Thursday, July 21, 2011

Adding value to your balloon designs ... 'The Very Best' way to stand out from our competitors!!

  
In this ever increasing competitive world we need to look for ways to make our business stand out. Like many Independent business's we are surrounded by 'the big boys', who can sell products cheaper than the independent store... so how can we ever compete for business?

BE DIFFERENT! 
If I want a single balloon on a ribbon & weight, I am most likely to buy it from my local supermarket, the same can apply to a bunch of fresh flowers, chocolates or candies, it's easy, it's convenient and in most cases it's cheaper. But if I want a special bouquet of flowers or elegant handmade boxed chocolates then I head off to the professionals!

So as a balloon professional and specialist let us look at what we can do to make our balloons stand out from our competitors.

Image 1
Step 1. Sell balloon's that last!
The Qualatex Bubble range is unique. They are vibrant and fun like the Birthday Brilliant Stars Bubble shown (Image 1). Made from a special stretchy plastic makes them pop resistant and withstand outside pressure changes better than most other types of balloon. They do not oxidize and will float for a number of weeks! All in all a retailers dream!


It would be easy to just simply inflate a Bubble balloon and attach it to a weight, but hey... anyone can do that (with a little know-how).






Image 2.




Step 2. Let's add value! 
At a very minimum I would add a 'balloon collar' at the base of the Bubble, this could be a cluster of 5" balloons or twisted 160Q 's can look great too! (see Image 2).





 

Instead of using a simple balloon weight at the base, how about making up a balloon 'gift box'? Easily made using  5" balloons, making it inexpensive, but very effective, 

Take a look at the 3 different versions below and see how we can transform a single Bubble on a weight into the perfect balloon gift! You will also see that by simply changing the colors of the 5" and 160Q balloons we can create a different look each time!

  
Sue Bowler
   






 















We can do the same with other types of balloons too! This time we'll look at working with a Qualatex Suprafoil Special Shape - The Birthday Penguin, a fantastic balloon for all ages!
Qualatex Suprafoil balloons offer superior float times and will float for up to 30 days! Lightweight Suprafoils offer more lift, even in higher altitudes. They also retain helium so well that you'll spend less time & money refreshing your stock, so once again it's perfect for creating designs that have lasting power!


Here I am showing you 2 simple idea's to create fantastic added value designs.
Sue Bowler


1. Using the same 'Gift Box' idea as the Bubble balloon above, makes the perfect base (look at how I have used the same color balloons as the 'gift' the Penguin is holding), this makes a great retail design.

2. For even greater impact, how about  adding a 'Happy Birthday' Bubble to the Penguin's hand, this time I have coordinated the gift box base with the decorated Bubble ... now that really is a great Birthday design!

These are just a few idea's on how to make your designs stand out from the crowd, the simple rule is to always add value to your designs, even a simple thing like always using Hi-Float in your latex balloons will make a huge difference to your customers, as you will be known as the balloon company who's balloons always last longer!

What are you waiting for, add value to your designs today, the added product cost is minimal, the perceived value is huge! See how quickly theses designs sell and more importantly how often customers return for new and exciting balloon design idea's that only your store sells!.

2 comments:

Red Balloon said...

Great Blog Sue and as always so practical. Could you please tell me the best way to make a balloon gift box weight? Thanks in advance Sue.

Sue Bowler (Marston-Weston) said...

Hi, thank you for your comments, I am pleased that you are enjoying my Blog! I will being publishing a step by step for these designs very soon... Keep on watching!