About You and Me
This website is is all about helping YOU start and grow your business to success. That’s why it’s called the Success Express!
You are here to learn and I am here to help. I spent the last 30 years creating and building my own gift business. You can see it at ShopCreativeGifts That wasn't my first business, however. I've published a statewide newspaper and was a multi-million dollar Realtor. So I know a bit about marketing and growing a business.
All too often, new business owners come on strong when they start. They spend lots of time and money telling people all about their new venture. But then they run out of ideas and slow down. They sit by the phone waiting for it to ring, all the while wondering why people have forgotten about them.
Getting people to pay attention to your business takes more than money. Yes, it takes even more than time.
It takes a willingness to think past the obvious and explore the unique and different.
We pride ourselves on being creative with our products.
We must be equally creative with our marketing.
Standing out in a sea of businesses boasting similar offerings can be difficult, which is why entrepreneurs need to strive to differentiate themselves and their products or services from the competition.
If you are in the planning or beginning stages, then begin reading about how to start a gift basket business and then return here for more information, ideas, and tips.
All About Starting and Growing Your Gift Business
But for those of you who already have one, you’ll find lots of creative ideas about the gift basket industry and marketing by reading the following articles.
Ten Money Saving Business Tips!
Whether you’re starting a new business or trying to grow an existing one, you are well aware that money doesn’t grow on trees. Ben Franklin’s adage “A Penny Saved is …
Marketing Your Business – What is Marketing?
Marketing – What is It? When I was a little girl during WWII, my mother, sister, and I lived with my grandparents on their farm in Perdido, Alabama. The main …
Seeing Your Website with Fresh Eyes
The first quarter of the year is a good time to review your website and your total internet marketing program so that you can make any needed changes before the …
Even Squirrels Need A Helping Hand
Everyone needs a helping hand. Whether you’re starting a new business or trying to grow an existing one, a helping hand can make the difference between success and failure. Watch …
The 10 Commandments of Business
With special thanks to Jonathan Fields: Because… Business ain’t just about business, it’s about life!
Your Marketing Calendar for 2012
Have you created the marketing habit? If not, you’re wasting valuable time! Habits are built as a result of repetition. The philosopher Aristotle said many hundreds of years ago that …
More is Sometimes Less
Money Magazine recently reported that a recent study showed that shoppers were more likely to stop for a free sample of jam when they were offered lots of choices. When …
One Step at a Time
“Nothing is particularly hard,” said Henry Ford, “if you divide it into small jobs.” He showed American industry how to make this idea work with the assembly line. A well-known …
Are you selling your soul?
We’ve seen the movies where someone is given the opportunity to sell their soul to the devil in exchange for fame, fortune, or whatever they most want out of life. …
It takes a community
It has been said that it takes a village to grow a child. The same can be said for us. No man (and no business owner) is an island. It …
Surprises in life and business
Yesterday, I woke up to the sun glistening on snow here in Flagstaff. It was a beautiful but unusual mid-May event. This morning, the snow had completely disappeared leaving the …
What Did You Do To Market Yourself Today?
Many of us think of ourselves as Creative, as Designers, as Artistic. And yet we fail to apply these traits to our marketing process. We tend to play it safe–practicing …
Feeling Discouraged?
One of my favorite online gurus, Tiffany Lambert of TiffanyLambert.com, sent out a newsletter today that included a section about looking back and feeling discouraged. I’m going to share part …
Death, Taxes, and Christmas
Robby Meadows, CEO of Nashville Wraps has written a wonderful post on the Nashville Wraps blog about the true spirit of Christmas. It begins: Nearly all my adult live I …
The Biggest Mistake that a Gift Business Can Make
The Biggest Mistake a Gift Business Can Make Everyone in business — regardless of the industry or whether it was 1919 or 2019 — makes mistakes. Someone once said that “The …
Overnight Business Sensation?
Will you be an overnight sensation? We open our business filled with excitement and expectations. We love what we are doing and expect that everyone else will as well. When …
Look at Yourself if You Want Success
Look at Yourself if You Want Success I don’t know if any of you follow Tiffany Lambert or not since she is more about Internet Marketing but her email today …
Yes, You Can!
This quote from Henry Ford is one of my favorites. “Whether you think you CAN, or whether you think you CAN’T — you’re probably right.” I love that …
Networking Field Guide for Introverts
Does the idea of attending a networking event conjure up feelings of anxiety, nervousness, deep inside your stomach? Does your heart start pounding when you walk into a room filled …
The Gift Basket Business — Misconceptions
In some ways, it seems like yesterday. In others, it seems like an eternity. For me, the fall of 1992 was the beginning of a new business, a new lifestyle …
A Time of Business Renewal
There’s a bush by my front door that always takes the initiative and covers itself with bright yellow blooms as soon as we have a few days of spring here …
There’s no way around SEO
You’ve built your website, added a shopping cart and gorgeous pictures, and waited. And waited. And waited some more. Where’s all the traffic. Why haven’t they found you? Regardless of …
Beware – You Can Create A Whole New Person on the Internet
As more people lose jobs or income, more and more scams–or less than honest opportunities– are appearing on the internet. As a professional writer, who personally knows a lot of other …
Creating niches with your gift website
One of the best things that you can do with your website is to develop your content around keywords and phrases that are generic gifts such as “Flagstaff Gift Baskets.” …
Money Can’t Buy Happiness — But It Sure is Nice to Have!
Remember that money doesn’t bring happiness. People with ten million dollars are no happier than those with nine million. Irving R. Levine Irving R. Levine was a financial reporter. …
Shipping Resources
We’ve all been there. You’ve decided to expand your business to the internet which means you’ve got to ship those packages. As the price of gas has climbed over the …
Do you sell based on price?
In today’s economy, price is important. But even more important is value. If all you talk about when marketing your gifts and gift baskets is price (whether on the internet …
It All Goes Back Into The Box
Ken Blanchard, author of “The One Minute Manager and other business books,” told the story about the little boy who really wanted to beat his grandmother at Monopoly. He studied. …
Business Advice From A Great Industrialist
Here is a “One Minute Wisdom” piece of advice from American industrialist Henry Ford. A Market is never saturated with a good product, but it is very quickly saturated with a …
Beware of Credit Card Fraud
This was posted on a bulletin board that I frequent and should be of interest: This one is pretty slick since they provide YOU with all the information, except the …
Country Wisdom For Life and Business
I don’t know who wrote this as there was no credit given when I first read and saved it back in 2004. But it’s a fun list of “One Second …
How to Become Who You Want To Be
Our attachment to who we once were is often the thing that keeps us from who we want to become. Sometimes we have to let go of who we …
Blogging — Keep it Simple for Maximum Results
In our other blogging posts, we talked about why you should blog and some things to consider when starting a blog. These are all important but I suspect you’re reading this …
Blogging without a Blog
You don’t have to have your own blog to be able to use blogging to your advantage and increase the number of incoming links to your website. Most blogs welcome …
The Passion Oil Man
Meet Dave de Costa, also known as Bibs, The Passion Oil Man Dave, better known as Bibs because of the bib overalls that he always wears, is one of us …
Maple Ridge Farms
Dreaming was the impetus for the creation of many of your businesses as well as for many of our suppliers. Of course, the dream is never enough. It takes …