Why every garden center needs a consistent newsletter
If your garden center is NOT interested in boosting monthly revenue, forging a deeper relationship with customers and gathering valuable market insights, than move along! Because in this blog, we are exploring why having a consistent weekly or monthly email newsletter is essential for the family-owned, independent garden center.
In fact, we’d go so far as to say that if your garden center doesn’t have a consistent newsletter, you are leaving money on the table.
First of all, they’re the most cost-effective form of marketing. You will make more money off newsletters than you will ever spend (Companies typically make about $40 for every dollar they spend on newsletter marketing.)
Why Should Garden Centers Send Out Regular Newsletters?
It’s our experience that garden center owners aren’t big email people. You’re out there in the fields and in the greenhouses, watering plants, dealing with suppliers and wholesale orders… maybe you’re hellbent on finding the next perfect fairy garden shipment for the kids. We get it, you personally are not huge on email. But that doesn’t mean that you don’t have thousands of customers who would LOVE to hear from your garden center each month (or even every week during the busy season!)
Here are 7 reasons you need a newsletter:
Customer Retention
A fresh, exciting email in your customer’s inboxes helps you stay top-of-mind. When they receive your newsletter consistently, they are more likely to think of your garden center first when they need products or services related to gardening. Take that, Home Depot!
This can help increase repeat business and increase the likelihood that customers will shop at your place instead of a competitor.
2. Customer Engagement
Engagement refers to the process of your customers INTERACTING with your brand. By consistently providing them with useful and relevant information, you can engage and maintain their interest in your garden center. They’ll be more likely to read your blog, watch your videos, visit your social media channels, and stop by. In fact, online engagement fosters a sense of community and loyalty among your customer base.
3. Clarify your offerings to your customer
You know what you’re selling, but how is your customer supposed to know why they should stop by … unless you tell them? Through a weekly newsletter, you can promote and highlight certain products, upsell existing customers based on their past purchase history, feature products you’re trying to get rid of, and offer special discounts.
A newsletter can encourage people to explore what you have in the garden center… and encourages people to spend more time with you because they know what you offer.
4. A Newsletter helps you share valuable information
A newsletter provides an effective platform for sharing information about new products, upcoming events, promotions, and special offers.
Keep people up to date on what’s going on so they’re more likely to show up! (After all, how are they supposed to know about the Taco truck coming to your garden center unless you TELL them about the taco truck? You must talk about the taco truck!)
Keep your customers informed about the latest happenings at your garden center, ensuring that they are aware of any exciting developments or opportunities.
5. You can share educational content.
Become a valuable resource! Educate your customers about gardening techniques, plant care tips, landscaping ideas, and other relevant topics.
By providing valuable content, you position yourself as an authority in the industry, fostering trust and credibility with your customers.
Share “how to” and educational content via your blog and YouTube channel… and share that content to social media as well.
6. Build relationships with your customers.
Newsletters offer a personalized touch, allowing you to build relationships with your customers. You can feature customer success stories, showcase their garden achievements, or include testimonials in your newsletter.
This creates a sense of community and encourages customer interaction, which can lead to stronger customer relationships.
Make them feel like they’re in your special garden club by offering exclusive discounts, garden help forums, or other freebies. They’ll always stay loyal because you make them feel valued.
7. Gain valuable market insights.
Analyzing newsletter engagement metrics such as open rates, click-through rates, and customer feedback can provide valuable insights into customer preferences and interests.
You can use this data to refine your marketing strategies, tailor your offerings, and better understand your customer base.
Give the people what they want! But first you have to KNOW what they want!
What Should Garden Centers Include in Each Newsletter?
Here’s a checklist of what to put in your next newsletter. Because if you’re like us, you thrive off checklists.
Weekly or monthly specials (Make them feel like they’re getting a huge deal!)
Consider email exclusives to drive more people to sign up for the newsletter (gives people a strong reason to sign up, so they don’t miss any sales)
Helpful content - video and blog content can be repurposed over to social media as well.
Posts from social media – this drives people over to your social media channels and boosts followers
Timely gardening tips and reminders “don’t forget about the frost in the forecast tomorrow! Bring your tomatoes inside!”
Info about any upcoming events
Maybe some pictures of the garden center cat. Everyone loves Misty.
How Garden Centers Can Send Out Regular Newsletters
While developing each individual newsletter can become time consuming, it’s easy to set up and start sending email newsletters to your audience.
Step 1: Sign up with Mailchimp or another email marketing platform.
Step 2: Create a template for your campaign and be sure your template matches your garden center’s branding. Ensure you have your logo, fonts, and brand colors all uploaded into the platform so people immediately connect the email with your garden center.
Step 3: Make sure you have a list of people to send the emails to. It doesn’t matter if this is 12 people at first … getting started is the most important thing. And there are always ways you can grow your email list. It’s always a bad idea to BUY lists, and always better to organically grow your list full of humans who care.
Step 4: Send regularly! When you’re in the busy season and you’re selling tons of plants, you might want to send the newsletter out weekly so you can keep your customers up to date on the latest plants and happenings. When things slow down (like in winter), a monthly newsletter might be more appropriate.
Have Something Exciting For Your Garden Center Customers.
You have something exciting for your customers to look forward to each week – because you’re going to appear right in their inbox with promotions and valuable info on what’s happening at your garden center
And YOU will be excited because you increase recurring revenue and boost profits because you’re top of mind and actually helping people achieving their gardening goals.
Does Your Garden Center Need to Ramp Up It’s Marketing?
If your garden center needs this powerful tool to foster engagement, drive sales, share information, retain customer loyalty, and build relationships, drop us a line.
Here at McCusker’s Marketing for Garden Centers, we help family-owned, independent garden centers turn neighbors into fans through high-quality, custom marketing that tells your unique story.
