The How-Tos Of Marketing Your Gift Basket Business

 

Dear Latarsha And Fellow Entrepreneurs,

 

I have been in the gift basket business for approximately five years. I am an entrepreneur at heart, and I am always looking for ways to create a product and sell it.

• In addition to the gift basket business, I own a greeting card business, and I also have published several novels.
   
• The gift basket business was created to enhance the greeting card business.

 

Gift Basket Business Marketing = The Gift Basket 'Niching'

 

Starting a gift basket business requires an eye for finding a way to be innovative in your approach to make one-of-a-kind gift sensations for your customer base.

My gift baskets are geared toward the holidays - in my gift baskets you will find a unique greeting card.  For all who are currently considering starting a gift basket business, then I have one main piece of advice for you and it's - find a way to niche yourself to success.

 

Finding Inspiration With The Seasons - Advice To Make The Business Of Marketing Your Gift Basket A Breeze

 

I started the business during the Valentine’s Day season.  I went out and purchased different products with a Valentine’s Day theme.

For example, champagne glasses, candy, teddy bears, red undergarment, etc.   If you are looking for a little inspiration, then follow what retailers are doing for the season, and find some type of way to tie your gift basket into the sentiments of the season.

 

You Can Also Find Marketing Ideas For Your Gift Basket Business By Marketing Your Gift Basket To Other Business Owners

 

At the beginning of my gift basket business, I was fortunate - my brother owned an upscale women’s shoe store.  So I approached him and asked him if I could use his upscale women's show store to test my gift baskets.

• There, I met many of my first customers.
   
• Most of my initial customers were the women who shopped at his store - and still are.

 

Seasonality Has Really Been A Great Niche For Me, But I Put My Own Spin In It By Offer My Speciality-Made Poems/Cards

 

• Because my products are based on the holiday theme, what I offer in the baskets is solely based on the season.
   
• I may alternate what I stuff the baskets with - however, it is always holiday theme based.

 

Also, Seek Out Ways To Build Baskets That Inspire You And Make You Excited To Build Them

 

When starting a gift basket business, make sure you take on projects that inspire you because inspiration will help you create THAT line of baskets that will definitely distinguish you from the competition.

In my gift basket business, a lot of my inspiration comes from the greetings that write. I get really excited when I can build a themed basket that aligns itself perfectly with one of my greetings.
 

• For instance, if I write a poem pertaining to love and marriage, I might fill the gift basket with a wedding ring, champagne glasses, and other products pertaining to weddings.

 

My Advice To You Is To Start Your Gift Basket Business By Marketing Items That Make Your Business Uniquely Yours

 

Since my goals was to incorporate my greeting card business with the gift basket business, there is always a little poem or saying inside the gift basket that relates to the contents of the basket or the theme of the season.

 

When Starting Your Own Gift Basket Business, I Also Advise You To Continually Find Ways To Keep Your Offerings Fresh, But Re-Use What You Can When You Can

 

Starting a gift basket business also requires that you have a willingness to make lemons out of lemonade. If I have a line of product that does not sell, I usually keep the basket for the following year and re-market the product.

• If there is food inside (i.e., chocolate), I will replace the chocolate.
   
• The last thing a vendor wants to do is to have a customer bite into stale chocolate.

 

When You Start Your Business, Marketing Your Gift Basket Proactively Helps To Keep Your Business Going

 

Starting a gift basket business also requires that you fight through the competition and think strategically.  Before I started the gift basket business, I assumed that the baskets would fly off the shelves.

What I quickly realized is that marketing the product would take more time and effort than it took to actually create the product.  I also came to grips with the fact that there is a lot of competition out there, and it is important to know the target market and be willing to put some money into marketing.

 

Marketing Your Gift Basket Business, The Bottom-Line

 

Starting a gift basket business requires that you find a way to give your customer the biggest bang for their buck.

The biggest key to marketing, pricing, and promoting your gift basket business lies in your ability to create breath-taking one-of-a-kind gift baskets for a targeted audience - at a price that

1. Your customers can afford
    
2. Allows you to make a profit

 

Never forget that what works for one customer may not work for the next.

 

So, make sure you are marketing a product to each customer that will make that particular customer feel as if that particular gift basket was made just for them.

 

Also, I Always Seek Out The Opinions Of Others When I Am Trying To Make My Gift Baskets To Sell.

 

Whenever I make anything that I plan to sell, I try to get family and friends to buy the product and hopefully, have them share it with others that they know.

• Sometimes, however, family and friends are not as critical about your product and may give you a false sense of how marketable your product really is.

 

Here's To Starting A Gift Basket Business That Will Bring Your Competition To It's Knees!