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.
Business is a Game
Being an entrepreneur is no fun by yourself. Get out your Monopoly game board, pick your favorite game piece and roll the dice. What did you get? What difference does …
Reflections
So here we are again. A new year with new opportunities and a chance to create new plans. What will happen in the year 2015 with our opportunities and plans? …
Shopping carts
I’ve received private messages and emails from several of you asking me what I think of Big Commerce as an e-commerce platform. For what it is worth, here is my …
A Lesson From my Grocery Store
A Lesson from my Grocery Store I went grocery shopping today at my neighborhood Fry’s Market and saw something that taught me a valuable lesson. They already had their Valentine …
Have You Started Your Marketing Yet?
Marketing is the engine that feeds your small business. We’re already 2 and 1/2 months into the new year and if you haven’t started your marketing, or have been lazy …
Feeling Overwhelmed?
I spend a lot of the day at the computer. Between processing and shipping orders, I work on the magazine, comment on the forum and facebook groups, and write articles …
Should you use Twitter to Grow Your Business?
You’re familiar with Facebook. Perhaps you use LinkedIn. But have you ever wondered whether using Twitter is worthwhile for your business? Here is a post that gives you all the …
Social Media to Grow Your Business
Recently American Express Open Forum had a post about Social Media which included some great quotes from Guy Kawasaki, a recognized leader in small business marketing. Some of the quotes …
That Ball and Chain!
There’s probably not a single person reading this that doesn’t have a ball and chain of some sort when it comes to their life and their business. There’s SOMEthing you …
Facebook Marketing
Most of us use Facebook in some form or other. We usually have a personal page but as a gift company owner Facebook can be a valuable marketing tool. Our …
Quick Easy Recipes for Busy Gift Basket Owners
Simple Recipes for Busy Gift Basket Company Owners There are days when even the most organized person just doesn’t have much time to spend in the kitchen. So what …
How to Optimize Images for SEO
One of my favorite bloggers is Jennifer Bourn and this particular post is very important to all of us since we use so many images in our gift websites. I …
When is the time to stop dreaming?
Is there a certain age or personal milestone where dreaming should end? My answer is a resounding NO! I am a dreamer and sometimes I dream big. Why not? Without …
Chocolate Prices Soar!
From Specialty Food Retail: Hershey, Mars Raise Prices as Chocolate Costs Soar While food in general is becoming increasingly expensive, chocolate is in the fast lane. Mars and Hershey have …
You Are Your Business
I heard on public radio a few days ago that defaults on SBA guaranteed loans to franchisees rose more than 50% last year. One in ten franchises closed their doors. …
30 Quirky Things You May Not Know About Me (or even care to know)
We’ve been running a “Getting to Know You” series in the GiftRetailersConnection magazine, so this is an extension of it. It’s the little things – the weird things – the …
People Believe Everything They Read
The Internet is full of people giving advice. “Do this and make a million bucks by next Tuesday” or “What I do is best because it works for me.” Meanwhile, …
What do you think?
For the past month, I have been working behind the scenes creating a whole new look (and more) for GiftRetailersConnection. I’ll be rolling it out the end of the month …
The Secret to Making Money with a Gift or Gift Basket Business
I’ve been asked several times to spill the beans and tell everyone the secret to making money with a gift/gift basket business. They ask if it is really possible to …
More Than One Pair of Eyes
I was at a networking meeting the other day and received a marketing piece that was a little different than the usual business card. I thought what a clever idea. …
Our Biggest Business Mistakes
I read a lot of blogs and learn a lot from them. This morning, I read a post on the EventPlannersAssociation blog that really made me think. That post was …
Should all information be Free?
It’s no secret that everyone likes receiving something for nothing. But lately I’ve been hearing that all information should be given for free. They seem to ignore the ageless wisdom …
Thinking Inside the Box or Walking the Chicken
It has been said that there is nothing new left to be created. I don’t believe that but I do believe that a lot of Creativity is a matter of …
Live Each Day
Nineteen young men died in Prescott, Arizona while fighting a forest fire. Nineteen young men, who thought they had a long life ahead of them. Nineteen young men, who lived …
Are you using Chrome as Your Internet Browser?
I’ve been using Chrome for a long time simply because it is so much faster than either IE or Firefox. Here are 6 other reasons that I had never even …
What is Creativity?
John Cleese says that “Creativity is not a talent, it’s a way of operating.” So what is creativity? To me, it is taking what’s in front of you and everybody …
Why your traffic and sales have decreased!
Have you noticed a drastic drop in your traffic during the past week or so? If you have, you may be a victim of Google’s latest Penguin 2 update. …
Are you still living in the age of the Model T
Way back during World War II, when my Dad was off fighting the Japanese in the Pacific, my mother, sister and I lived on a farm in Perdido, Alabama with …
The Five Top Tips for Search Engine Optimization
Search engines are always changing the rules. But there are basic rules that rarely ever change. The five tips that have always been important and I predict will continue to …
Ideas Can Be Dangerous!
Ideas can be dangerous. As most of you know, writing is really my forte. As a true entrepreneur, I am constantly coming up with ideas for new businesses to create …
What has happened to customer relations in our world today?
Today is May 16th. Last night I noticed a charge on my credit card for $15.48 from Big Steer, one of my wholesale suppliers. Strange, I thought, I haven’t ordered …
A Customer Service Lesson Learned from Two Flagstaff Florists
One of the easiest ways to increase the value of our business to our customers, and to make sure they return to buy again, is to offer exceptionally great customer service. …
Keep Your Business Nimble
One of the biggest benefits that we, as micro business owners, have over large businesses is the ability to be flexible and to change quickly. We can respond to market …
What Was Your Last Investment?
What did you last spend money on as an investment? Was it the stock market? A new car? An update of your kitchen? Or something else? Let me tell you …
How is Groundhog Day Like Business?
Remember the movie Groundhog Day? Bill Murray wakes up each day to repeat the same day over and over again. No matter what he does, he can’t make any significant …
Which One Are You?
I help teach a county small business class and always find it interesting to hear the attendees describe themselves and the business they hope to start during the first session …