Looking for door-spinning ideas to spice up summer sales? You’ll want to check out these great ideas from scrapbook and craft retailers who have personally – and successfully – used them in their own stores. If you’re not a craft retailer, take heart: many can be tweaked for whatever you sell!1. “Wild & Wacky Wednesdays”: This event is geared to help you boost sales and foot traffic on slow sales days. In the contributing retailer’s case, Wednesday fit the bill. She began by sending e-mail blasts inviting customers to join her on “Wild Wacky Wednesday”. Customers enjoy a quick makit & takit project and a tasty snack (You know our motto: Food is Good!) Customers now look forward to shopping on Wednesday and sales have increased. This retailer chooses her Makit & Takits wisely, knowing a free 6x6” layout project will lead to the purchase of a 6x6” album to showcase the project.
2. “Monthly Scrapper’s Challenge”: Create your own scrapbooking kits from a collection of slow-moving product. Participants pay $3 for the kit and must create a project using some of everything in the kit. Display the projects throughout the store for a two week periods, with the winner selected by popular vote. The winner receives a prize along with the honor that comes from designing a cool new project. Make this a quarterly event.
3. Zero in on Home School Moms: Why not offer a special class or crop for kids who are home schooled? Home schooled kids need interaction with other children their own age even in the summer, so host this event once a month for children ages 6 and up. And, as this contributing retailer smartly pointed out, once you get a child’s attention, you get Mom and Dad’s as well – that attention leads to sales!
4. Implement a “Create-a-Card Care Packages” program to send to our service men and women who are stationed overseas. You can purchase pre-cut card kits or create your own. One retailer packages two kits together with a glue stick and a pen. The kits sell for $4 if the customer buys the kit and donates it to be sent in a care package; $5 if the customer wants to keep the kit for his/her own use
5. “Pamper Yourself” Crop”: This event is only limited by your imagination. Some croppers have enjoyed catered dinners (you chose the menu, they select and pay for their meal); the high school varsity football team moonlighting as valet parking attendants, free pedicures and massages, makeovers and more. Every once in awhile, announce a limited time discount on a particular product or category. Make it an evening of fun, festivities and plenty of shopping!
6. “Shop Hop”: Get together with other area retailers and host a Shop Hop. Encourage each participating retailer to add a little extra excitement to their usual shopping experience with Makit & Takits, product demos, give-a-ways, and contests. Run your Shop Hop from Wednesday through Sunday and let your customers enjoy the camaraderie of other shoppers on the “hop”. The retailer who shared this idea said that the participating store owners enjoyed FOUR times their usual sales and attracted many new customers!
7. Host a “Mothers’ Day Out” Program two Fridays each month, from 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM. The first half hour of the program is a class, the second half hour is a crop. Participants also enjoy a 10% discount on all items purchased that day.
8. Teen Crop Night: Get teens together for a night of scrapbooking that features layouts on things teens enjoy. Ask participants teens to lead demos or Makit & Takits, or go even further and ask a teenager lead the entire class. Order plenty of pizza and soda. Let the participants bring their own music to play during class and turn up the volume to eleven!
Stop back tomorrow for eight more retailer-tested door-spinning promotional ideas!
