>>Baked goods might be difficult to ship out as gifts. <<
Some cookies ship well. Biscotti are ideal, along with many other hard bread/cracker type items. Chocolate-covered pretzel sticks, rock-sugar coated spoons, etc. are also durable. You can run a search for recipes of things for shipping, care package foods, etc. Many holiday gift foods are in this category and there are whole cookbooks on the topic.
Anything too delicate for shipping complete, you can offer as a recipe. Some things also work as mixes -- cupcakes or soups, for example -- that people can finish at home by following the instructions on the label. There's a tea shop in our area that sells a variety of baked goods, soups, etc. as packet mixes.
Hmm, you could also investigate local suppliers such as organic farmers who could source fruits, vegetables, eggs, milk, etc. Some of them might be interested in investing just for the sake of having another market for their products.
>>Given we want to get mismatched chairs and tables and will be repainting and refinishing a lot of that we'd wondered about saying we'd paint people's names, or family friendly design requests as thank yous onto the chairs and tables but I'm not sure how that would go over. <<
I think that's a great idea. Crowdfunders tend to love customized stuff. You could have a giant decoupage/painting art party to decorate the stuff with local supporters. Or even put poetry or sayings on the furniture like some coffeehouses do.
>>Brain storming other things we could send out tea balls or mugs and pots, I suppose. <<
Tea balls are good: light and relatively hard to wreck. Mugs and pots are both heavier and more fragile; more expensive to ship. I suggest those as high-end perks, especially if you can get a local-to-you potter to make some. Tea plates or bowls are also good -- and small plates are harder to break than cups.
>>We'll be offering other services on an appointment basis, such as hypnotherapy and tarot readings -- but some of that is less easy to do via mail order. <<
Tarot readings work great online and are among the most popular projects; but you need a reader who can do distance readings.
>>We're going to have a little gift section in the store to go along with some tea gift baskets that we intend to have which will likely have some wood-burned jewelry and boxes, hand made candles, smudging supplies, crystals, runes and some things like that.<<
Samples from the gift shop would make good perks, yes. I recommend looking for a source of postcards or note cards with local images. Tourists love things like that. Check for local photographers or artists as many of them make their own and sell them in nearby shops.
Think about what other crowdfunders might have to swap too. I've written poems about tea before. Something like that might be fun to put on cards or placemats, or paint onto the tables or walls. You might find someone willing to do logo or banner art in exchange for yummy tea.
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Okay...
Date: 2012-03-18 09:05 pm (UTC)>>Baked goods might be difficult to ship out as gifts. <<
Some cookies ship well. Biscotti are ideal, along with many other hard bread/cracker type items. Chocolate-covered pretzel sticks, rock-sugar coated spoons, etc. are also durable. You can run a search for recipes of things for shipping, care package foods, etc. Many holiday gift foods are in this category and there are whole cookbooks on the topic.
Anything too delicate for shipping complete, you can offer as a recipe. Some things also work as mixes -- cupcakes or soups, for example -- that people can finish at home by following the instructions on the label. There's a tea shop in our area that sells a variety of baked goods, soups, etc. as packet mixes.
Hmm, you could also investigate local suppliers such as organic farmers who could source fruits, vegetables, eggs, milk, etc. Some of them might be interested in investing just for the sake of having another market for their products.
>>Given we want to get mismatched chairs and tables and will be repainting and refinishing a lot of that we'd wondered about saying we'd paint people's names, or family friendly design requests as thank yous onto the chairs and tables but I'm not sure how that would go over. <<
I think that's a great idea. Crowdfunders tend to love customized stuff. You could have a giant decoupage/painting art party to decorate the stuff with local supporters. Or even put poetry or sayings on the furniture like some coffeehouses do.
>>Brain storming other things we could send out tea balls or mugs and pots, I suppose. <<
Tea balls are good: light and relatively hard to wreck. Mugs and pots are both heavier and more fragile; more expensive to ship. I suggest those as high-end perks, especially if you can get a local-to-you potter to make some. Tea plates or bowls are also good -- and small plates are harder to break than cups.
>>We'll be offering other services on an appointment basis, such as hypnotherapy and tarot readings -- but some of that is less easy to do via mail order. <<
Tarot readings work great online and are among the most popular projects; but you need a reader who can do distance readings.
>>We're going to have a little gift section in the store to go along with some tea gift baskets that we intend to have which will likely have some wood-burned jewelry and boxes, hand made candles, smudging supplies, crystals, runes and some things like that.<<
Samples from the gift shop would make good perks, yes. I recommend looking for a source of postcards or note cards with local images. Tourists love things like that. Check for local photographers or artists as many of them make their own and sell them in nearby shops.
Think about what other crowdfunders might have to swap too. I've written poems about tea before. Something like that might be fun to put on cards or placemats, or paint onto the tables or walls. You might find someone willing to do logo or banner art in exchange for yummy tea.