Express Yourself Gifts & Baskets Blog

Winter Is Here So Spread Some Cheer

shayenterprises — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 19:20:23 +0000

Wow! We have now had 1 major and 1 minor snowstorm in Central Massachusetts in the past month, and cabin fever is taking a toll. In addition to checking on our elderly neighbors and other people we know that might need some assistance during this snow and ice season, how about spreading a little cheer to someone! A small gift or greeting card, some pretty flowers or a plant, cookies and hot cocoa will bring a smile to almost anyone that is feeling a bit blue this time of year.

January is always a hard month for me, with the end of the high energy holiday season. The gift basket business has been stressful yet stimulating during the past few months, and now, I must bring myself back to a less frenetic pace, while growing accoustomed to not seeing as many friendly faces in the shop as I did during the holidays.

How does the long New England winter affect you? Do you have tips and tricks that you implement to get through the next few months? I try to look at pictures of spring flowers (seed catalogs, gardening books etc.). Also, in the gift industry, it is already spring for purchasing (Easter, Mother’s Day etc.). I still struggle with motivation to move toward spring during this month and, if allowed, would probable hibernate until warmer weather arrives.

If you want to cheer me up this month, stop by the store for a cup of coffee or tea and conversation. If I could assist you in bringing a bit of sunshine to someone else, I am happy to help. Stay warm and safe and I am going to go ice my back from shoveling snow! Until next time…..

Mid May and other Monday Musings

shayenterprises — Mon, 11 May 2009 14:06:37 +0000

I didn’t blog much the past two weeks…I was pretty busy with Mother’s Day customers and wasn’t really near the computer. I was also doing an extra bit of networking which, as many of you know, is the best way to build your business.

Now that most of the string of spring holidays are over, I go into my business building time of year. That means some of you will see me at even more Chamber events, BNI meetings, Leading Women programs and anywhere else business people gather to forge relationships. You may also see more of my company online after Wednesday, because I am participating in the Internet Marketing Workshop entitled Start Turning Your Website into a Lead Generation Machine, sponsored by the Worcester Chamber of Commerce. Continuing education is something I firmly believe will help anyone in business and I try, as much as time away from the shop and budget will allow, to keep learning new things each year!

I am also turing my attention this month toward purchasing for the 4th Qtr Holidays! Yikes, I barely feel I have recovered from the 2008 version of holiday madness! I am trend spotting, sourcing new products and developing an overall “look” for the 2009 holiday season….my biggest problem is motivating myself to look at snowmen and reindeer, pumpkins and warm colors, when here in New England it is barely spring!! Therefore, I am actually taking a day off this Saturday coming to go into Boston and spend a day on the waterfront at the Volvo Ocean Race park. Mark and I have enjoyed watching these sailboats race from port to port in their journey around the world…a feat which will take them 9 months. Boston, the only North American port, marks the 1/2 way point in stops and total points. If interested, PBS (WGBH CH 2) carries the Race Sundays 1p.m. in this area.

Well, off I go into the rest of this glorious Monday! Enjoy the beautiful day!

Learning Social Media Language Is Like Learning a Foreign Language

shayenterprises — Fri, 01 May 2009 16:59:25 +0000

In my neverending quest for learning, I have taken on the elephant in the room over the past few weeks…that’s right the SOCIAL MEDIA elephant. I have committed to blogging on a regular basis and am Tweeting my brains out, all while trying to master the ins and outs of growing my business using the net. I found a great link to a blog on promoting your blog, so I wanted to share, using #10 on the list. Happy reading http://mashable.com/2009/03/29/sharing-great-posts/

Mother’s Day Trivia and Other Monday Stuff

shayenterprises — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 13:51:02 +0000

I thought it might be fun to share a little Mother’s Day history and trivia today, since it is only 2 weeks till we honor Mom for all she has done through the years. I know…I thought it was a Hallmark holiday as well…to promote card sales!

Mother’s Day began with offerings ancient Romans made to their Great Mother of Gods, Cybele. Christians celebrated Mom during a festival on the fourth Sunday in Lent in honor of Mary, mother of Christ. In England the holiday was expanded to include all mothers. It was called Mothering Sunday.

In the US, an Appalachian homemaker named Anna Jarvis organized a day to raise awareness of poor health conditions in her community. She dubbed it “Mother’s Work Day”. When Anna Jarvis died in 1905 her daughter wanted a day to pay tribute to her Mothers work, so she lobbied politicians, including Presidents Taft and Roosevelt. Mother’s Day became a United States national holiday on May 8, 1914, when President Woodrow Wilson signed a Joint Resolution making the second Sunday in May Mother’s Day. Wearing a white carnation, the favorite flower of Anna Jarvis, became a tradition when The House of Representatives adopted a resolution calling for officials of the federal government to wear white carnations on the second Sunday in May in honor of Mom’s. Today, the second Sunday in May is the most popular day of the year for sons and daughters to show appreciation to their mom’s.

You can thank your mother in many different ways, but this one is unique…on your birthday send Mom a gift to thank her for having you!

Okay…here’s the plug…Let Express Yourself Gifts & Baskets design a custom gift basket for your Mom this year…Some popular themes are Pamper, Chocolate Extreme, Bling Bling, Scented Room and Gourmet Lover. Now enjoy the trivia.

Fun Facts about Mothers and Mother’s Day

There are 82.5 Million Mothers in the USA today
96% of American consumers take part in Mother’s Day
Mother’s Day is the peak day of the year for long distance phone call.
Mother’s Day is the second highest gift giving day other than Christmas
82% of the women ages 40-44 are mothers, compared to 90% in 1972.

On Twitter-ing and Better Writing Skills

shayenterprises — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 19:24:23 +0000

In checking out other bloggers, I came across this blog http://www.copyblogger.com/twitter-writing/ After reading, I’m taking this concept further. To write concisely will make you a better speaker, a better communicator in general. As I seek alternative words to communicate by using only 140 characters, I can feel my brain cells spark. A great exercise is to write a paragraph as you normally would, then analyze it, cut and replace words and thoughts to laser beams of accuracy.

Here is a summary in 140 characters.

Writing with choice words to create clarity and purpose, will lead to fewer but more purposeful words spoken, all while exciting your brain!

Technology ROCKS my Gift Basket World!

shayenterprises — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 20:03:08 +0000

I am on technology overload this month. I have committed to learning the ins and outs of, what has heretofor been in a galaxy far, far, away,….the INTERNET…yes that’s right the world wide web. Now mind you, I have had a website since the year 2000 and I use e-mail hourly, so the concept of being out there in the www is not totally new. What is new to me is the plethora of opportunities to build a new group of, as Facebook calls it ,FANS for my business…oh BTW, please become a fan of Express Yourself Gifts and Baskets on my Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Oxford-MA/Express-Yourself-Gifts-Baskets/59260468428?ref=ts. I know… that was a shameless plug of yours truly! Trust me it won’t be the last one either. As a matter of fact, you can also follow my “Tweets” on http://twitter.com/shayenterprises, link to me on LinkedIn, http://www.linkedin.com/pub/dir/?last=kuchenbecker&first=sharon, place yourself in my world on Plaxo, http://www.plaxo.com/directory/profile/17180012259/d23ccbe6/Sharon/Kuchenbecker find and review my business on http://www.merchantcircle.com/business/Express.Yourself.Gift.Baskets.508-987-9875. And the list goes on. Fast Pitch, http://www.fastpitchnetworking.com/buyprofile_nocookie.cfm?ContactID=13494&ShowAds=Yes&CFID=10934468&CFTOKEN=71766733, Naymz, http://www.naymz.com/search/sharon/kuchenbecker/1600207, Hive 411, http://www.hive411.com/Category/gift_basket_designer/.

If you wonder where this is going, Google or Live Search me….I have most of the first 4 pages as listings for my business! And, as the icing on the cake, I got my first order from a site I am listed on today….only 6 weeks after beginning this quest to conquer the galaxy far, far, away….

For the most part, no fees are involved to become a part of this new frontier, although “premium” packages are offered if those premium services are needed. I have spent a fair amount of time preparing these listings and I’ll admit, I wondered if it was all worth it…guess time will tell! I am grateful for the order I received today and I believe if I continue this pursuit other work will come my way. I hope this will inspire some of you to find new ways to market your business.

Appreciation Organized or Not

shayenterprises — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 14:26:49 +0000

April 22nd is designated as Administrative Professionals Day. This annual event was originally organized in 1952 as “National Secretaries Week”. In the year 2000, a name change was announced to keep pace with changing job titles and expanding responsibilities of the current administrative workforce. Over the years, Administrative Professionals Week has become one of the largest workplace observances! For more information on this organization go to www.iaap-hq.org.
In this year of the economic slowdown, we are all stretched a bit more than we would like, so why not be the instigator of appreciation in your office. You don’t need to be the boss or wait for the designated “Day” to thank a fellow co-worker that helps you out. Small things, a note, a card, an-e-mail are pick me ups that anyone would appreciate. A slightly larger gesture might be a cup of coffee that you bring to a co-worker, or perhaps lunch on you! I routinely design gifts from $5 up for this very type of acknowledgment! I often wonder why more people don’t take the time to show appreciation to others in work or life….have we become so stretched….do we work so much that little gestures have become obsolete? How do you show appreciation? I will start by thanking all of you who subscribe to my blog…..thank you, thank you, thank you!

Gifty Greetings and Sunshine Clubs!

shayenterprises — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 15:36:02 +0000

Today, being a sunny early spring day, I thought it appropriate to blog about Sunshine Clubs. What is a Sunshine Club you say? Many companies and organizations utilize this concept to show support and concern to a fellow member or co-worker that is sick or injured, or to celebrate a birthday, promotion, new baby and such. The essence is about giving and as a group, supporting those around you! Frequently members of the company or group will contribute to the fund that enables the club to spread good will. The following link shows how a very active club has gone to the next level with a website to document what they do. http://ersunshineclub.com/.

If your company has a Sunshine Club, pass along a link to this blog as I will be passing along useful gift ideas for just these types of life events! If your company or organization does not have a Sunshine Club send this info along to Human Resources or to the Chairman of your organization and suggest a Sunshine Club…it’s a low cost way to spread cheer and build connections that matter with those around you.

Gifty Greetings to all!

shayenterprises — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 15:24:07 +0000

I am blogging to you from this new space as of today…hope you like the new look and I invite you to subscribe. I will bring you tips on making gift giving an easy and cost effective way to convey your message! Till next time….”give a gift…get a smile!”