We plan, you plant

Our informal poll on Facebook confirmed what we already suspected: “we plan, you plant” services remain extremely popular in this tight economy. The trick, it seems, is making these consultations both helpful and profitable.

And so we turn to North Haven Gardens’ playbook. This Dallas retailer has achieved success with its NHG Garden Coach Program. For a $50 fee customers get a 45-minute appointment with one of the store’s Texas Certified Nursery Professionals. The resident expert will suggest plants and offer maintenance information based on the photos and property sketches brought in by clients.

Here’s the kicker: Customers get a $50 North Haven Gardens gift card at the conclusion of the appointment. Pretty much a guarantee that clients will immediately do some plant shopping or—at the very least—come back at a later date.

You can download a PDF with more details about North Haven Gardens’ innovative program at http://bit.ly/nhgcoach.

Attract The Weekend Gardener
New planning system creates “bite sized” projects

Here’s another new idea to get folks planting: The Weekend Gardener system from TerraTemplates (www.terratemplates.com). The Weekend Garden Kit helps homeowners to create designer-quality planting areas in easy-to-follow weekend ‘bite-sized’ projects.

The system lets you, the retailer, create a plan for customers by placing plants in a design grid, while marking the position on the “Plant & Pick Sheet.” The kits come in a 10 per carton display boxes, along with a display kit to demonstrate the system to customers.

Hot DIY ideas online
Looking for more DIY inspiration to share with customers? Head over to Pinterest (http://pinterest.com/) and type “Garden DIY” in the search box. Eye candy galore!