FROM THE BOARD 



A Customer's Point of View 



Ann Hilton 



Last spring, for the first time in 

 thirteen years, due to the birth 

 of my son, I found myself not wori<- 

 ing in greenhouses or a garden cen- 

 ter. I though it would be wonderful 

 to have the time off, but as spring 

 approached, I found I really missed 

 the activity. You'd think that after 

 all those long, tiring days growing 

 or waiting on customers, I'd want to 

 stay as far away from it all as pos- 

 sible, but I didn't. I realized I had a 

 unique chance to visit places I'd 

 heard about, packed orders for, or 

 grew for at a time of year when 

 they'd be at their best. 



So once a week, my son and 1 

 hit the road and visited places 

 throughout New Hampshire, Maine, 

 and Massachusetts. I found myself 

 looking at things from a customer's 

 point of view. What attracted me to 

 a place and made me want to go 



back? What made my shopping ex- 

 perience pleasant? Or frustrating? 

 What made me want to buy some- 

 thing? Maybe some of the things I 

 noticed can help you increase sales. 



1 found myself attracted to places 

 that were nicely landscaped or that 

 had attractive displays that were well- 

 maintained or that showcased some- 

 thing new. I found it gave me confi- 

 dence that the owners knew what 

 they were doing and that 1 would find 

 good-quality plants and knowledge- 

 able staff. It upped the perceived 

 value of the product. 1 also found 

 cleanliness important: were there 

 half-dead plants tucked into corners 

 or under benches in the hope that 

 someday someone would get around 

 to resurrecting them? The bad plants 

 made the good plants look not so 

 good. 



1 know from experience that on a 



nice Saturday in May, no matter 

 how much staff you have, it's never 

 enough. Your employees are bom- 

 barded with questions. How many 

 sales are lost because a customer 

 didn't wait for an answer? How 

 many just went ahead and bought 

 the plant, only to have a bad expe- 

 rience because it wasn't right for 

 their needs? Having easy-to-read 

 informative signs (with prices) will 

 make your customers happier and 

 free up your help somewhat Good 

 signs also meant that I didn't have 

 to go digging through pots or packs 

 looking for tags. I'll put the tag 

 back, but other people may not. 

 (So, what color is that delphinium 

 without the tag?) 



There are many options for good 

 signs. Some can be purchased 

 ready-made. Some can be gener- 

 ated on computers and printed on 





Celebratimj our 15th Anniversan^ 



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$4 AdulTs. $3 Seniors <S: Teens 

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T^ashiia 



Info: 603-6S4-S070 



A P R I L . M A Y 



