MGA�s
2005 Winter Convention Wrap-up
Exclusive conference for Marketers
and Suppliers in the
Direct Marketing Gardening Industry!
Held January 19-21, 2005 at the Swissotel, Chicago, IL.
MGA Conventions provide a great
opportunity to:
|
 |
 |
 |
| Network |
Learn |
Profit |
Educational Sessions and Round-table
Discussions
Help MGA Members Learn from Industry
Experts and Experienced Colleagues-- |
Strategic
Planning Session
Kicks-off the First Morning
The MGA Board of Directors want
all MGA members to be involved in the organization. To encourage
member participation, a strategic planning session was held at the
winter meeting. Attendees selected one of five discussion
groups to help brainstorm and evaluate existing MGA programs in
the areas of:
- Internet
- Public Relations
- Member Benefits
- Research & Evaluation
- Leadership Structure &
Award Recognition
Ideas generated in each
discussion group were summarized by the group facilitators and
shared with all in attendance. Notes from the sessions are
being compiled and will serve as guidelines for MGA committee
work.
Industry
Round-tables are Popular Format for Discussion
Small group
discussions provide a comfortable setting for learning and and
they stimulate active participation by those attending.
Convention evaluations show the Round-table sessions are
among the most popular with attendees because they allow more
one-on-one discussion between the facilitator and the attendees
and they are less intimidating.
|
 |
| Reiman
Publications (left), served as a facilitator of the
Round-table discussion about Merchandising and he also led
the educational session entitled �Using Merchandising
Results to Plan for Success�. Clayton Beaty, Beaty
Fertilizer (right), takes the opportunity between sessions
to have some Q&A time with Minix
Bob Bell,
Mantis (right), led the Round-table discussion about �Testing�.
Listening intently are Dick Chamberlin, Harris Seeds
(left) and Bill Dye, Dye & Associates (center).
|
|
Association
Leaders Welcome First Timers
|
Past and present officers and board of
directors of the Mailorder Gardening Association want to ensure all
members get the most from their experience in the organization. And one
of the best ways to do this is to make sure our first timers feel
welcome from the start. As part of the first timers experience at an MGA
convention, they are invited to have lunch with the organization's past
presidents. These are some of our longest-term members as well as some
of the most experienced direct marketers in the green industry -- all of
whom are willing to share their knowledge with other MGA members. They
are a great resource for our membership -- especially to those just
coming on board. Fourteen first timers attended the winter convention.
In addition to the luncheon with past presidents, the first timers are
each assigned a mentor who contacts them ahead of the convention to
welcome them and to answer any questions they might have about the
organization.
John Miller, Miller Nurseries (left), welcomes first timer Kyle
Brown, Stark Bro's Nurseries. Miller was MGA president 1972-73. Miller
Nurseries has been a member of the MGA since 1958. |
First timer Martina Bockenstedt, Farm Tek
Growers Supply (right) and her husband, Shane. |
Proudly displaying her door prize of new
Florian pruning shears is first timer Alice Collines, Liquid Fence Co. |
First timers Frank DiPaolo, The EarthBox (left), and Gayle McCuistion,
NextAction. |
|
E-commerce - The Everchanging Marketing Tool! |
|
Getting your website noticed by
internet search engines is an important marketing task, if your company
hopes to reach potential consumers online. MGA convention attendees
learned about techniques for capturing the attention of search engines,
so that their website is near the top or at the top of the search engine
results when a request is made. Ideas for how to do this in a profitable
manner were also discussed during this afternoon of e-commerce
information.
The first session was led by Matt
Spiegel, president of Resolution Media, who shared several suggestions
on how companies large and small can capture customers from across the
nation or around the world when search engines are used properly.
Spiegel also served as a facilitator during the morning round-table
discussions on Search Engine Optimization.
Following Spiegel's presentation, a
panel of MGA members provided insight on what individual companies are
doing to evaluate the impact of search engines on website recognition
and ultimately sales. Attendees also had the opportunity to participate
in a web-related exercise with their peers which helped them think about
what they might do differently with their websites to help them perform
better. |
Matt Spiegel, Resolution Media, (left) visits
with MGA Vice President Jim Bryant after
the educational session about using search
engines to help market your website. |
MGA members participating on the e-commerce
panel included Hans Miller, Burpee (left), Val
Gossett, Powell Direct (center) and Jason Wiles,
MasterGardening.com (right). |
 Kay
Kehler,
Mantis (at left),
also served on
the member panel
for the
e-commerce session. |
Jeff Little (right), who handles internet marketing for PBM
Group/Compos
Tumbler, offered
insight from his company's perspective
regarding e-commerce. |
|
|
Networking --
Important Aspect of MGA Conventions
Thanks to the generous support of
many MGA member firms who help underwrite the costs of the
convention meals and social events, the attendees have opportunity
throughout the convention to discuss business with colleagues and
visit with friends they've made. Member firms which serve as
convention sponsors are recognized on the organization website, in
the programs distributed at the convention along with other
promotional materials displayed there, and they are verbally
thanked during the convention as well. If your firm is interested
in being a sponsor at the Summer 2005 meeting in Orlando, FL,
please contact MGA Executive Director Camille Cimino at the MGA
office.
Quad/Graphics was one of the Diamond Level sponsors at the
Winter Convention. Shown above is Jim Rudek, Quad, Chris
Fetters and Deanne Colledge, House of Wesley, and Tim
Ohnmacht, Quad. |
Bob Bell, Mantis (left) and Joel Toner, Horticulture
(right). Mantis was a Gold Level sponsor, and Horticulture
Magazine was a Diamond Level sponsor. |
Ellen Payne, Marketshare Publications, (left) Platinum
sponsor, Frank DiPaolo,
The Earthbox (center), Diana and Dan Wells, New Growth
(right). |
Lisa Wright, Horticulture (left), Nat and Judy Florian,
Florian Tools (center) and Tina Koenemann, Westbridge
Agricultural Products. |
|
|
|
|
Analysis
and Strategy Planning
Go Hand in Hand for Success
Merchandising strategy
involves more than just doing the analysis of the sales figures.
According to Phil Minix, Vice President of Catalog Marketing for
Reiman Publications, understanding the analysis and affecting
change in your merchandising strategies is what will drive your
increased success. It also involves good communication between the
product people and the marketing folks.
"Managing the product mix so
as to generate the desired sales results is an ongoing
process," Minix stated. "Likewise, merchandising
strategies may vary depending on whether a cataloger is striving
for house file growth, if they are trying to grow top line sales
or if they are looking at just profitability." Minix also
stressed that it is very important to understand corporate
objectives when evaluating merchandise results. |
Phil Minix, Reiman Publications, discussed several merchandise
analysis techniques to help catalogers accurately determine what
items in their product mix are working and which ones need to be
eliminated. |
Get
'More Bang for Your Buck' --
Integrate PR Into Your
Marketing Mix |
| Whether a
catalog company is large or small, new in business or one that has
been around for decades, it is important that marketing dollars be
spent wisely. Even savvy marketers know the value of having both
advertising and public relations in their marketing program, but
rarely do they integrate the two effectively. Search engine
marketing should be categorized as an advertising function, said
Joe Bardetti, The Well. According to information Bardetti
provided, "Search engines help marketers target valuable,
motivated and ready-to-act customers, customers who are actively
seeking product or service information." Bardetti also
stressed that it is important for a cataloger to marry its online
and offline marketing efforts. As with advertising, it is
important for catalogers to conduct their public relations efforts
on a regular basis, stated Mark Bouffard, media imPRessions.
Catalogers need to continually pitch their expertise, said
Bouffard, emphasizing the importance of "thinking
visual" when working on PR. "You have to picture the
story to get the story," added Bouffard. "Getting the
desired media to pick-up on a public relations pitch can involve
thinking "quirky", said Bouffard, adding that "at
the same time it's best to take an honest approach in what you are
trying to promote." |
Joe Bardetti, Chief Creative Officer, The Well, and Mark Bouffard,
CEO media imPRessions led a session jointly which focused on
integrating search engine marketing and pubic relations into a
cataloger�s advertising mix. |
|
Catalogers
Display Their
Green Thumbs Proudly!
Recipients of the MGA
Green Thumb Awards were announced at the recent winter convention.
A total of ten awards for 2005 were presented: five new plant
varieties and five new gardening products. Winners are chosen by
an independent panel of garden writers and editors. The winning
products are selected based on uniqueness, technological
innovation, ability to solve a gardening problem or provide a
gardening opportunity and potential appeal to gardeners. The
awards recognize products available by mail or online. A complete
list of the winning plants and products for 2005 is available
on the MGA website. |
MGA President Bruce Frasier,
Dixondale Farms (left),
holds one of two Green Thumb Award certificates
presented to Ava Salman, High Country Gardens (right). |
|
Chicago Direct
Marketer of the Year Paints Challenging Picture for Mail Order Gardening
Catalogers
Ed Bjorncrantz, The Callahan Group |
Survey statistics show that a high
percentage of consumers who purchase gardening products direct are
satisfied with their purchases and how those products perform. The
statistics also indicate that these satisfied customers are likely to
buy from gardening catalogs again. That picture sounds positive enough,
but Ed Bjorncrantz, a partner in the Callahan Group (a consulting firm
specializing in strategic marketing, human resources and change
management) cautions catalogers against being overly optimistic unless
they are willing to carefully study the numbers and work to change them.
Bjorncrantz, who was selected as the 2004 Chicago Direct Marketer of the
Year, was the keynote speaker at the closing luncheon of the winter
conference. He emphasized that the gardening industry is a highly
competitive market, where it is difficult to maintain market share and
average order size. Bjorncrantz, did state, however, that there are
proactive steps gardening catalogers can take to improve their sales and
marketshare in spite of the challenges they face. Suggestions
Bjorncrantz offered included:
- Continuing product development for
improved and new, exciting introductions,
- Focusing on new customer acquisition
techniques,
- Consider cooperative marketing
strategies,
- Develop affiliation with home
centers,
- Work on segmentation of customer
lists and house files,
- Strive for more branding of industry
as a whole, and individual catalogs, and
- Continue to emphasize expertise and
knowledge.
|
|
