Tomb It May Concern… Let’s Go Haunting for Halloween Sales!

Cindy Hanauer; GrandCentralFloral.Com

If we want to connect with millennials, then Halloween is the perfect meeting place.   Once a holiday for children, the Halloween of today has become the single-most holiday engaged by millennials (ages 18-34), with parties and events increasing by double digits in the past three years. 

Halloween is a $8.4 Billion Holiday…and Rapidly Growing

According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), 171 million Americans plan to celebrate Halloween this year, spending an average of $82.93, up from last year’s $74.34.  Total spending is expected to reach $8.4 billion, an all-time high in the history of NRF’s annual survey conducted by Prosper Insights. The survey finds that 7 in 10 consumers plan to hand out candy, 34% plan to throw or attend a party, and nearly half will decorate their home.

Halloween has Become a Community Celebration

The days are long gone when the holiday consisted of small children walking door-to-door in a Casper costume, eagerly opening their bags for a treat!  In fact, 2016 is projected to be the lowest year of door-to-door trick-or-treating with only 30% of the population celebrating in this manner.  Instead, Halloween has become a community holiday celebrated with neighborhood parties, office events, town festivals and mall promotions.

Halloween Has Become a Visual Holiday

Many experts agree that the growth of Halloween has occurred in parallel with the surge in social media and the “selfie” phenomenon.  Celebrants are eager to share pictures of the kids, but also eager to share pictures of costumes, décor, food and fellow party-goers!  This is great news for the floral industry, where a more expansive line of products can be marketed for this holiday than ever before!

Halloween Can Produce FANG-tastic Sales…. Here’s How:

1. Start Early!  There’s much a-do made about “how early is TOO early” to display Halloween.  However, it’s important to remember that crafting customers require Fall/Halloween components well in advance of the holiday in order to have sufficient time to create their hand-made wares for Fall/Halloween Craft Fairs.  Additionally, homeowners are beginning to decorate earlier than ever before.  The early-bird crafting and home decorating business is way too important to miss these important sales!

2. Enhancements Sell! Halloween is one of the most photographed holidays of the year!  Hard goods and novelties carry the message of this holiday, and should be widely used to convert at least 50% of all in-store fresh-cuts and potted plants.  In addition, stand-alone hard goods are imperative: wreaths, dried leaves and bouquets, straw bales, corn stalks, pumpkins, baskets, pinecones, cinnamon sticks, scarecrows and more!   Hard goods are, by far, the most profitable category in a retail store and Halloween is the perfect time to add additional profitability to year-end results!    

3. To Market, To Market!  Of all of the times to beef up your marketing push, Fall and Halloween are it!  As the potential for this holiday grows with no slow-down in sight, the emphasis on your entire Fall and Halloween line will pay big dividends.  In addition, a strong showing for Fall and Halloween will more easily open the door for Christmas décor items right behind it!

4. Get Social! Don’t forget all of the great avenues to sell and promote on social media!  There are multitudes of customers waiting to buy: retailers, event planners, crafters, churches, schools, restaurants, shopping centers and many more!  Take care of your customers, and they will take care of you……BOO-tifully!