Motivation - Motivation - Motivation!

By: Shanan Molnar 

 I am not going to tell you how cold it has been in Georgia.  I am not going to tell you about the weather anywhere.  I am going to tell you how motivating going to industry events can be for you - they certainly motivate me to share with you.  I went to Atlanta last week for Today's Garden Center's Revolutionary 100 Roundtable. If there is one thing that inspires me it is really smart people with amazing things to share.  In one case it wasn't something they created but were smart enough to enhance and encourage.

1. TPIE (Tropical Plant Industry Expo) is in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida this week.  Always a great show with gorgeous plant material.  GCA has a breakfast Friday at 8:30 AM just outside the trade show floor.  Robert Hendrickson will give you a peak at some of the exciting things you should note inside the show.  GCA's new President Dave Williams will be there to welcome you and give a few GCA reminders.  Let them know I sent you to visit if you're in the neighborhood!
2. Management Clinic is right around the corner.  I am very excited to be attending from January 31st thru February 3rd.  Stephanie says the welcome mat is calling you! They are excited to offer a renowned speaker on the art of negotiation (Dr. Jeff Kudisch).  Go register and check out the speaker too by clicking - Management Clinic is AWESOME! I will see you there soon! Being a GCA Member gets you ANLA member pricing!
3. Start planning now for the 2010 Summer Tour.  Before the craziness of our favorite season kicks in - go ahead and register for the tour. Sun, fun, and magic will all be apart of the learning. Register now for GCA's room block at Disney's Contemporary Resort too - rooms are limited. Don't forget Give a Day Get a Disney Day.  

Did I tease you enough?  I have to tell you I was just wow'd by some of these garden centers!  Here are just a sampling of ideas:

One garden center (Roger Reynolds Nursery) was celebrating an anniversary year and decided to give thanks beyond just a customer appreciation day.  In September they celebrated a different element each week.  One week was customer appreciation week, another week tables filled by the vendors of the store, a third week was for the local businesses to come promote their stores, and the most brilliant idea was for non-profits in their area. 

Gary Entwistle, from Roger Reynolds Nursery, shared with us that they spent money on the tents, tables and printing coupons for the the non-profits (some expenses applied to the vendors and businesses that participated too).  Intending to invite 20 non-profits to their celebration they ended up with 26 plus more they had to turn away. Each of those 26 non-profits (think 'Cause Marketing Bonanza!') were given 200 coupons good for 20% off to distribute to their members/supporters however they chose.  At the end of the event the coupons were attached to their register receipts so they could quantify how much the coupons accounted for in sales.  Each non-profit received a 5% donation based on the sales attached to the coupons (should be tax deductible too).  Here is the part that is stunning to me.  26 non-profits times 200 coupons equals 5,200 people motivated to visit your store!  Wow and double wow.  Just imagine potentially new people that hadn't visited but will remember because the store supported a cause close to their heart. The event was a huge success and they are planning to continue it this year.

One of the favorite stores from the Minnesota Summer Tour in 2007 was Tangletown Gardens.  It is a small store on the corner of a busy street. Scott Endres and Dean Engelmann fill the store in an interesting way that makes you want to look long enough to not miss anything.  They had discussed adding a produce stand to their store for a while and decided 2009 was the year.  Prominently displayed within their store it became so much more than buying a tomato.   They suddenly had an opportunity to share that their local farm was producing much of the product when many customers didn't know they even had a farm.  The most impressive was their customers connection to the produce stand on Facebook.  Their customers would come into the store and buy produce for dinner that night.  They would next post photos on the Tangletown Gardens Facebook page!  It wasn't just a couple photos.  It almost became a point of pride amongst customers on who had the most interesting and creative use of the produce.  I am still amazed at this blending that simply evolved.  They created the environment for these customers to connect with each other through their store and Facebook.  When we create those connections we create memories and attachments to the elements (store) involved.  A little friendly competition isn't bad either.  They plan to take this surprising evolution to the next level in 2010.

 Shanan Molnar   

 
p.s.  Check out the new logo in the list of Presidental Roundtable members!  Welcome and many thanks to Fafard for joining our elite roundtable!  Call or e-mail for more info.  Press release to follow.