Gift Baskets - A few easy marketing ideas

This is a story I hear and see too often. Today, online businesses battle a marketing war not a product war. Having the best gift baskets will not guarantee your success, but sales will. The most common way to more sales is ranking well in search engines via generic listings or pay per click. Search engines marketing has become a must for all online business, while big spending corporations have the advantage over small business, I would still recommend finding a search engine optimisation expert and discussing your options.

Creating word of mouth advertising should be your first marketing strategy, all you need for this is a great product, and without quality product you have nothing. The power of word of mouth advertising should not be underestimated, in our business word of mouth ranks second behind Google as our top sales earner. Once you have established your niche and quality product people will start talking about your business, people love to talk, people like being the first to find a good idea, it is of course human nature.

Here are a few easy and cheap marketing ideas for your Gift basket business

Ask your friends to email their friends a link to your website or to a particular product. For example imagine if your older sister sent an email to all her friends saying "Hey Mother's day is coming up, my sister has some great gifts on her site, go and check them out"

When you receive a testimonial email, always reply with thanks and if they enjoyed your service kindly ask them to pass on your website details to their friends.

If friends and family have websites ask them to place a link from their site to yours.

If you know any shop owners ask to place brochures or flyers of your business on their counter. Try a discount / introduction offer.

Drop off brochures and fridge magnets to all the major businesses in the area. Large business are always looking for new gift ideas for birthdays and promotions, they may need a get well hamper, a baby gift basketor a thank you gift for staff and customers. Gift baskets can be sent for many occasions, the list is virtually endless.

When you next send a gift basket your goal should be to convert the recipient into your next customer, if your product is good enough this should be easy, simply include a discount offer introducing your company and services. The recipient knows that your service and quality is good just by looking at their basket so they already trust your company and should have no problems using you. They just need a little encouragement and the offer should do this.

Include a flyer featuring an upcoming event in your hampers, for example during your Valentine's Day period include a flyer introducing your Easter hampers, for Mother's Day send information on your Father's Day gift baskets. Again the goal here is to convert the recipient into a customer. If every basket you sent translated into a new customer your business would grow at an amazing rate.

You can win the marketing battle, it will take time and a great deal of effort but it doesn't have to cost a lot of money.