With the holiday season kicking into full speed, ChamberExpress™ is here to give you some fun, creative and business-enhancing tips to getting the most enjoyment out of the coming months.

 

The first stop:  Halloween!

 

Business Booster:  A Screaming Good Time For Customers

 

FYI:  Safe Night, Safe Fright

 

It’s All Yours:  More Than Goblins Are Green

 

 

 

Business Booster:  A Screaming Good Time For Customers

Did you know that Halloween is the second (only to Christmas) decorating holiday of the year? These fun ideas can help your chamber and its members create a unique and customer-friendly celebration. Send them around to your members and encourage some ghoulishly good times!

 

• Many towns make Halloween a business affair by creating daytime designated routes for children to trick-or-treat and show off their costumes with a special parade. It’s a lot safer for the kids and it’s good business! Merchants can get involved, not only by offering tempting treats for the kids, but by offering promotions and discounts to the parents. Malls and downtown business districts are excellent options for Halloween parades.
• How about a “Scarecrow Trail” in your community? Each business creates or sponsors a different scarecrow to mark the trail for trick or treaters.
• Copy centers or printing services can offer quick photo prints of little ghouls and goblins, princes and pirates, for a small fee. A hay bale and a scarecrow make a great backdrop for souvenir snapshots of children all dressed up for this fun holiday!
• Grocery stores and pharmacies can provide candies and coupons for popular fall food items. This would be a great time for drawings and giveaways geared to mom and dad.
• Discount stores can pass out balloons along with inexpensive treats and promotional items. You might consider Frisbees, Silly Putty, or stickers featuring the store logo. Glow in the dark wands and necklaces or other safety-oriented items in case kids trick-or-treat at night are good ideas, too.
• Professional offices such as doctors, optometrists, and dentists can pass out profession-related gifts (such as toothbrushes) as well as literature inviting new patients to try out their services. Those same offices can also do a post-Halloween “candy trade in” to swap sugary treats for healthy substitutes.
• Host Halloween celebrations and make them part of your annual business calendar. Any business can decorate the workplace or hold Halloween parties. What makes the difference is when they are part of an ongoing program of holiday events — celebrations that customers will remember and look forward to from season to season!
• It may seem obvious, but it’s still good to remember -- as you celebrate, keep an eye on your inventory. Items specific to Halloween, candy and decorations, are essential to any holiday celebration, so make sure you have enough of what you’ll need, but monitor inventory patterns from previous holidays to make sure you don’t end up with overstock that sits in the supply room until next year!

FYI:  Safe Night, Safe Fright

 

Provide this free article for your member businesses that have online or printed newsletters. If they’re looking for content, this seasonal reminder is perfect!

 

Did you know that, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), children are four times more likely to be hit and killed by an automobile on Halloween than any other night of the year? Here are some great safety tips from AAA:

 

-- Watch where you’re going. Wear make-up instead of a mask that limits vision.

-- Walk in a group. Don't run.

-- Young children should always travel with a parent, or a responsible older child.

-- Start early when it is still light, and finish before it gets too dark.

-- Carry a flashlight.

-- Wear light-colored or reflective costumes, or trim costumes with reflective tape for greater visibility.

-- Cross the street carefully at corners and never in the middle of the block or between parked cars.

 

It’s All Yours:  More Than Goblins Are Green

 

Feel free to use this ChamberExpress™ article in your chamber newsletter or for a press release to your local media. It’s a timely and interesting story that will show that your chamber is thinking creatively!

 

Want to have a “green” Halloween this year? Here are some great ideas to get you started:

 

• Instead of buying a new costume you or your child will wear once and throw away, try making one out of clothes and fabrics you already have. Or get terrific “glad rags” at thrift shops and yard sales. Swap costumes with neighbors and friends, and give your kids' used costumes to daycare centers or shelters.
• Send your kids out to collect their candy with reusable buckets, canvas bags, or pillowcases.
• Once Halloween is over, recycle your pumpkins, the straw you used to build scarecrows, and any other organic material by creating compost. The natural fertilizer will do wonders for your garden.
• Make sure your children dispose of their candy wrappers in their bags or in trash cans rather than on the street.
• When buying treats to give out, choose items that come in a minimum of packaging. Keep it simple! Some folks skip the candy altogether in favor of useable treats like pencils, pens, funky erasers, and even nickels!

 

Happy Halloween!

 

ChamberExpress™ wants to brighten its’ clients holidays this year with a big “Thank You!” for referrals. Find out how!