave a comment to share below.
Tags:
Customer Service
Merchandising
Organizing
Packaging
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Posted By RCI,
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Updated: Monday, May 4, 2020
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In honor of our 92nd Annual Convention & Industry Expo that is happening this week, we’d like to share a tip that was originally shared with attendees at last year’s Annual Convention in an education session about marketing.
Are you paying attention to Yelp.com? Do you even know what it is? Yelp.com is a user review and local search website. From their website FAQ’s: “Yelp is the fun and easy way to find, review and talk about what's great — and not so great — in your world.” What does this mean for your business? When customers enjoy or don’t enjoy your products and/or services, they are using yelp.com to share it with the world. Not only do they give a rating but they also write detailed reviews, covering both the good and the bad. And guess what? When a potential customer is considering visiting your store, there is a pretty high chance they are visiting the Yelp website first to see what other people are saying about it.
So what do you do about all of this? We have a few points on how to use this review site to your advantage:
- Jump In -You don’t need to create a listing for your company on this site because as a local business you are probably already on it. To find out, just visit the homepage and type in your business name.
- Read – Once you’ve found your business’s listing, take some time to read the reviews. You’ll find that many of the comments are very candid so don’t be surprised. Be sure to read a variety of reviews, not just all of the good or all of the potential bad reviews.
- Embrace and Consider – The purpose of reading the reviews is not to get puffed up or fired up but to find out what your customers enjoy most about their experience with your business and if there are any parts of the experience that could use improvement. If you encounter negative reviews, don’t overlook them. Take a moment to consider if there is any truth to what has been shared. You may find that there is a place for improvement.
- Respond – Yelp has created a way for business to publicly comment on a review. Take a moment to thank customers for their feedback and address concerns. Everyone likes to be heard. J Because your comment will be public, potential customers who are reading reviews will likely be impressed that you’ve taken the time to respond.
- Repeat – Don’t make your first visit to Yelp be your last. Be sure to check in on a regular basis (i.e. monthly) so that you are continually aware of your customers’ experiences in your store.
Now what are you waiting for? Go find out what people are saying about your company. We hope you find good things and take any not-so-good things into consideration to make your business even better.
Tags:
Marketing
Merchandising
Technology
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Posted By RCI,
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
Updated: Monday, May 4, 2020
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Did you know that this Thursday, June 7 is National Chocolate Ice Cream Day? This is just one example of the many candy-related holidays celebrated across the globe throughout the year. From Chocolate-Covered Raisin Day (March 24) to Toasted Marshmallow Day (August 30) to Bittersweet Chocolate with Almonds Day (November 7), the chocolate and candy industry is not lacking for holidays. This week’s tip is to encourage you to embrace these holidays to drive traffic and sales in your stores. One idea may be to run a special on the particular product being celebrated. For example, for National Taffy Day (May 23), maybe you run a buy a ½ lb of taffy and get ¼ lb free special. Or, you could advertise free taffy samples all day or until a certain time on May 23. However you decide to celebrate, don’t forget to use your social media channels such as Facebook and Twitter to spread the word! If they don’t know about your celebration, they can’t join you for it.
So, how do you find the numerous candy holidays? By just doing a quick internet search for candy holidays, you can find quite a few different websites and lists. Members of Retail Confectioners International (RCI) receive a graphic wall calendar each year that helps them plan the year and keep track of the variety of candy holidays to be celebrated. Not an RCI member? Learn why membership might be a good fit for you here.
Now, go put together a celebration for this Thursday’s Chocolate Ice Cream Day! Do you have a creative idea for celebrating candy holidays? Please share it here by leaving a comment below.
P.S. Expect the RCI Tip of the Week Blog to be invaded next week as our Annual Convention & Industry Expo begins! Watch for videos, pictures and highlights of the week! Plus, be sure to check out our Facebook page for even more photos.
Tags:
Holidays
Merchandising
Photos
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Posted By RCI,
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
Updated: Monday, May 4, 2020
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Summertime is just around the corner so we have rounded up some fun product ideas for you to incorporate in your candy store this year.
- Chocolate Flip-flops – Use colored chocolate to draw flip-flop straps on Nutter Butter cookies covered in chocolate and package with cello bags and colorful bows.
- Summertime-themed moulds – Take advantage of the hundreds of chocolate mould options available to candy makers. Incorporate items unique to your area that tourists may enjoy such as palm trees for a tropical area.
- Incorporate Seasonal Foods – Fruits and vegetables are great in the summertime. Pay a visit to your local farmer’s market to see what seasonal ingredients you can incorporate into your products.
- Seasonal Flavors – Use flavors that invoke the memories, images and feel of summer. For example, coconut flavors nearly always bring images of the beach to mind so you could create a coconut-themed item and even have fun with the merchandising to have a beach theme.
If you have more ideas, please share them with each other by leaving a comment. If you are you looking for a supplier of seasonal items, RCI members can use the RCI Buyer's Guide to find supplier members who provide just what you need!
Tags:
Annual Convention
Candy Making
Marketing
Merchandising
Packaging
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Posted By RCI,
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Updated: Monday, May 4, 2020
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With Cinco de Mayo just around the corner, get prepared to add some spice to your confections. You can add spice to nearly anything – from truffles to bark to peanut brittle. Have fun with it!
Some ideas for adding a hint of spice: red paper flakes, cinnamon, melted cinnamon red hots, ground chili powder or you can buy chili pepper flavor oils. Take a day and experiment in the kitchen to see what flavors blend best with your products. Don’t forget about the all-important taste test – get a number of people to test your creations before putting them up for sale.
Don’t forget to top off your creations with red paper flakes for added presentation! (And so that no one picks it up and gets a big surprise in their mouth)!
Tags:
Candy Making
Marketing
Merchandising
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Posted By RCI,
Monday, March 19, 2012
Updated: Monday, May 4, 2020
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We’re so excited this week is American Chocolate Week! If you have a store in the U.S., or if you have American customers, here are a few fun ways to help your customers celebrate this sweet week:
- Create a new chocolate-themed secret password each day that customers can only find via your social media; if they use the secret password while visiting your store, they could get a prize plus a coupon towards a future purchase. (Tip: The coupon encourages them to come back again.)
- Encourage your customers to share the joy of American Chocolate Week with someone else by having a “Buy One, Get One” deal. For example, “Buy One, Get One Free” or “Buy One, Get One Half Off.”
- See it as an opportunity to educate your customers and have a fun chocolate trivia question each day in store or on your Facebook page. Anyone who posts the correct answer could be put into a drawing for a free pound of chocolates.
- Utilize your relationships with the media (you have those, right?) and pitch an American Chocolate Week story, based on your store, of course. This could definitely create exposure and enrich your customer base.
Tags:
Marketing
Merchandising
Social Media
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