Garden Centers Shouldn’t Blog?
Over at Doug’s Blog he writes a post titled “Garden Centers Shouldn’t Blog”. Read it and see if you agree or not. If you already believe that blogs are a waste of time, this will validate that.
I was recently interviewed by a magazine that asked if I could cite how much our revenue has grown since starting my blog. I have no idea if it’s driven any new business into the store. Just wanted to write about stuff that interested me. If your going to blog do it because you want to, not because it’s cool. I love this quote, “you’re in the nursery business – not the information-business.”. Next time somebody brings a leaf in and wants it identified I’ll tell them, “I am in the nursery business, not the information business.” ‘What’s the difference between organic and synthetic pesticides?” “I am in the nursery business, not the information business. Get your answers at Doug’s Blog.”
Doug’s advice on web pages, ” You need a website and you need it optimized for local searches. You need to have something up there that that speaks to local folks so when they search for a garden center in “anytown†– you’re going to pop up.” This is excellent advice!
This is why blogging is looked at suspiciously by those who want to measure the results of the time spent. Why spend time blogging if you can’t monetize the experience. Blogging is not about driving customers to the store. It’s about SHARING INFORMATION and learning from one another.
I am sure Doug would laugh at my new found interest in “Twitter”. No way that’s going to bring me customers. Here is the bottom line. All this stuff is so new we can’t possibly know where it’s going or how big it’s going to get. You are either “on the bus” or not. Doug and I are.
A couple quick observations:
~ Trey, your blog is not consumer-facing. It is a B2B blog. Doug is talking about a consumer facing blog. No comparison IMHO.
~ Newsletters are all the rage, but are not interactive. If garden centers/nurseries would leverage a blog against newsletter content, they would develop a relationship and dialog with an expanding customer base. Then, when it comes time for the consumer to make a purchase, who are they going to trust? Of course, the one they know on a first name basis via the interactive blog.
Blogs are about community. Either you’re in or you’re out of the community.
Take your pick.
My $0.02.
Steve
I just read Doug’s post and then headed here to send you the link, Trey…but you’re a step ahead of me!
I completely disagree with Doug’s stance that “you’re in the nursery business – not the information-business.†That is how to spell disaster for any nursery…heck, most any business, actually!! We’re always looking for the latest and greatest new plant and products, but how well will it sell if the consumer doesn’t know anything about it? We have to teach them!
A large portion of my days are spent answering customer’s questions. Would those customers return if I didn’t answer their questions? No. If they can’t get accurate information from me, they will go somewhere where they can get good info.
Another point I strongly disagree with is not providing an email contact – “you don’t have time to answer email in your busy season.” I’d rather respond to emails in a timely matter at *my* convenience rather than be interrupted by phone when I’m busy. I personally get frustrated when a website does not list an email. Often I send email inquiries after hours – when *I* have time – rather than during business hours when I have other things to do.
I agree with Steve that a blog could replace…or at least compliment…a newsletter.
Josh – I answered Josh on my blog where he posted the same comment so I’ll let that one go.
Steve gets it right imho when he points out that this blog is B2B rather than B2C. Why you’re doing this blog (perhaps the sharing of information you allude to) is your own business but it’s not a local oriented garden center blog. I do have a newsletter and I do mix the two together regularly and think Steve is spot on with that.
Trey – I think you’re making a point about information but taking it to a step too far. Your nursery is in the nursery business and part of that business is providing information to customers. But that nursery isn’t in the information business – it’s main purpose is to sell plants, not sell information. And any good business owner knows that providing information about products and services is simply part and parcel of being in business. So I consider that part of your post a bit specious.
As for Twitter… I’ll have to get back to you on that major time-sucking, time-wasting masterful blend of meaningless minutiae. Oh wait – I think I just did.
I’m not sure one way or the other whether it makes good business sense for a nursery to have a blog. However, Doug’s calculations are wrong. He says that it costs $100 per customer to get someone into the nursery to buy discounted goods. And that’s the end of his calculation. But what if that customer likes your nursery so much that he or she buys $50 worth of plants and dirt with that coupon, and then over the next year, buys hundreds of dollars worth of plants, dirt, fertilizer, pest spray, stepping stones, pots, etc? Is that initial $100 really wasted?
My aunt probably spends many hundreds of dollars every single year on her garden. If there was a local nursery that had a blog with gardening ideas that caught her attention, they could easily convert her into a regular customer. She buys most of her plants at Home Depot. But this past weekend, she went to an upscale nursery called Roger’s Gardens because I heard (from a blog) about a special display Roger’s was unveiling and emailed her a link. She bought 6-8 succulents (I bet they were $5-10 each), a $25ish pot for the succulents and three unusual roses that I am sure were expensive. I bet she easily spent $50 and probably more. All because of a blog.
Oh, and she’s planning on going back for a class she heard about while she was there. If they’re smart, they’ll be able to convert that class into another $50+ sale.
Is my aunt an unsual case? I don’t know. I’ve never worked in a nursery. But it seems to me that you can’t stop the calculation to determine whether a blog is worth it at the first time you’ve gotten a customer through the front doors.
Gee, I always thinking how great it would be if I were local enough to shop at the Golden Gecko because I feel I KNOW YOU through this blog, but retail blogging is so new, who knows how the finances will shake out a couple of years from now? Anyhoo, you enjoy it and not everything can be measured in cold-cash calculations. Certainly not the joys of writing.
Blogging is fine, podcasting is great, web sites are really important. I think it’s just necessary to have some kind of internet presence. I prefer to spend my time building our web site and doing podcasts, but I think anything that helps develop your online presence is probably the best use of your advertising dollar. The time you spend at it can decrease what you spend on traditional advertising sources.
Consumers under 40 don’t use the yellow pages, newspaper ads are of decreasing value, and the customers of independent nurseries aren’t price-oriented so coupons and discount programs are of little value. But if your web site or blog comes up quickly on a google search, you’re advertising yourself effectively. It’s another form of networking, builds your reputation as a local resource for information and products, and helps establish your image.
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I think every business is an information business now. And one way for independent stores to differentiate themselves from the ‘big boys’ is to be a one-stop shop for information. To be the expert source. Blogging can bring you and your store to attention of the press, who will come to you for quotes for their stories, and that’s great PR right there.