USA Today reports that a number of businesses are building promotions around April 13-15. These aren't your typical "spend your refund here!" promos but a way to link in to the widespread angst of tax season to connect with customers.

Staples is using tax day to showcase its Copy & Print Center services. Filers can make a free copy of their 2007 return up to 20 pages.The Container Store online tax time sale encourages customers to "organize before you itemize."

Other types of service businesses- especially food & spirits folks are going for discounts deals.

Scrapbook retailers have an opportunity to capitalize on the de-stressing benefits of scrapbooking....

• Create your own Tax Pack kit of business/office supply themed papers and embellishments and offer it at discount-  maybe sell it at last year's price.
• Sponsor a scrapping marathon on tax day and stay open past midnight ( at least one hour past the post office!). Bring in folks to do short back or foot massages to add to the fun.
  
• Create a buy back event, offering .25, .50, 1.00 each for customers' supplies to give them cash to spend in your store that day. (Insist that everything is in saleable condition). Take all the stuff you've bought back and create $1 and $5 grab bags  to resell in store.
  

The point is to use this holiday that will likely get plenty of tv coverage and use it to your advantage. Encourage other local retailers to do the same kind of promotion and then create a press release together and send to your local newspapers and especially tv stations.

Not only will you provide your customers a service, you may get a little PR mention on the local news broadcast.--Beth

Happy Monday.

We've been without email a couple of days and I feel like I am alone on an ice floe. Ok well I still have the phone but wow! Have I come to really rely on email to get the most possible work done. It brings me to some more suggestions about reaching out to the media for National Craft Month.

An editor's job is to discern what information is most relevant to her readers. At the end of the day if your pitch, no matter how great it is, does not offer my readers something they want or need, it won't go anywhere.

Over the years I have seen some great products overlooked while mediocre products get tons of press. How does that happen you wonder? Did you ever hear the quote about 90% of success is just showing up? The same applies to PR.

So I thought I'd share some dos and don'ts in the hope that when you reach out to your media whether it is newspaper, radio, tv, online- whatever it is- you will have more success.

Do get your materials in my hands- CDs with art and releases are good as are extranet sites that allow me to download photos of your product. If you can't do either of those things that's fine. Being able to turn around information and photos requested within the hour will win you that placement. Think NYC speed. When I say I need it right away, I mean can you email it to me now.

Don't stalk your editor- Like you, editors are busy people with lots and lots of meetings and deadlines. We're on the phone a lot and many of us travel. If we don't return your call within 24 hours please don't leave a nasty message.  If I am interested I will get back to you as soon as I can. This is a case when email can be your friend. You may get a faster response if you send an email.

Do send us your ideas- Are you working on something hot? Let us know in advance so we can do some research or schedule you in if we really like the idea.

Do know the media outlet's audience-For example- Scrapbook Retailer is a b to b publication for the paper crafts industry. If you are trying to pitch me a stained glass product be prepared to tell me how that relates to the scrapbook retailer.

Do make it easy- Avoid making more work in the form of follow up for the editor. If she asks for a high resolution photo, don't send a photo from your website-that won't work.

Finally, one last reminder... and this may be a tough one for my fellow control freaks. You don't get to control the message- Editors are required to get the facts right but we are going to write about something as it relates to our reader (and  as space allows).Direct quotes must be accurate, but otherwise if you must get a message across in your words- ads are the route for that.

Basically the rules of PR are the same as what your mom told you. If you want something, be nice and helpful to the person you're asking the favor  of.--Beth

As we close on the third week of February (uh, where did the last month go?) it occurs to me that National Craft Month is right around the corner. This is the time of year when CHA makes an extra effort to promote crafts in the worldwide media. March isn't the only time CHA promotes crafts but having a designated month provides a more compelling argument for why newspaper and magazine editors should consider covering crafts.

I hope your plans include some proactive publicity in your community. Scrapbook Retailer can help you out with that! Simply visit the Marketing Tools  section of our Web site to find press releases that you can customize and send out locally. We've done the work of writing and formatting- you just need to add a local angle.

Next create your media list. Build a media list now and you will own a living document that when updated frequently, will serve you well. You want to collect names, titles, address, phone numbers and email addresses for people who have the ability to get a message out via radio, television, newspapers, magazines, websites and now blogs.

Try your local chamber of commerce to see if they have a media list you can access. Not all of these folks will be contacts for your business but it is a good starting spot.

It's also easy to create your own. Identify media outlets that are used by the audience you want to reach: local newspapers, weeklies, tourist publications, entertainment publications, local television stations and radio stations. Does your local government provide an online community bulletin board? You'll want to send there as well.

Most of the contact info is available online or your local librarian can help you find it. It's always best to direct a release to a particular person but if you can't, you can address the envelope to the lifestyle editor. If you do address it to a particular editor- PLEASE spell the editor's name correctly. It shows that you went to the trouble of doing your homework.

Stay tuned for more information on media outreach. If you have any specific questions about contacting local press, please email me directly and
I'll try to help.

Have a great weekend.I'll be digging out from 6 inches of snow!--Beth

Check out this editorial by Tracy Mullins, president of the National Retail Federation. http://www.stores.org/Current_Issue/2008/02/President'sColumn.asp.

It addresses how some great stores and great brands go away because they don't successfully communicate the features and benefits to consumers. The owners have the curse of knowledge- they know all about their products and services  and sometimes that owner does not see what the customer doesn't know or understand. The owner believes the features and benefits are obvious.

Not always.

I think that happens alot with crafts. People see something in a magazine and they decide to come to a scrapbooking store. Once inside they are immediately overwhelmed by product, most of which has no clear instructions on the packaging as to what to do with the product.

When you (the storeowner) look around the store everything seems clear, but then again, you are an expert on scrapbooking. This new customer doesn't even know what you've forgotten over the years!

Until you look at your store through new ideas, you may be missing opportunities to reach out to new customers and develop beginner customers into intermediate ones.

You can take steps right now to faciliate the process.

• Create samples and storyboards. Have you noticed magazines are turning food prep into an equation- this plus this equals dinner? Do the same with scrapbooking. This tool plus this paper equals this outcome.
• Tag samples with shopping lists.Make a list of all the supplies and tools used to create that sample, no matter how obvious that information is to you.
• In beginner classes start with the basics. Describe the tools and what they do. Explain that 12 X12 is a starting point for paper and students can cut into it.
• Do spur of the moment tool demos. Yes, that means opening one of the packages and writing that off as a non-sellable. However, I guarantee you will sell more tools if folks have a chance to try before they buy.
• Outfit your classroom with tools to try. Sure you can expect folks to bring some things. But again, the more time they get to play with your "toys" the more they will want that toy for themselves.
• Invite a group of non-scrapbooking friends, folks whose opinions you trust in, to walk through the store. Perhaps some friends who are members of the local chamber of commerce will help you. Hand them a project page and ask them to find the supplies in the supply list then listen to what they have to say.

I knew a terrific sewing teacher who started every beginner class with how to turn on and thread the sewing machine. Seems obvious to anyone who sews, right? But if you've never learned to sew how would you know how to thread a machine?

Same with computers. In a beginner class you have to show people where the power button is- how would they know otherwise?

New customers won't always ask for help and we don't want them to leave your store empty handed. Visual cues are a great start and any kind of hands-on experience will help the customer relax while building her confidence.

Bottom line? Your mom was right. Sometimes you can be too smart for your own good.--Beth

A Shutterfly, Inc. consumer survey revealed what 8 out of 10 moms surveyed (83%) hoped to receive a personalized Valentine cards featuring a favorite family photo instead of a store bought greeting. When asked about their "best gift ever received on Valentine's Day," the top response was a photo keepsake (25%).

Eighty-three percent of moms surveyed said that personalized cards and photo keepsakes are their favorite gifts to give to sweethearts; and nearly half also shop for Grandma (their own mom) on Valentine's Day (48%).

Ok, granted,  this survey was conducted of Shutterfly users so there is a predisposition to love photos. But don't all moms love something personalized with their kids' input?

The Shutterfly survey suggests opportunity for scrapbook retailers to promote photo cards and gifts for Mother’s Day, anniversaries and birthdays.

Some ideas...

• Create samples of Mother's Day cards and mini albums that incorporate photos of children and pets. Yes, pets! Lots of women out there refer to their children's dogs and cats as grandchildren.
• Sponsor a little contest after Mother's day where children can enter the cards they made. Break out entries by age group and if mom won't part with the card- color photocopies should be acceptable. Award the winner a Gift Certificate to your store as an added bonus gift for mom.
• In your downtime, create kits or "insert your photo here" almost done cards for sale.
• Highlight rub-ons, stamps and stickers that have great "I love you" and "thanks"-themed phrases.
  

And you KNOW I want to hear back from you to find out if you did any of these things!!

Have a great holiday weekend. Don't know about you but my CHA adrenalin is wearing off. Rest up!--Beth

Things I have learned over the years at CHA Shows.

1. It is impossible to leave the show floor without at least one speck of glitter on your person.

2. No matter how much you try, you cannot make every appointment you have in your schedule or fulfill every promise to stop by. You will end up feeling guilty. It's unavoidable. May I say if I missed you, please know it wasn't intentional it is trade show dysphoria.

3. If I stop by your booth when it is good for me, you will be busy with a customer. If you swing by my booth, I will be in a meeting of the other side of the show floor. However, we will meet up in the ladies' room or in passing on the escalator enroute to other appointments at least a dozen times.

4. Members of the media will collect their body weight in press kits and catalogs and when they get home, still not find that one critical piece of info you KNOW you picked up.

5. You always have too many clothes or not enough clothes and no matter how many pairs of shoes you bring, you end up wearing the same ones every day.

6. You should always be nice to any CHA staff member.That person is running on 10 hours of sleep over the past 4 days and they are still trying to be nice and helpful to you.

7. Strangers are always surprised when you address them by name, even when they are wearing a big badge with that name spelled out in half-inch  letters.

8. When you get together with colleagues from different offices around the country it feels like the last night of summer camp when it is time to go home.

9. Somebody always gives some kind of crazy headwear as a novelty.

And finally..... no matter how much craziness ensued in the weeks up to the show, you go back to the office and start coming up with new ideas to do it all over again in six month.

Congratulations to CHA on another great show. I am back to the East Coast tomorrow morning to finish up and get our April/May issue out on Tuesday.

To borrow a greeting from my colleague Patty Craft....  I wish you travelling mercies-- Beth

The most amazing thing about walking the show with other editors is how we visit the same booths at the same time and blog about different things. So be sure to check out the Memory Makers blog at www.memorymakersmagazine.com 
to see some photos and more information on what my sister editors Beth Williams and GenaMarie Reda liked at the show.

The second day has not altered my opinion of the 1970s redux. I saw more versions of the trends previous noted and want to add the following....

• flamingos- check 'em out at BasicGrey
  
• Circus animals (giraffes and lions especially)- especially on youth novelty lines
• Beach themes- shells and surfing
  

In fact, the only thing missing is a big surge in avocado/brown color combos although we are seeing those colors paired with other hues- avocado with rich teal, plum and russet and brown with wine-colored  pinks.

Another thing I noticed which I am informed is not new but seems to be picking up steam is mini albums with different sizes and die cut shapes of filler paper so you don't have a neat paper edge but some sticking out further than others. Adds to the  texture.

Now... folks have asked me about a  breakout product. I've seen a lot of line extensions and variations or improvements on tools at this show. But truly breakout for this show would have to be Kathy Cano Murillo's new Crafty Chica line with Duncan Enterprises. Kudos to Larry Duncan for letting his team execute a vision that is unlike anything on the market.

Esta cosa is muy muy interesante and no debes ser una latina a comprarla. (Pardon the college Spanish but I am excited)

This line includes religious statues than can painted and glittered, little shrine kits and products sporting artwork designed by Kathy's husband that  incorporates Mexican imagery. The kits are based on Kathy's best selling classes over the years. If you know about the Sacred Heart, Frida Kahlo or Dia de los muertos this line will interest you. Iconography at its best.

Plus... Kathy could not be more generous spirit. Considering her MySpace friends list just passed 10,000 people, I'd say she is doing something right. Buena suerte Crafty Chica.

Other interesting products- so many to mention...but here are a few.

At the Amate booth were all these silver or nickel- not sure jewelry components with cups to add scraps that are then covered with a resin or wax to create scrapped jewelry. I liked the wide range of choices particularly a ring with a long vertical rectangle opening. That's the one I want to make.

New lines from Teresa Collins incorporate office supply themes and biker tattoos. Fun and much talked about.

The Ring Ring from Carla Craft. If you like to make spiral bound books this is a great tool for the system punches 5 sheets of 20lb copy paper, it's easy to squeeze and the colorful ring choices vary in size and color.

EK always has great tools we liked the powder brush, the Zig Zag Piercing bug and the 3-D card punches.

Making Memories is making a lot of noise with their Slice machine. Digital die cutting plus scaleability in an attractive compact package.

In our own F+W Publications booth the PageMaps book from Becky Fleck is a runaway winner and Michael DeMeng's in booth workshop had folks blocking the aisle to take a look.

Before I sign off I'd like to say THANKS to all of you who have made a point to stop by and tell us you love Scrapbook Retailer magazine. We value your story ideas and  your positive feedback inspires us to keep getting better. Thanks for the vote of confidence.--Beth

Still on the age of Aquarius roll. The best part of this trend is that it designers are taking only the good things from the 1970s and not the scary polyester/bad outfit ones!

Lots of impressive booths Little Yellow Bicycle had a crisp set up with little sheds sporting corrugate tin roofs an occasion skateboard and the requisite yellow bike. Neat, read boy/teen boy but didn't narrow the them at all.

Trends- Journaling cards- we saw this a few months ago but practically every paper/and or sticker line had a version of journaling cards, often card stock die cuts or stickers with lines for neatly penned copy. Making Memories had a super cute baby version that was really practical for the new mom on the go.

Jenny Bowlin's booth downstairs in new exhibitors was terrific, I love her take on vintage. She had all different takes on the movie ticket. Loved the wiredress forms with vintage clips. dShe wasn't the only one using dress forms in her booth. Dressforms of all types, the foam covered ones and old wire ones are great in scrapbook store displays so keep your eyes peeled at garage sales and thrift shops.

Also in new products... Home Essence/Molly West great line of well-priced upscake albums- hand bound books that really had a fine quality. We liked the School Days album for saving memories from K-8. Great for the scrapper and non scrapper alike with lots of pockets so you don't have to scra-=just put the ephemera in there and let the kid scrap it when they get older!

Core dinations lack Magic line was great for distressers- black paper with a colored core for neat effects.

A shout out to Debra at Rubber Stamp Plantation who sported some great jewelry ideas that incorporated stickers based on vintage Hawaiiana (I made up that spelling but you know what I mean). Some stickers were put on chunky wood bangles, other mounted on metals that were rolled into frames. Neat art jewelry.

Clear Scraps acrylic sheets- Loved them especially the word sets because the letters were extended so that each piece of acrylic added to the word and the album wasn't as bulky.

On my way back out there to see what else is new. Check in later tonight!

Beth

"When the moon is in the seventh house and jupiter aligns with mars...."

Whoops sorry, I have Age of Aquarius on my mind and 1970's style was front and center trend-wise at the show today. All the palettes and motifs were there, only thing missing was the macrame or perhaps I didn't get to that yet.

Color palettes- very important was Adams Blue with Adobe/Rose Red with white accents. Otherwise plenty of pink and green and brightly colored groups with happy yellow undertones.

Motifs: We spotted the owl and the butterfly. Still plenty of birds. Danish Modern stylized trees with leaves and mushrooms. Still some bird stamps and emphemera flying around.

Themes:

Baby, Baby- most companies had baby on the brain with new collections that were shown as pages, cards and home decor. Not much in the way of teddy bears, more in the way of circus animals incorporated in the prints.

Oh Boy- lots of juvenile lines from sports motifs to rockets and robots. If you are a mom frustrated because you can't find cute clothes for your son, at least you can find adorable paper.

Wedded Bliss- Very impressed by what Ellison showed- whole bridal suite from the dress (die cut fabrics to create faux lace) to invitations, favor boxes, paper floral nosegay and more. Shows the mileage you can get with party planning using paper.

Find photos and more product trends at the editor's blog at www.memorymakersmagazine.com.

Other  observations:

The aisles weren't packed but traffic was steady.

A visit to the new product area was well worth it with neat lines from Jenny Bowlin and Pink Paislee.

Great keynote from Suzy Orman who went to the trouble of trying to customize her speech to this audience.Her advice: "People First, then money, then things." Oh and she wants everybody to check their FICO scores!

In the pressroom- again not alot of year  which is shocking for the amount of vendors at the show. Vendors- you are missing out on a great opportunity to put your info into the hands of editors. There seemed to be a preponderance of chunky kits  Lots of chat around that. As for most of us a great press kit is releases and great photos on a CD maybe with a product sample tossed in.

I'm starting to fade because the east coast body clock had me up at 4:00 am so more tomorrow morning!--Beth