Ian's Bits & Bobs: The Blog

2016-02-24 10.58.38 2016-02-24 10.58.38 TreeHouse_Jammin

Laboring with the Future

Notwithstanding the surplus of Nor’Easters on the east coast and a “River of Rain” on the west, the calendar says it’s spring and consumers are absolutely dying to do something in their gardens.

So, what are your exciting anticipation points this spring?

  •   A stronger economy increasing the average spend?
  •  Droves of excited new consumers as Millennials finally get gardening?
  •  The continued surge in sales of houseplants, succulents and other millennial “stuff”?
  •  A shortage of some plants as landscapers vacuum up supplies?
  •  On-line sales and advice challenging your status quo?

Nope. If I ask that question to owners of garden retail stores the immediate response is one, ever-present word or subject – Labor. “How are other companies you know finding people? What are they paying or promising? How are they keeping them?”

This year’s garden retail business story is all about Labor, or the lack of it.

The short term answers for this year include paying more than you think the job is worth, offering several part-time positions for each full time position, end-of-season bonuses, raising prices to cover increased labor, reducing some categories that just soak up labor hours and quite frankly, doing without.

Time to Change the Model

I think this is the kick in the seat the industry needed.  For years the garden business has depended on finding thousands of educated dedicated people to work long and hard for average earnings because they loved the product and the process. The “secret sauce” of the business model was that our work force held the essential information for consumers who loved the end result of gardening, but were fearful of failure.  Householders had to come to our stores if they wanted assurance and success.

Well, no more. Now that consumers can source, research and buy so much on-line, retail employees are no longer the first-providers of crucial how-to information. That powerful position is gone forever (and it was powerful).

The role of retail teams has changed to one of validation or correction of what consumers have already learned. Employees are now in effect the curators (I hate this word, sorry) of all that on-line information, the selectors of all those products and mentors of all those on-line promises. They are now there to advise which particular soil exists in this area, what the best hanging basket plant is in their location, how many pounds of potatoes you realistically can expect from those cute fingerling things.

Of the three bedrock principles of garden retailing (Quality, Selection and Service), Quality is now a given while Selection is now universal. Only Service can be a unique differentiator, but it can’t be hand-holding service any more.

Silent Running

This role still takes education, professionalism and passion too, but much of it can be delivered by “silent selling” on-site with re-thought merchandising and signage and You-Tube type videos. All of which means a very different use of those valuable employees but in the longer term requires less on-site educated year-round help.

This might seem like sacrilege to the traditionalists but consumers are so used to (and some even truly PREFER) self-service on-line from Amazon to car insurance that even a partial hand-holding garden retailer has the competitive advantage. The retailer still holds the cards with credible, knowledgeable employees helping where necessary, still local, still passionate.

So I think we are finally moving to a model where shoppers can browse, read, learn, view and buy “silently” or be helped by a few very credible and helpful people on patrol – a bit like one of my favorite stores, REI.

This eventually means we will have less employees by design… but they will be making more money (and that must be nothing but “a good thing” as someone once said).

But for this year, what are your short-term tactics to get you over the labor challenge? Let us know in the comments: sharing is caring!

Photo Credit: taken by Ian at TreeHouse Store in Austin TX

 

Mar 28, 2018 15 Comments
HerbswithFish

Inspiring Summer Customers Without A Word Being Said

 

As temperatures climb and that manic spring customer flow slows to a trickle some days, it’s always tempting to take a deep breath, look at sales YTD compared with last year and relax… ”it’s over”. There used to be a day when that was somewhat true, retail garden companies (and many of their suppliers) could put a “Gone Fishing” sign on the door and literally, go fishing.

Of course that’s still the case if you are living entirely on seasonal pop-ups – good for you, tell me how you make it work!

But for the thousands of owners, managers and team-members who have been in overdrive for the past 12-16 weeks, the reality is that you can’t afford to take your foot off the pedal. The costs of being in business don’t take a summer break.

Now that the consumer has found, bought and planted what they need (hopefully), we have to sell them what they might like. And given the summer temperatures and competing activities, we have to make the shopping experience as enjoyable and successful as possible.

Traditionally that has meant a customer finding an employee who, by a series of questions and answers, narrows down what they think best suits the customer’s situation.  This assumption is now seriously challenged by such developments as on-line research before customers leave home (over 60% for L&G shopping) and You-Tube videos on their tablets as they walk the aisle.  Let’s not forget the other reality – the cost and availability of knowledgeable labor. 

Hand-Holding May Not Be “Full-Service” Anymore

The full-service Local Garden Center channel is still far too dependent on knowledgeable employees. Even if you can find and hire them to hand-hold every customer, shoppers today are used to (and sometimes more comfortable with) “discovery” on their own. With on-line research increasingly common there is a lot less need to start every conversation from scratch. Customers just want to know if they are interpreting things correctly for their own situation. The retail center becomes a validation center.

Customers who have spent time researching their project, product, size, brand or budget, need much less “discovery” conversation with employees. What they need is guidance, validation, assurance and confidence-building.  Merchandising can do much of that too. Garden shopping is changing from an assisted treasure hunt to a focused project. The mantra might be “Research on-line, validate in store.”

Silent Selling Can Be Compelling

So, if you are able to take some time off and tour some of your peers or your competition, see what you can find in the way of exciting, persuasive merchandising or “Silent Selling” with a compelling value-proposition. Take lots of pictures (if allowed of course) and build a training session around them because exciting, persuasive value propositions are still hard to find. But that’s what shoppers want right now. A simple clear vision of the end result, the products, the how-to “recipe” and the price of the project (or the cost of not doing it!).

Despite all the “merchandising training” and the digital media now available it’s hard to find merchandising that inspires summer spending in this way – without a word being said. 

See what you find out there and let us know in the comments section below. Happy value-propositioning!

Photo by Ian in an English Garden Center 2008

 

GrowYourOwnSalsa_cropped

Let’s Sell Emotional Values!

The phrase “The Value Proposition” is marketing-speak for “In return for your money (or effort or time etc.), you get this” and is worth more than an academic glance. Just look how the “Mad Men” in advertising have used that simple premise to help us all to part with our money for decades:

–          Concerned about that daunting list of side effects in a medication ad? (Sure, but just the idea of not sneezing every five minutes in spring makes it that a deal you can accept.)

–          Excited to turn over all your home TV and internet to one giant cable company? (No but you DO like the idea of watching whatever you want, when you want.)

These types of ads carefully craft a message of emotional benefits (the outcomes of the purchase), while the garden industry mostly still features the technical details. From propagator/manufacturer to retailer we see garden product ads, signs, labels or training manuals that are heavy on product functions (“Spreader-sticker” anyone?).

We see “Takes partial shade” instead of “Fill that bare spot under a tree” or “soaker hose” rather than “Waters gently like Mother Nature”. Maybe THAT’S why Americans spend more per household on Pizza than on gardening!

Marketers realized years ago that consumers spend more easily on emotional benefits than on functional ones. That’s why people drive miles to save gas money, so they can spend it at their favorite restaurant!

With competition from the smartest marketers on the planet, the lawn & garden business should spice-up the (sometimes necessary) technical language with words that suggest the product benefit (outcomes!) in simple emotional terms. We have highly marketable products with infinite emotions from excitement and joy, through pride and accomplishment, to solace and peace. We have things that taste great, clean the air, increase property values, reduce utility bills, create privacy, enrich lives and save the planet. But we still talk or merchandise to the public in technical or hobbyists terms. Just look at what “Mad Men” do with soap, drugs or insurance and think of what you could do with gardening!

So instead of “quick grower, 6ft by 5ft, $99” how about “Hide the neighbors for under $100”? Or for “3 months continuous feeding” substitute “Feed and forget” (with a 90 day reminder to buy more).

Train to Think Like the Customer

Team training should focus on the end result, not the process, as employees make the emotional value proposition: emphasizing the cool style of succulents or the fun of a child measuring a sunflower.

In training meetings I have found employees so anxious to tell the customer every single fact, they miss the essential motivator – the emotions of the end result. Stressing “things they need to know” means that emotional values like the fragrance of lilac or tasting that first tomato are missed. I even heard one experienced manager telling a customer “I think you’ll find it worth the effort” when she balked at digging a big hole for a shrub!

So let’s see more emotional values from the entire supply chain:

  • Let’s read about “A green lawn for 90% less than a lawn-care service” (money-saving is a MAJOR emotional benefit!)
  • Let’s see plant labels spelling out nostalgia like “Grandma’s Lilac” or the fragrance of Old Roses
  • Let’s suggest the environmental satisfaction of creating a Monarch haven
  • Let’s see POP with “Basil on your balcony” for apartment dwellers and “Hops made easy” for home-brewers.
  • Let’s hear employees talking of “Relaxing sounds of wind chimes” or a fountain that “Hides the sound of the dog next door”!
  • Let’s see displays that call out “Best herb for grilling steak” in the myriad of herb choices.
  • Let’s focus on those emotions that entice consumers to save on gas and spend it in this industry!

… and finally, let me know what you come up with: happy propositioning!

Photo by Ian, on the road somewhere

Apr 27, 2016 6 Comments
SpringTrio_1

Three Steps To Help Customers Spend

 

Another spring arrives with national brand TV ads reminding America to get out in the garden, but also brings thousands of new items on the shelf or bench. We are not making it easier for customers to spend!

Consumers are eager yet hesitant to start gardening. Excited to feel the sun, share little discoveries with their loved ones and drool over their first homegrown tomato. But hesitant about the shopping process and memories of last year’s failure to launch.

Many customers this month may not have been garden shopping since last Memorial Day! Meanwhile, they’ve found even more ways to use their “spare” time. Gardening is now up against binge-watching the latest Netflix release. Shoppers are faced with “ConSKUsion,” more products to consider in less time. The world has changed since 2006: has the retail journey in your store (or on your website)?

So as 85 million households invade garden retail stores and/or websites, put yourself in their muckboots and walk through their expectations in your store.

They may be looking for a few “destination” items (tomatoes or weed killer) but are prepared to buy a lot more (and stay longer) if the experience is fun, easy and time-effective. In the next 10 weeks your customers want:

1.       Simplicity when they shop

2.       Emotional Value as they buy

3.       Success when they use it at home

How simple is it to find those destination items and understand all the verbiage? “Fear of Failure” is constantly cited as a reason for low spending, even in high-earning households.

How much emotional value is there in the sales message? Does the team or the merchandising connect the dots during the shopping process? If customers imagine their dog on a safe, weed-free lawn or the “cool” comments they’d get about their succulent planter, they are much more likely to justify the value and make the purchase.

What are the chances of success with the product – be honest!? People in the industry tend to forget how hard it can be to keep living things alive (I hear the same disbelief from a “techy” when I have a problem with my smartphone….)  But failure this year means even less spent next year by those customers.

So, use these three basic concepts: simplicity, value and success to critique your store this spring and tell me how you scored.

Tune back in for the next subject coming up in the spring blog series: “Simplicity is the Word.”

Happy spring!

Photo Credit:  Ian Baldwin, taken at a should-not-be-named retailer

Apr 8, 2016 10 Comments
squashes_horiz

Last Child in the Garden?

As old friends and relatives would confirm, I was never a very gifted do-it-yourselfer. Though like many I wallpapered, painted and tiled my way through life until I could afford to pay someone else to do it. But being raised by über-hobbyist parents (a “workman” in our house was unthinkable) I had a choice of things to help Dad with and, no surprise, I chose gardening. Not because I had a love of plants, but because I just HAD to be outdoors.  If I wasn’t playing footy or tramping the moors, being Mum and Dad’s gardening go-fer was the next best thing.

So when I harvested over 40 yummy winter squash the other day, it was just another day in the year’s cycle. But some who see the picture are in awe. While this is great for the ego, it shouldn’t be a big deal. Should it? It’s not like I brought about world peace. I just stuck two seeds in the ground and applied water – easy for me!

We constantly hear of the challenge of getting younger people up off their you-know-what and into the woods, fields or even their own back stoop. Surveys suggest that Americans of all ages could be spending 12 hours or more per day in front of some kind of screen!

Screened–in?

If “gardening” is not to become something in old movies and family albums, the industry supply chain and all interested parties need to write their own future. Otherwise the consumer or society will write it for them. And that might not be good. The future of the $40+ billion DIY garden/outdoor living industry in the USA is in the hands of those driving it now.

Now the topic of “connecting kids with nature” is becoming a hot one, garden retailers of all shapes and channels should be emphasizing that nature starts with the first step outside. Typically kids experience a garden space before woods and trails. Let’s start them right in their own backyard.

Baby Steps – Literally

This idea is not new, but is taking years to activate. After years of “food gardening” being the only real growth sector, how many locally owned garden retailers are now the community leader in this core activity?

I don’t expect Home Depot or Lowe’s to plow up parking lots and install how-to community veg gardens any time soon. But over half of the independents I know have spare land somewhere adjacent to retail. Many outdoor sales areas are too large, filled with slow-turning inventory. Why not become the place for parents and families to learn the ultimate screen-time antidote?

Why have long-standing, community–based “nurseries” not established themselves as the place with community gardens and local know-how? Why not partner with a local farmer or non-profit who wants to show their crops growing nearer to the market?

The “eating local” trend has opened up many opportunities for the smart, nimble independent.  Back-to-natural emphasis by “big retailers” from cotton to coffee brings added possibilities for garden retailers to become the local thought-leader. If corporate America is talking about bees and monarchs, can’t local nurseries use this to get the community off the couch?

Do you know how cool we could be?

With the clear trend away from DIY tree and shrub planting, America is set for years of decorating outdoor space and/or food gardening but most outside sales areas don’t reflect that. There is little if any emphasis on such entry-level successes as growing a few radish let alone squash. Garden center websites still feature trees, shrubs, roses and the like with little emphasis on “owning” the secrets to catching a firefly, photographing a hummingbird or growing milkweed for monarchs.

In the last decade the Home Centers have dominated garden retailing to which some purists still say “that was our industry, our product.”  As corporate America begins to put the pieces together for the consumer’s foray into nature, I would hate to hear similar cries of “We were the original outdoor retailers, we should have done that!”

Yes we were, yes we should.

So who has progress to report?

Reading Recommendation (& Title Reference):  The Last Child in the Woods, Richard Louv

Photo credit:  Ian Baldwin

Nov 17, 2015 4 Comments