Keep customers interested in gardening throughout winter. It helps to improve rapport, sales, and your customers’ skill sets. Although the tundra landscape isn’t conducive to plant sales, there are many ways to keep your products on people’s minds. All it takes is inspiration and a little creativity.

Why Keep Gardeners Inspired Throughout Winter?

You may be thinking, “Is there actually any value to trying to sell plants throughout the off season?” And that’s fair. You want your time and efforts focussed on something that will turn a profit. That said, it doesn’t take a lot of effort to inspire your customers in ways your competition isn’t. Show them the value of plants year round, show them how they can still enjoy the great outdoors, and help them prepare for spring.
Winter topiary

Get Customers Outside

This may seem counter intuitive for a lot of people, but it’s important to highlight how gardeners can get outside in the winter. Whether it’s hanging lights, creating beautiful topiaries, or welcoming entryway arrangements, it doesn’t take much time to enjoy the outdoors. Once people get accustomed to the changes in weather, and their gardens, they’ll be able to see things in a whole new light. Then, once spring rolls around, tending to their plants won’t feel like a lost passion project.

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Use Your Greenhouse, Nursery or Garden Center Store to Mirror Customers’ Homes

While the winds and snow are raging throughout winter, your customers homes act as tranquil getaways. With the rise of zen gardening, it’s important to show people how keep plants happy indoors. Use your garden center, nursery or greenhouse sales floor to create indoor landscapes. Mirror your customers’ kitchen counters, dining room table or living room decor. Low light plants are essential.

Then, make the benefits clear.

  • Highlight the fact that plants clean the air and work to cut the stuffy indoor atmosphere
  • Provide free recipes when customers buy a set of herbs for their kitchen window sill
  • Show renters how to create a zen corner for more relaxing decor that will thrive in small or dimly lit spaces

Get Active on Social Media Throughout Winter

Social media is the best place to go when customers seemingly go into hibernation. For those who are not planning on returning until spring, you can conduct e-commerce sales. Or, share valuable content that changes their mind and gets them to your location. Highlight new items to your store, especially winter specific or seasonal items. It may feel like shameless promotion, but in fact, it helps customers stay up-to-date on what you have to offer. Also, market any online webinars or in-store events, including seminars. Create a community where your customers feel like you have their back, because in fact, you do.

Plants Make Great Gifts

Throughout winter there are a good few holidays where gift giving is tradition. Highlight the benefits of giving your plants as gifts. Even if the recipient isn’t a gardener, there are so many fascinating succulents, cacti and air plants for them to enjoy.  Better still, they’re all plants that are perfect for beginners.

An easy way to make sure the recipient understands plants’ value is by labeling your products with their value points. Provide customers with gift packages such as a salsa growing kit (comprised of tomato seeds, a cilantro plant and a related recipe book), or DIY craft supplies.  When Valentine’s Day comes, show customers how to move beyond roses and still delight their partner. After all, a perennial bouquet is much more romantic, don’t you think?

Promote these solutions on social media with a clear image of the item and a title saying something like “BRANCH OUT WITH THESE GIFT IDEAS.” In the description, offer the value points of the product and let them know where they can buy it. “See the link in the bio,” is common copy for e-commerce sites using Instagram.

Offer Individual Consultations to Plan for Spring

Customers will be eager for spring’s arrival. Help them plan for it with consultations. Host sessions online through a video chat platform such as Google Hangouts. Or, host on-location if your business has an appropriate meeting space. Make a personal connection with customers as well as provide them with specific recommendations based on their yard’s layout and measurements. It also give them a sneak peek at your spring product lines. The customer gets exclusive content, personalized recommendations, and professional guidance. You can also hold stock for them or encourage products for them to buy immediately in preparation. It’s win-win.

Create Original Content

This may be already clear, but original content is king. Customers want to hear directly from you and they’re looking for a personal touch. When given the option, people prefer not to buy from a faceless corporation, and instead buy from the personable, helpful, and customer-oriented business. While resharing user generated content or professional generated content, it is more valuable to create your own.

It doesn’t have to be anything complicated either. Here are some ways you can create content your customers will adore:

  • Write blogs about anything and everything your customers crave. Start with decorating tips, to expansive plant specific blogs with growing information. Or, blogs on how to use equipment or accessories you sell.
  • Create videos that cover more visual content. Try promotional videos about events your hosting or behind the scenes looks at how your business runs.
  • Webinars are essential for growers who don’t want to brace the cold and leave their home. Show them how to prepare for spring and actually enjoy winter.

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Label Design Plays Its Part

It may not seem it, but label design is crucial in selling plants throughout winter. Not only can it highlight the value points of plants, but it can offer valuable content like your blogs. Suddenly customers are buying a plant and having free access to a world of information designed to help them succeed. Labeling technology such as RFID (radio frequency identification) and NFC (near field communication) make it easy for customers to connect to related content. Even a simple QR code creates that pathway. Beyond that, inspirational imagery drive home what is possible with creating a peaceful indoor space, or an engaging winter landscape.

Labeling Automation Saves Time & Helps With A/B Testing

A/B testing is a marketing term which means that sample testing is completed before deciding on the plan. So, for example, if two label designs are tested on the grocery store shelf, sales will show the more captivating design. Then, your packaging is moving forward with the most impactful design based on data instead of guessing at what customers want.

This means that the time consuming task of hand labeling is the only option for testing, right? Wrong. Label Gator’s systems offer efficient changeovers saving you time, money and labor. Not only will you be creating smart designs, but a smart process overall. Go back and over-label any products that need it with ease.

Overlabeling Great Lakes Label throughout winter

Labeling automation gives you the time to roll out new packaging and a new webinar. Write that blog on your favorite salsa recipe after you spend minutes labeling the cilantro. It’s quick, simple and cost effective.

Learn about the labeling and automation solutions that Label Gator offers. See how you can save time, money and labor with our Product Guide. Click here to download the guide.

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