[Idea] Custom Design Orders in December

For those of you who might stop taking custom orders early in
December:

Don’t miss out on those custom orders! It will be a VERY late Xmas
this year but you can’t do custom at the last moment.

Many folks try to sell a loose stone and a gift certificate to have
the receiver come back in January to make something. Sometimes just a
gift certificate.

A Gift certificate looks like its “last moment”.

You might still have time to do this:

Go to a trophy shop. Many will make Lucite paperweights (stone will
do). Have them engrave with their machines your company name and
logo. Then in big bold letters have them engrave dollar amounts,
example:

ABC Jewelers

T W O H U N D R E D A N D F I F T Y D O L L A R S

Return to redeem

Then when you need to sell a gift certificate you are giving the
buyer something of WEIGHT. When gift wrapped its open with
anticipation. It looks like it’s worth something (more than a paper
one at least). You can actually sell the idea!

The receiver gets this Lucite gift certificate gift wrapped with
your company info, cards, etc.

They BRING it back in to use to buy something or design in January.

Guess what? You recycle this, use it over and over. They have to
return it, its money.

Get a few to try. Fifty dollars, $100, $250, $500.

Save Christmas and keep customers from going someplace else. Make it
easy and wonderful for the men.

David Geller
http://www.jewelerprofit.com
The Repair & Design Price Book guy

Ooooh David, Very cool idea! As a woman, I’d be delighted with such
a gift. The only thing I would suggest is some form of counterfeit
protection. Maybe a specially created and signed, embossed card
that would be difficult to duplicate?? Other thoughts? Judy in
Kansas

Judy M. Willingham, R.S.
Biological and Agricultural Engineering
237 Seaton Hall
Kansas State University
Manhattan KS 66506
(785) 532-2936

david- I think your idea is brilliant!( the lucite gift certificates)
and so generous of you to share it with all of us. I will get some
made before my next retail show for next year, as I have three big
special orders to get done before this x-mas. Thanks again for the
creative idea. happy holidays- gail

It is probably too late to do this now but…why not have your gift
certificates photoetched on a silver plate? Do the same thing you
would do on Lucite–make them in denominations like $250, $500,
$750, $1000. The plates could easily fit in a standard pendant box,
and I guarantee that they will look mighty impressive when the box
is opened. This does a LOT to boost the image of your store, yet
costs very little. I have even had clients who were reluctant to
redeem the certificates, because they loved showing them to their
friends.

So, if there is someone out there in Orchidland who is doing
photoetching and would like to make plates like this for jewelry
stores, this would be a great niche market product. I need more…

Doug Zaruba