Welcome of the Basket Biz Cafe Newsletter! I'm so glad to have you as a member of our newsletter readers. Just a note here, if you see crazy characters in the text, it's to help this newsletter get through the spam filters to reach your inbox instead of your junk mail box, I really do know how to spell!

SPECIAL NOTE TO YAHOO EMAIL USERS: I don't know why, but this newsletter looks really bad in Yahoo email. All the white space is stripped out and there's no space between paragraphs. I'm sorry, I can't figure out how to fix it. It looks great in Gmail, Hotmail, LiveMail, and Outlook.

Editor's Note

It's been quite a while since a newsletter has been sent, I hope you're not mad at me for that. It's just that times have been lean and I had to get a "regular" job. The dream of having my own business was slipping through my fingers as we needed more income in order to make ends meet. And going back to work AND running my own business proved to be more than I could handle.

I apoligize for the absence but I'm glad to be back. I still work fulltime as a staff accountant at an oilfield services company, but I now feel after two years there that I can do that AND run a business too. Well...as long as I don't have to stock and ship inventory!!

And so, that's what we changed ~ we no longer stock and ship inventory. We've redesigned our website to be a Premium Wholesale Supplier Directory and the one place where you can go to get information about all the top suppliers in our industry.

This newsletter will continue to exist and we'll talk a lot about the business of running your gift basket business, as well as industry news, tips, tricks and other stuff I learn as we go. I'm going to send an issue at least once a month and after the site gets up and rolling, you'll probably see extra mailings throughout the month highlighting our suppliers or announcing sales that they are running. I'm sure it will develop into a great tool for you once it gets going. I'll keep you updated with changes and things we're doing to make your experience as a newsletter member a great one.

Reba

New Suppliers

Since our website is basically brand new, every supplier currently listed is new. So listing them here would be crazy! I think the best thing for you to do this month is to just go over to Gift Basket Wholesale Supply and take a look. Right now we have 100 active listings highlighting the best suppliers in the business.

In the future, this section of the newsletter will list all new suppliers that signed up since the last newsletter. That makes it easy to see who's new.

So you know what's going on right now, I'll explain what we're doing for our suppliers. Right now we're giving away 3-Month Premium Listings for just $1. Yes, we feel that if we show suppliers what it's like to be listed, they will want to stay. Since we just opened the site, every supplier listed is in their trial period.

So if you like what you see and you think this new supplier directory could be helpful to you, please encourage your favorite suppliers to join if you don't already see them listed. When talking to your salesperson, tell them to "take a look-see," and if they want a listing, tell them to sign up for the $1 3-month Premium Listing by using Coupon Code GBWS-PREM-TRIAL when they sign-up. The code will discount the 3-Month listing down to $1.

And lastly, if you want to see the directory grow, be sure to use it. Each listing has a place for you to add a Ranking and/or a Review. The Review will be approved by us before it is posted so we don't get a bunch of spam and also so the supplier will know about it and have the ability to respond if you post a bad review. You can input your review as anonymous if you want, so go ahead and feel free to give your feelings about any supplier.

We're going to install a more detailed Rankings segment soon, so you'll be able to Rank and Rate your suppliers in different areas, like Customer Service, Delivery, Quality, etc. We're excited about this upgrade, I'll keep you posted.

Industry News

The biggest news in the industry news are the upcoming conventions. These events are absolutely fabulous for learning, buying, and fun. If you're a new Gift Basket Pro, you should make attending one or the other mandatory.

The first one on the calendar is presented by Advanced Continuing Education Seminars or A.C.E.S. July 16th – 19th in Charlotte, NC at the Concord Convention Center & Embassy Suites Resort.

This event appears to be three fun-filled days of seminars, vendor presentations, roundtable discussions, designer workshops, a supplier expo (tradeshow) and more. Learn more by checking out their listing at Gift Basket Wholesale Supply where you can download the registration form or click to their website.

The next event on the calendar for this summer is Rave Reviews Magazine's Basket Connection 2008. To be held August 7-10 in Atlanta, GA at Atlanta Hilton Hotel.

Billed as the #1 Trade Show and Convention for Gift Baskets, Gourmet, Florists, Coffee & Tea, Candy, Confection and Packaging, this event just might be the largest the industry has to offer. Three and half days filled with sessions teaching topics like, Sell To Men, Basket and Bow Making Basics, Internet Business That Sells, Pricing For Profit, and Inventory Management and Cash Flow, and that's just to name a few. When you leave this event, your head will be spinning with tons of useful information.

And then there's the Trade Show, Gift Basket Competition, Networking, Luncheon, and so much more FUN! What an event! Learn more by checking out their listing at Gift Basket Wholesale Supply where you can click to their website.

Understanding the Business End

Being a friendly person myself, I naturally like friendly people and I find that's the case with most people I know. Now I realize not everyone is going to be pleasant, but one place I expect a warm reception is in a retail establishment and that includes online stores. I feel as a customer shopping for goods and services, part of the deal should be that I receive the best product and the best help from that company.

You know that old adage, “Good news travels fast.” Well, in business just the opposite is true. When someone has a bad experience, they can’t wait to tell everyone they know. Venting feels good, and "getting even" with the person or company that wronged them feels even better. Warning the people they care about to avoid an inferior product or service is important to most.

I find an area where a lot of companies could improve their customer service is in answering email. Everyone uses email these days, so it's important to treat it with the same importance you would a phone call. Don't leave your customers hanging just because you are receiving too many emails each day or you don't know how to answer them. Hiding from your customer by not responding isn't the answer. Get to work on the issue right away, make a decision and reply. If it's going to take some time to figure out how to solve their problem, send them a quick note telling them that.

TIP: The gift basket forums can really come in handy for helping you find answers to problems. If you post your question, you will most likely find someone else who has encountered the same problem who is nice enough to give you advice.

TIP: On the Contact Us page of your website, inform your customers of your standard email response time. That way customers know upfront what to expect, then be sure to stick to it. Two days is fair, however, 24 hours is even better. Answering within a few hours is best. Actually, reponding to their request as soon as possible should be your policy, but don't let A-S-A-P be defined as 10 days.

TIP: Another way to ensure excellent customer service and reduce the amount of email you receive is to set-up FAQ and Customer Servie pages on your website. Try to anticipate every question that can be asked and everything that might go wrong and then ask and answer the question right there on your website. Spend time working on solutions to these problems so that you don’t have to improvise when you are presented with problems. It is best to be prepared ahead of time so that the customer service process runs smoothly.

TIP: Even with an FAQ and Customer Service page available, a lot of your customers will still go straight to the Contact Us page. And if you're finding the number of emails too great to handle, another thing you can do is use an autoresponder. I only suggest using this as a last resort, but it does work.

To do this you will need two email addresses. The first address is the one you post on your website (or you an use a form on your site). It will be set-up with an autoresponder that nicely gives the customer a link to your FAQ and Customer Service pages. You might also take the time to answer your MOST ASKED question for your customer. At the end of the auto-responder email, tell the recipient that if the resources provided didn't answer their question, they can contact you directly at a different email address.

If you use the autoresponder method discribed, it will cut your email traffic way down. However, be prepared to answer any emails that go to the second email address right away. I suggest using a filter in your email program to send them to a separate folder so they will stand out from all the other email you receive.

When customer service is bad, people talk a lot. When a problem arises and customer service is good, people may or may not talk. However, when customer service is good, you will be remembered when someone is looking for a professional business to recommend.

Until Next Time

Thank you everyone for your wonderful support. I hope we are able to help you grow your business as you have helped us grow ours. Now don't forget to click over and look at our newly revamped website!

Good Luck, God Bless and Happy Fourth of July!

Reba Collins
Gift Basket Wholesale Supply
www.giftbasketwholesalesupply.com

Gift Basket Wholesale Supply | 18515 Lodgepole Pine | Cypress, TX | 77429