These are some great questions and concerns from park store buyers about pricing Junior Ranger backpacks. We have listed them below so you can read other buyers’ concerns and learn about our responses.

1. The pricing structure in my store is to key-stone all items, your backpacks won’t sell at such a high price.
2. The public is very sensitive to price – especially now in a down economy. Your backpacks are priced too high to sell in this recession.
3. Your backpacks are great. My store sells them for more than your recommended price because they are such good quality. But, they sell slowly, what can I do?
4. My customers will go to an outdoor store to buy a backpack.
5. Customers will not buy anything in my store priced over $25.
6. My store can buy cheaper Junior Ranger backpacks from a park association out west. Those backpacks look just like yours. Why should I go with your backpacks?

CONCERN 1:
The pricing structure in my store is to key-stone all items, your backpacks won’t sell at such a high price.

RESPONSE 1:
Note: Key-stoning is when you double the price. A store buys a product for $1 and gives it a 100% markup, selling it for $2.

This is an easy pricing model to manage, but not practical for all items – and it does not serve your customers well. You might try offering markup levels for the ‘benefits’ the products offer the customers.

LOW BENEFIT:
Low benefit items generally retail between $1-$5. These products have a low wholesale cost and offer a return for your store of 200%, 300%, even 500%. Low benefit items tend to be more ‘touristy’ and share these characteristics:

• Offer a single use
• Function is only in appearance
• Almost exclusively made in China
• Manufacturer knows little or nothing about how their product was made, product testing etc.

MEDIUM BENEFIT:
Medium benefit items generally retail between $5-$20. These products have a mid-range wholesale cost and offer a return of 200% to 300%. These items tend to be more interpretive in function and targeted to the local resource.
Medium quality items share these characteristics:

• Can provide more than one use
• Function is limited
• Allows visitor to convey an understanding of the local resource
• Made overseas or in U.S.
• The manufacturer has some knowledge about how their product was made, product testing etc.

HIGH BENEFIT:
High benefit items in your store retail from $20 on up. These products have a higher wholesale cost and offer a lower return of 30% to 100%. These items tend to be highly interpretive, target the local resource, and can be used at other parks, and used for learning after the visitor leaves the park. High quality items share these characteristics:

• Offers potential for multiple uses
• Provides an interactive function other than appearance
• Allows visitor to convey a fuller appreciation of the local resource
• Can be used to further interpretation of other parks and resources
• Made overseas (to U.S. safety guidelines) or in the U.S.
• Manufacturer has extensive knowledge about product safety etc.
• Manufacturer is freely willing to share and be open about their business practices
• Manufacturer provides information or is willing to train your staff about their product.

CONCERN 2:
The public is very sensitive to price – especially now in a down economy. Your backpacks are priced too high to sell in this recession.

RESPONSE 2:
During this Recession families have suffered great financial losses. Families are obviously concerned about price, but their expectations about pricing and products has transformed. The public now wants “greater insight and accountability, transparency … and assurances for the future” with anything they buy. (The Burton Group, “Dimensions of the New Normal” page 2, Jan. 12, 2010).

The outdated 20th century way of doing business was ‘Just making a profit.’ Today, anything you sell in your store must ‘walk-the-talk’ by being safe, environmentally accountable and trustworthy. If not, customers will view your store as just more of the same outdated thinking that contributed to the recession and their pain. Your message will be irrelevant to them. Do you want this for your park or your customers?

Our backpacks are made with accountability in mind, we freely give information about our product testing results and are working to continually improve our backpacks. People are sensitive to price, but what they really want is a genuine experience and to feel safe.

CONCERN 3:
Your backpacks are great. My store sells them for more than your recommended price because they are such good quality. But, they sell slowly, what can I do?

RESPONSE 3:
The recommended retail price printed on our price sheet is there for a reason. We understand how our backpacks sell and give pricing information to help you. If your store is selling a backpack higher than our recommended range it will be slow in selling. Bring the price back in line with suggested levels. You will still make a good profit.

CONCERN 4:
My customers will go to an outdoor store to buy a backpack.

RESPONSE 4:
Outdoor stores do not sell Junior Ranger backpacks. Besides, you have a home-field advantage – your park. You have your customer’s attention, time and interest – use it well. When a Junior Ranger backpack is placed in context with the resource it will sell. Some suggestions:

• Cross-market with the Junior Ranger program at your park.
• Offer parents/kids a discount on a backpack when they become Junior Rangers.
• Use some of the backpacks as an ‘adventure pack’ full of useful day hike items that a family can check out and use for the day. When they return the pack offer them a 15% to 25% discount off a brand new backpack.
• Create a display that features related items. Stuff a backpack as a sample so it can be tried on, tested, touched etc. Help the visitor to see how the backpack can be used and enjoyed.

CONCERN 5:
Customers will not buy anything in my store priced over $25.

RESPONSE 5:
Customers will spend money when they see value. Value is a combination of price, quality and longevity. Our backpacks offer all three. Plus we can make it, deliver it, provide your store with pricing recommendations, merchandising suggestions and offer information to help your staff to be knowledgeable about our backpacks. The last step in creating value is at the store level. A genuine smile goes a long way. Being knowledgeable about products, answering questions, letting customers try on a backpack can help close any sale – even sales over $25.

A suggestion, when working with the public in your store do NOT say, “Can I help you?” Eighty-percent of people will just say, “No thanks – just looking.” I do this when people ask me the question – others do it too. People dislike the question because 80% of the time the question is not relevant to their needs at that moment.

You can help your customers without getting in their face. Be observant, depending on your situation and customers, some of these approaches might work better:

If moving beyond the $25 ceiling remains illusive try these suggestions:

• Sell the backpacks for less, you make less per backpack but you will sell more backpacks.
• Bundle the backpack with other items to create a ready-to-go backpack with a magnifier, sketch book, crayons, small book etc. In terms of costs you might break even on one of the items, but you sell many more of the others.
• Offer a day-of discount on the backpack. If a child completes a Junior Ranger certification program they receive a big discount on a Junior Ranger backpack on that day.

CONCERN 6:
My store can buy cheaper Junior Ranger backpacks from a park association out west. Those backpacks look just like yours. Why should I go with your backpacks?

RESPONSE 6:
The copycat ‘Junior Ranger’ backpack is cheaper for a reason: it uses poor materials, low quality seam work, is NOT compliant with U.S. product testing laws and is a blatant copy of GlyphGuy’s original backpack design.

The copycat looks like a GlyphGuy Junior Ranger backpack but NOT in functionality, durability, product testing or originality.

Remember, your park is what is sells to the public.

Photos, fabric test results and comparisons of the copy backpack are provided here.

We had some interesting feedback from our post “25 Ideas to Inspire Your Next Park Association Blog.” We hope you find these additional 25 ideas to inspire your next park association blog article useful:

1. What does your association’s logo represent?
2. How are you helping the community, region and world?
3. How can you help families and visitors save money?
4. Did anyone from your organization attend any interpretive training? What did they learn?
5. Where can visitors find information in the park?
6. Where can visitors find information about the park?
7. What are the various modes of transport for families visiting the park?
8. What can families with children do to ensure a safe and fun visit to the park?
9. How can children become involved in the park?
10. Any Junior Ranger programs?
11. How can children become involved in Junior Ranger programs?
12. How can parents help their child become a Junior Ranger?
13. How can visitors help animals in the park?
14. How did landmarks in the park get their names?
15. What trails are recommended for young families?
16. What trails are recommended for day trips?
17. What trails are recommended for overnights?
18. How do you listen to your visitors?
19. How are products in the park store helping to further park messaging?
20. What ways can families celebrate birthdays in the park?
21. How can families make a birthday donation to support program animals, trail markers etc.?
22. What is a major investment made by the park association?
23. How are your store’s products helping programs in the park?
24. What in the park inspires your staff – how can park visitors visit such a place?
25. What things make your park a special place?

Recently the bookstore manager at a park association commented she was ‘spinning-her-wheels’ to maintain a blog for the park association.

She had been assigned the task several months ago and was still not entirely convinced the blog was worth her time or efforts. Was she missing something? If so, how could she improve the situation?

The majority of articles that were posted on the park association’s blog were related to organizational announcements and some statements provided by higher management. These items have their place, but the content is not greatly relevant to the needs of your readers – the park visitors and people interested in work of your association.

These visitors will find your blogs more meaningful if the articles:

1. Encourage park visitors to be creative.
2. Help park visitors to solve a problem.
3. Provide park visitors with information that is relevant to their interests.
4. Inspire visitors to create their own understanding of the park.

But where to find content for such articles?

The content is everywhere, but blog’s content must be seen from the perspective of a visitor. Remember, the content for blog articles is not about your park association – it is about how your park association helps the visitor.

Here are 25 ideas to inspire your next park association blog article:

1. What is your mission? How does it help visitors to the park?
2. Where are you located in the park? Why?
3. How does your association help the park’s economy?
4. How does your association help the local economy?
5. Is the association green?
6. What step are you taking to reduce your ‘footprint’ on the park?
7. What steps are being taken to conserve energy and water?
8. What are you doing to help habitats?
9. What is the hottest interpretive product in your park store right now?
10. When was the association founded? Why?
11. What was your latest interpretive program?
12. How was your latest interpretive program successful?
13. What was a mistake your association made – How did you recover?
14. When and where is the next educational program?
15. When is the next family event in the park?
16. What is a common misconception about your organization or services?
17. How are you being impacted by park budgets?
18. Why should I join your park association?
19. Feature a volunteer of the month.
20. What is your greatest concern for the park?
21. What is your greatest concern for interpretive programming?
22. When was the last time your association made the news?
23. When did your organization last receive any corporate sponsorship?
24. How is your organization working with local or regional educational programs.
25. Does the association offer any training or community outreach programs?

How should Junior Ranger backpacks be merchandised? Here are some successful park store experiences -

A family enters the Visitors Center of a Park. Inside the building are the standard features: information counter, maps, interpretive displays, camping information and a chalk board scribbled with the latest trail and weather conditions. A small store area entices visitors with a colorful arrangement of park products that include: clothes, a Junior Ranger backpack, bug viewer, journal, compass, field guides and a Junior Ranger activity book.

The Dad notices a Coyote Junior Ranger backpack displayed on the wall. He takes a closer look. A sign on the backpack reads, ‘Try Me On.’ For a minute the Dad adjusts the pack over his shoulder; this middle-aged man looks silly trying on a Junior Ranger backpack but the kid in him cannot resist. The young daughter approaches and picks up a smaller, Chipmunk Junior Ranger backpack. Dad had not seen this backpack on the shelf, but his daughter did. Close to the backpack samples were several baskets filled with flat backpacks ready for sale. Peppered around the baskets are child-sized binoculars, compasses and items that complement the Junior Ranger program.

The young girl tries on the smaller backpack. She twirls to show Dad then picks up a Junior Ranger activity book. She runs over to Mom. Dad studies his backpack: the stitching, the zippers even the embroidery. It was maybe a few dollars more than he wants to spend, but it is a solid backpack that will be used many times over. He reads the hangtag and is impressed that a backpack’s manufacturer donates a portion of the sale to the National Park Service.

An eye-catching note on the wall mentions an ‘adventure pack’ program where families can borrow an outfitted backpack and aspiring Junior Rangers could use the equipment to help with their own explorations. The girl came back with Mom in tow. The daughter was ready to earn her Junior Ranger badge, maybe even get a Junior Ranger backpack.

At the counter the family chatted with the store employee for several minutes. The employee was very knowledgeable about the park and products in the store.

The family enjoyed the day. The information from the store employee, the good workmanship on the backpack and the Junior Ranger activities were combined to make the family’s time in the park relaxing, fun and relevant.

Merchandising any product is about finding the right combination of products, price, promotion and place on the store shelf. The art of merchandising Junior Ranger backpacks is to remember that park visitors seek benefits provided by a product – not the product itself. Consider these points when merchandising your Junior Ranger backpacks:

A). Perspective
Keep a stuffed backpack at your audience’s eye level. If your audience is 4 to 6; or 7 to 12 place items for their perspective. Need a refresher course? Stand on your knees and look at the items in your store. How do you see things?

B). Hands-on
The number one missed opportunity in park stores is leaving a sample backpack flat! Ever seen a flat backpack? It is boring – benefits are hard to see. Provide your customers with a sample Junior Ranger backpack that is plump. Find some brown Kraft paper, or recycle newspaper, and stuff a backpack with the crumpled paper. This plump backpack will be a what customer can pick up and squeeze, grip the texture, look at the materials, observe the workmanship, feel the weight, see it on another family member, even try it themselves. These things are hard to do with a flat backpack. A plump Junior Ranger backpack allows people to visualize how it can benefit them.

C). Location
What are the first things people see when they enter your store? Do you have a display that is inviting? Do the products differentiate your store from another store – or associate your park to a larger park system? Are the products in context with the park? Do the products benefit or detract from the park experience?

D). Make the ‘buy’ decision easier
Make the decision to ‘buy’ easier for the customer. Take away as many objections as you can by providing a physical sample and offering helpful information about the backpack. Create opportunities for people to see how a Junior Ranger backpack can benefit their time in the park – even their experiences after they leave the park.

E) Pricing
Should Junior Ranger backpacks be priced higher or lower than the suggested retail? Are you in business to make money, further an interpretive mission or do both? These can only be answered at your store level. But consider what other parks have done. A handful of parks have sold Junior Ranger backpacks at a low retail to increase program participation. Some heavily visited parks sell the backpacks at suggested retail to maximize revenue. The majority of parks sell the backpacks slightly less than suggested retail. They make less profit per unit, but sell more.

F). Cross-merchandise
How do you want visitors to see the Junior Ranger backpacks? As just another backpack, or as a tool to help youth explore and gain a better appreciation of the park. Help visitors see that the backpack can be an extension of his or her own explorations. Provide a sample with a bug-box, binoculars, viewers, field guides, journals, and any items that might be appropriate.

G). Sell the Junior Ranger experience, not just a backpack
Do you have the ability or opportunity to link the backpacks into your Junior Ranger programming? Maybe the backpack becomes a reward item for completing a Junior Ranger activity. Possibly the backpacks are used as ‘discovery backpacks’ and loaned out to visitors to help them discover for themselves why your park is important. It is the larger Junior Ranger experience that should be marketed first; backpacks are a tool to help with the experience.

H). Increase Your Product Knowledge
Ten minutes of product knowledge can go a long way to benefiting your sales. Visit these web pages for a quick read:

- Mapping Park Store Products To Tilden’s Interpretive Principles
An interpretive product should help convey appreciation for or understanding of a site or park program. But, what is an interpretive product? These questions were developed as food-for-thought for park store staff…

- A Strong Park Store Does Not Sell Products
A strong park store does not sell products, it sells benefits. During a visit to a National Park last summer I overheard a family refer to the products in the park store as ‘weak’. Looking at the shelves filled with plastic mementos and affixed logo items I knew what they meant…

- GlyphGuy’s ‘Green’ Steps
GlyphGuy is a small, family-owned company that works to reduce waste, conserve energy and prevent pollution in all business activities. Since we began making backpacks in 2003 our ultimate goal was to become a zero-waste company…

Parks and outdoor interpretive organizations are always looking to green their operations. But sometimes the enthusiasm of the moment results in a “Ready, Fire!, Aim” approach that has unexpected consequences.

I would like to share some experiences from my consulting and from greening the operations at my company, GlyphGuy. Please use the following “Ready, Aim, Fire!” framework to generate additional discussion at your own location.

First, understand the purpose for greening your enterprise (Ready). What problem do you wish to solve?

This may sound counter-intuitive, but the purpose for greening your space is not about ‘saving the planet’ or ‘protecting the environment’. While individuals and organizations may be passionate about such issues, framing a discussion around these over marketed hot-button slogans could have combustible results. Remember that a manager, co-worker, budget officer, a visitor, even a financial donor may have a very different perception about these words and their meanings.

The purpose for greening your organization should instead be grounded in measurable benefits like: reducing waste, reusing-recycling materials and conserving energy. Any green activity must make sense financially.

Second, understand the business justification (Aim). What results or benefits do you wish to obtain from your green project? Here are three of my favorites:

- Obtain the marketing high ground.
- Gain a competitive advantage.
- A healthier bottom-line.

Obtain the marketing high-ground: By reducing waste, reusing-recycling materials and conserving energy you can market yourself as a good neighbor and a positive influence in the community. Good neighbors are hard to find. Good neighbors have value.

Gain a competitive advantage: You want to provide a potential visitor less of a reason to say ‘no’ about visiting your location. By demonstrating a healthy and clean place for families to visit and spend quality time you gain an advantage over competitors (competitors include anything that will distract a possible visitor from spending time at your site).

A healthier bottom line: If you measure the results of your green processes (reducing waste, reusing-recycling materials and conserving energy), review and make adjustments along the way, the long-term effect will be a healthier bottom line for your organization.

Third, now you have defined the purpose (Ready) and understand the business justification (Aim), you can pull-the-trigger (Fire!). Here are five helpful steps to consider:

Step 1: Scope
Document your project’s scope – this includes the project’s purpose and business justification. Imagine that you will sit down with a hard-nosed decision maker – you only have two minutes to answer their question, “Why should I care about this?” Open up a blank PowerPoint presentation and start typing; in 5-7 slides, no more than 10 you can make an executive level presentation – short, quick, to the point. Even if you never use this document in a presentation, you understand (and can communicate) the scope of the project.

Step 2: Assessment
The purpose of an assessment is to help establish a baseline for your green practices. A baseline is the original plan for a project, and any changes will be measured against the baseline. Here are two green business frameworks to help with your assessment. These frameworks were developed by the Santa Clara County – Bay Area Green Business Program and are shared with permission. Use what you can at your local site.

» Resource Conservation & Pollution Prevention Checklist for Office/Retail.
» Resource Conservation & Pollution Prevention Checklist for Landscapers.

Please note the Bay Area Green Business Program can only certify businesses and organizations within their territory (San Francisco Bay Area in California). Possibly the need exists for a national certification especially for interpretive centers and related organizations (hint).

Step 3: Implementation
This is an entire subject by itself of which future articles will be written. But here are some key points to remember when implementing your green processes.

» Build on small victories.
» Generate momentum (buy-in) for your project by demonstrating the economic benefits.
» Green activities should not be dictated from above – rather modeled.
» Don’t clutter up people’s lives with inconvenient solutions to small problems.
» Document processes.

Step 4: Communicate
Publish the processes on an intranet or other centralized internal website. Communicate with your donors and visitors about how you are reducing pollution, etc. Educate any front line staff to the advantages and goals of your project.

Step 5: Measure
Refer to your original baseline and track progress at least on a monthly basis.

When greening your own operation remember a “Ready, Aim, Fire!” approach before starting a project. Understanding the purpose and the justification of the project will help you in reaching your green goals.

Park stores, nature centers and interpretive centers are the front-line for communicating about the need for a healthy planet. This ‘green’ messaging often includes conserving resources, preventing pollution and minimizing waste. But sometimes the products sold in these front-line locations are not in context with a green message.

An under utilized resource can help – the store’s vendors. Vendors can influence and even choose the activities, people and organizations that produce, transport and sell their products. What if these activities included ‘green’ processes: recycling, reusability, low toxicity, responsible labor practices, environmentally-friendly packaging, low impact manufacturing and the reduction of environmental hazards? Will vendors support these green processes? They will if enough of their customers (the park stores) ask.

Consider these fifteen points when communicating about the need for ‘green’ products:

1. Look before leaping. Before communicating a ‘green’ product vision to vendors you need to understand your own organization’s expectations and goals for the park store. Why is your store where it is? What is the purpose of having a retail arm to your organization? What blend of product strength is needed? What is the typical dollar amount spent by customers in the store? What products will benefit the local resource? Will the products map to interpretive principles and be in context with the local resource?

 

2. Is everyone on board? Understand your organization’s pre-existing feelings and expectations for vendors. Are the decision makers (in the product approval process) open to new items? Do they consider vendors a tool for helping your store’s mission, or are they viewing vendors as money-hungry pests that want to turn your spot of nature into Park-Mart? If you do not already know, learn about what they view as a green product and what they will, and will not, approve.

 

3. Ask others. Ask other stores about good and bad vendors. Which vendors have a history of ‘cheaping-out’ on products? Do any have a history of green washing (saying they are green but really are not)? Who walks their talk? Which vendors come recommended?

 

4. Open the door. Ask vendors the question; “What makes your product so great?” It quickly tells you about the product and provides the vendor a short opportunity to communicate the product’s benefits. If you see or hear things that can further your green messaging, the door is open to learn more. If you need to move on, let the vendor know that you are looking for more ‘green’ items.

 

5. A green strategy. Does the vendor have any strategy for incorporating green processes into products? If so, can s/he demonstrate how the processes are being implemented?

 

6. The product’s life cycle. Learn about the life of the product. Is the product a cradle-to-cradle or cradle-to-grave product? Most products on store shelves are cradle-to-grave; this means the product is manufactured (cradle), it is used, and then at the end of its life is thrown away (grave). Ask if the product is transitioning to cradle-to-cradle; this means the product is manufactured (cradle), it is used, and then at the end of its product life undergoes a recycling process (cradle). The recycling could be biodegradable, made into an identical product or be used for another purpose. It is important to let all vendors understand this is the preferred direction.

 

7. A link in the chain. Understand the vendor’s supply chain. The supply chain is a system of activities, people and organizations that move products from supplier to customer. Most vendors consider their work as only one link in the ’supply chain’ – to sell a product to your store. Look for vendors with a broader view.

 

8. Closing the loop. How is the vendor working to close the loop on the supply chain? Does the vendor support furthering green education or understanding? Is the product a contributing influence or interdependent with the park location or programming?

 

9. Transparency. How clear, ‘transparent’, is the vendor about green practices? Are the goals and accomplishments posted on the vendor’s website or marketing collateral?

 

10. Look for the ‘Made In Sweatshop’ label. If you do not see any transparency in the supply chain, ask some pointed questions, “Is this a sweatshop product?” and, “Where do the products come from?” These can be hard question to answer for many vendors because of the abundance of overseas suppliers and multiple middlemen that blur the supply-chain. If you do not see any transparency and the vendor cannot effectively answer these questions, be very concerned.

 

11. Heavy metals. Ask for information about whether the products are tested for lead and other heavy metals. Are lead (Pb) levels below the recommendations set by the Consumer Product Safety Commission? How were the products tested? What processes are in place to further reduce the presence of lead or other metals?

 

12. Green business. Does the vendor have any green certifications? Does the vendor work with suppliers who have received any third-party certifications or awards?

 

13. Other customers. Inquire about the vendors’ work with other outdoor and education groups. Who are other customers? Is the vendor associated with organizations that support green principles? Do employees have any special training from these organizations? What trade shows does the vendor attend?

 

14. Evaluate the vendors. Evaluate a vendor’s feedback and consider who can best help with greening the products in the park store. Obviously, some vendors because of size, limited resources or absolute focus on the bottom line will not view going ‘green’ as an option. Avoid vendors with a complete lack of will. Evaluate all vendors based on the product needs and goals of your organization. Nurture the vendor relationships that are on a green track.

 

15. Green means Green ($$). Most vendors understand that working toward a healthy planet is good business and believe that a long-term business relationship is good for themselves and the park store. It is important to remember that pursuing earth-friendly products is time consuming and currently more expensive than traditional methods. Vendors must see a return on their investment or they will not continue to pursue a green line of business. If a vendor has earned your business make sure they receive your business.

 

Birthdays allow us to celebrate our life but also reaffirm our sense of belonging to our family, our community and our natural world.

Does your park or nature center offer programs for birthday celebrations? This is a great opportunity to encourage area children and adults to connect with nature. The number of families searching for alternatives to the commercialized packaged parties – pizza fun houses and bounce houses – is increasing. They want a richer experience for their time and money. The cost of gas, cake, park entrance
fee and park program fee is substantially less than one bounce house on the front lawn. The time spent in a natural setting…priceless.

Some considerations for your birthday program planning:

• Create an on-line invitation. Include a simple map, and a basic list of items needed by each participant such as sun block, water bottle, hat, jacket, and camera. (Of course, the perfect way to carry these items would be in a GlyphGuy Chipmunk backpack).
• The program should be fun as well as ensuring your interpretive message. A good resource for appropriate games and activities to support your program is www.nature-watch.com.
• Plan seasonal programs for each age range that you plan to serve. Check to be sure that the content and activities are appropriate to the age range. Resources include: For seasonal ideas www.dakotacounty.us and for general party ideas,
  www.naturesanctuary.com/parties. If you are unfamiliar with children’s developmental levels, email janet-at-glyphguy.com.
• Be sure to suggest an appropriate group size for each program and whether additional adult supervision is required.
• Provide a dedicated space or picnic site for the post program refreshments, and cake. Emphasize eco-friendly practices regarding litter, recycling, balloons etc.
• Suggest a possible birthday donation to support program animals, trail markers etc. (Perhaps in lieu of the traditional birthday presents). Your programs will most certainly support current efforts to get kids back outside where they belong and give concerned parents the alternative birthday celebration opportunity they are looking for.

Can a product be interpretive?

These questions were developed as food-for-thought for those who work in nature centers, parks or interpretive organizations.

Questions are mapped to Tilden’s six interpretive principles as re-stated in Beck and Cables’, ‘Interpretation for the 21st Century’.

To spark an interest, interpreters must relate the subject to the lives of the people in their audience.

• Does the product support personal discovery, or a discovery situation?
• Does the product allow the visitor to gain new insights / or see previously known information in new ways?
• Is the product practical and does it relate to the experiences of the park visitor?

The purpose of interpretation goes beyond providing information to reveal deeper meaning and truth.

• Does the product provide a quality opportunity for the visitor to support your park’s programs?
• Does the product support a connection between the tangible and intangible elements of an interpretive site?
• Does the product reinforce information about the site in meaningful ways?

The interpretive presentation–as a work of art– should be designed as a story that informs, entertains and enlightens.

• Can the product be localized with interpretive text, or customized to creatively support a park theme?
• Is the product compelling as well as providing a vehicle for park themes?
• Is the product in context with the site or program themes?

The purpose of the interpretive story is to inspire and to provoke people to broaden their horizons.

• Does the product support awareness, understanding, or enthusiasm for the resource?
• Can the product be used to make information meaningful?
• Can the product support a behavioral change or reinforce existing behavior?
• Does the product allow for experiential learning?

Interpretation should present a complete theme or thesis and address the whole person.

• Is the product an extension of the unifying park or program theme?
• Was the product produced with materials, or methods that support park themes?
• Does the product activate the senses?
• Does the product relate the visitor to current or future park activities?
• Does the product meet tangible needs, emotional needs or transformational needs of visitors?

Interpretation for children, teenagers, and seniors-when these comprise uniform groups-should follow fundamentally different approaches.

• If needed, can the product be tailored to support a specific age group or a range of age groups?

All park stores want to ‘get the word out.’ It is critical to communicating with visitors: it is critical for generating much needed revenue.

‘Getting the word’ out includes such activities as ’sales’ ‘advertising’ ‘marketing’ ‘promotion’ ‘merchandising’ and others.

Often these sales and marketing words are interchanged with each other. But these words have unique meanings, often with powerful results.

Wrestling with sales and marketing words is not new. Over one-hundred years ago people sought to understand similar concepts. A humorous yet relevant answer came from the circus.

“If the circus is coming to town and you paint a sign saying “Circus Coming to the Fairground Saturday,” that’s advertising. If you put the sign on the back of an elephant and walk it into town, that’s promotion. If the elephant walks through the mayor’s flower bed, that’s publicity. And if you get the mayor to laugh about it, that’s public relations. If the town’s citizens go to the circus, you show them the many entertainment booths, explain how much fun they’ll have spending money at the booths: answer their questions and ultimately, they spend a lot at the circus, that’s sales.”
-PT Barnum.

Today, people still work to understand these concepts. During my visits to park stores I have heard sales and marketing terms used, but sometimes the well-intentioned use of a word does not fully apply to a situation. A review might be needed. Listed are frequently used sales and marketing terms along with short definitions:

Advertising:
Advertising is the paid, sometimes free, communication through a medium (internet, radio, magazine TV, signage) in which the sponsored is identified, and the message is controlled. Advertising is not marketing; it is one of many processes that constitute marketing.

Brand:
A brand is a logo, name or design that is associated with a product or service. A brand is the symbolic link to all the information connected to a product, service or philosophy. A brand often includes a specific logo, fonts and colors.

Direct Marketing:
Direct marketing includes items like catalogs, postcards, direct mail and email. The strength of direct marketing is that sent items can be tracked and their results measured by the sender.

Graphic Design:
Graphic design is about communicating visually to present information. It includes both the designing and production sides of a product.

Logo:
A logo is a symbol representing the identity of a company or institution.

Marketing:
Marketing is about communicating your products, services or ideas to a market. A market is a group of people who have a want or need for your product.

Merchandising:
Merchandising for a park store is about ’selling off the shelf.’ That means finding finding the right products, price, promotion and place on the store shelf. Merchandising can also refer to a brand or image from one product used to sell another. An example of this is how the Star Wars movies images are used to sell a variety of other items, action figures, games, cereal, clothing etc.

Packaging and Labeling:
Packaging is the science, art and technology of enclosing or protecting products for distribution, storage, sale and use. Labeling is any written, electronic, or graphic communications on the packaging, or on a separate but associated label.

Product:
A product is anything that can be offered to a market that might satisfy a want or need.

Promotion:
Promotion involves disseminating information about a product, product line, brand, or company. Promotion can include direct promotion where an advertiser paying an advertising agency to place an advert; or indirect promotion where the consumer is unaware that promotion is taking place, as are sponsorships or endorsements.

Promotional Items:
Promotional items are generally merchandise given away free of charge in an effort to increase interest in, or sales of a product or service. Promotional items are often referred to as “novelty items”, “swag” or “tchotchkes”.

Public Relations/Publicity:
P.R. is the deliberate attempt to manage the public’s perception of a subject. Publicity is when information about a company, product or service is communicated to public via the mass media.

Sales:
Sales is the act of providing buyers with a product of service in exchange for money or other compensation. Sales is not marketing, it is a practical implementation of marketing.

Sales Promotion:
These efforts are designed to have an immediate impact on sales. These can include: coupons, discounts, contests, rebates and free samples.

POP:
Point of Purchase. POP displays help to display a product. Such displays are generally located on an aisle, at the point where the decision to buy is made.

POS:
Point of Sale. The POS is where you pay at the cash register. Many are already familiar with the POS area from trips to the grocery store. This is where candy and magazines are made easily available to captive shoppers while waiting in line.

References: Wikipedia

Many discussions about wireless internet and cell phone service in parks emphasize how such technology will detract from the visitors’ experience and disturb the park’s solitude. These are highly compelling points. Even more compelling is that many parks and related park associations have limited revenue sources and must leverage every opportunity to further their mission. Often overlooked in such discussions are the benefits of wireless and cell phone technology. It is, after all, the benefits from the technology that visitors want.

What if a mom had the peace-of-mind of knowing she could check up on her kids if they did not return in a reasonable time by using a cell phone? What if a dad could upload his photos to the internet so other family members could share the trip? What if a kid could download an interpretive file to his iPod and learn more about where he is and how the park relates to his life?

The benefits of having technology in a park are not limited just to visitors. A park association could generate revenue by operating a kiosk where digital photos are placed on CDs or quickly uploaded to a park website for the visitors. Interpretive programs could be developed and uploaded to iPods (already happening in some parks), or used as ‘Discovery Pods’ and included with Discovery Pack programs. Remote park association stores could be linked together so electronic Point-of-Sale systems could actually work; allowing visitors the real-time convenience to use credit cards and increase revenue for the association.

Granted, just because some visitors want cell phone and internet access does not mean the park should scramble to provide something that trashes or overwhelms the original purpose of the park. Careful planning is needed to bring a variety of affordable, practical and meaningful technological applications to a park. And yes, a targeted commercial solution might be needed. Some parks will continue to fear the use of technology and do nothing to advance the larger conversation. But what are the effects of inaction?

A growing park visitor group wants the security of cell phone service and convenience offered by high-speed internet access. The effects of not adopting technology are: A). visitors will have more reasons to spend their precious time and money elsewhere; and B). because a park did not leverage an early advantage, the only alternatives to provide such services in the future will be increasingly commercialized. The problem with inaction and not leveraging an early advantage is that if one waits too long, someone else will set the agenda for you.

Wireless internet and cell phone service should not be feared, it should be researched and engaged to understand its strengths. The use of wireless internet and cell phone service should be leveraged to strengthen the park’s message.

Here are 7.3 actions for increasing revenue in the park store. These actions were complied from observed success stories at park stores and those with a need for improvement.

1. Consistently offer products that represent the park.
Products in a park store must maintain an interpretive focus. Or, said another way, products must represent the local resource. Sometimes the siren song of quantity (filling shelf space) is more powerful than the need to maintain quality products that target the mission. Simple questions to help determine if products represent the park are: Is the store’s product selection balanced (weak, medium and strong) [Read more about the Product Strength Scale]. Do store products inform, enlighten and entertain? Do store products provide a benefit to the customer, my organization and the park?

2. Provide Customers An Online Experience.
If your park organization/store does not have an online experience, start to grow it. An online experience means information that is usable to the client. An online experience does not mean a website is required to have complex graphics, layouts or storefront. If an organization has the resources for a storefront, great! If this is not possible, strive for a useful online presence, provide a page with a selection of your products along with a shopping form that can be printed and mailed; offer a page with local weather conditions, trail reports, a calendar of events, bulletin board (see #7). etc. Mostly, keep the website simple. Remember, any online experience is more for your customers than it is for your organization. Even a basic online experience can accentuate interpretive programming by providing the products and educational tools that help visitors to continue their own explorations. Need help setting something up with no or little cost? Contact the local college, and see if the technology department is looking for a way to help students utilize their skills on a project.

3. Invest in an accounting system.
An ‘accounting system’ does not mean keeping records on paper or in an Excel spreadsheet. Off-the-shelf financial software will ultimately save your organization time and money over these other systems.

4. Develop a ‘Best Practices’ book.
A best practices book is a how-to-guide, a book of processes. It is a guide that can be handed to stand-in employees and they can quickly come up to speed. Not documenting the basic processes of your organization is a liability and a dis-service to customers. If the person running the store becomes sick, suddenly leaves the store, or gets hit by a bus; who will replace their knowledge and experience? What information will the new person use to run the store? The book does not have to be complicated. The processes as ‘opening the store’, ‘opening the safe and turning on the register’, and ‘closing processes’ can each be a short checklist.

5. Invest in community outreach.
An annual park festival, community day, nature event or seasonal activity that engages and educates the public is a must. Such an event can be a revenue generator for the store and remind the local public of your park’s value. These events are investments, they will cost some money to develop and implement, but in terms of public perception not having an event may be more expensive than having one.

6. Include vendors in the product planning discussion.
This sounds weird, but good vendors are concerned about your store’s success. If your store does well, they do well; a good vendor is concerned about your long-term success. If a different price or quantity of product can improve your bottom line, talk to them. The vendor may not be able to negotiate on price, but maybe they can extend payment terms, offer tier pricing or bundle pricing. Do not be afraid to share pricing data with good vendors.

7. Communicating with customers is a two-way street.
Communicating with customers (this includes park association members) should include more than a just a printed publication. Printed publications are a great tactile medium and good tools for communicating one direction. However, in today’s time-limited world, two-way communication methods should be considered:

7.1 Email Newsletter:
A newsletter is a regularly distributed publication about a topic that is of interest to its audience. People subscribe to a newsletter because it provides information they cannot locate elsewhere. An email newsletter is a highly effective, low cost option for communicating with your audience and avoiding the ‘out of sight, out of mind’ syndrome. A newsletter should be a tool for customers to obtain additional information. Always offer links back to your website. If a quarterly paper newsletter exists, use a monthly email to supplement the physical newsletter.

7.2 Bulletin Board.
A bulletin board is a place where a person can leave a message for others. Think of a bulletin board in the campground – except yours is online. An electronic bulletin board allows you to review messages left by others and, if you choose, to leave a response. Bulletin Boards serve a specific interest group. A cooperating association could use the Bulletin Board to offer the community of park enthusiasts a method to share their knowledge; their thoughts on great hikes; or to offer new explorers a place to ask the more experienced about what is in the park. An enthusiastic volunteer could administer the bulletin board.

7.3 Web Log/Blog
The term ‘blog’ is a blend of two words: web and log (Web Log). A blog is a user-generated website. Entries are made in a journal style and posted in a reverse chronological order. Blogs provide commentary or news on a particular subject. Readers can leave comments and even post their own information. An interpreter could use a blog to post information about ‘the happenings’ in the park: the latest on wildlife rehabilitation; the construction of a new nature center; Junior Ranger events etc.

Some or all of these actions may work for your specific park store. In any case I hope you find some useful; at the least, these actions are food for thought.

A strong park store does not sell products, it sells benefits.

During a visit to a National Park last summer I overheard a family refer to the products in the park store as ‘weak’. Looking at the shelves filled with plastic mementos and affixed logo items I knew what they meant, but still I politely inquired.

The family considered the products in the park store as trinkets. Such products did not represent the great several days they had just experienced. Over the past several days the family had shared a rare extended weekend together. During their last hour in the park they wanted to buy something that helped ‘connect’ them to their enjoyable family experience. The family was purchasing one small item for a house-sitting relative but did not find any items that benefited themselves. Their final moments in the park would end on a lackluster note. The park store had products, but products alone do not sell. Too often park stores do not understand why customers buy.

Customers Buy Benefits
Park store customers seek benefits. Another way of saying this: customers do not buy products; they buy the benefits they receive from the products. Examples: People do not buy plush animal toys; they buy play. People do not buy books; they buy knowledge. People do not buy a whistle; they buy safety. People do not buy annual park passes; they buy convenience. People do not buy jackets; they buy warmth. What product benefits do the visitors to your park store seek?

All sellable products in a park store, or at least every product group, needs to be benefit-assessed. The next step is to determine how these benefits add-up to strengthen the store, extend interpretive programs and benefit customers. Product strength can be identified as weak, medium or strong.

Hougardy’s Park Product Strength Scale-

WEAK benefit products share two criteria:

• Single use.
• Function is only in appearance.

MEDIUM benefit products share three criteria:

• Can provide more than one use.
• Function is limited.
• Allows visitor to convey an understanding of the local resource.

STRONG benefit products share four criteria:

• Offers potential for multiple uses.
• Provides an interactive function other than appearance.
• Allows visitor to convey a fuller appreciation of the local resource.
• Can be used to further interpretation of other parks and resources.

A Balanced Park Store
A balance of weak, medium and strong-benefit products in the store can strengthen sales. Too many weak items, greater than 50% of inventory, does not serve any interpretive mission for the organization. Weak benefit products are generally impulse-buy items that do not engage the user beyond the act of purchasing it. I have found that medium and strong benefit products have the ability to engage the user, even alter perceptions. Strive for a combined inventory of 60% with medium and strong products.

Park customers buy the benefit(s) provided by a product. Park stores need to identify the benefits of their products and classify them as weak, medium or strong. A healthy inventory will have a majority of medium to strong products. Products do not sell, the benefits of the product do.

Sometimes a park visitor is irritated about something. They direct it at you. They say something in a harsh tone and an awkward response is made. No one intends it, but the dialogue is becoming a confrontation. One simple question can redirect a possible confrontation back to a conversation.

The question is, “What would you like me to do?”

A Park once requested I work on a design for their Park Store. After spending several days in the Park I returned to the Park Store for a wrap-up meeting. While in the parking lot I noticed a very large Cadillac sedan. In the Cadillac was an elderly couple; their license plate showed they were from several states to the east of their current location. Their car doors opened. The wife commented, “This place looks nice. Let’s see if we can get something for Megan.” He loudly commented about finding a restroom.

I arrived in the Park Store for my meeting a few minutes early so I browsed the store’s items. A minute later the elderly couple entered the building. The woman saw something on a store shelf and walked over to look. The man quickly walked up to the checkout desk and bluntly asked, “Where’s the can around here?”

A very young seasonal worker was behind the desk. She was nice enough but spoke as though she was reading from a script, “Hello. The Day Use fee is $5.00.”

His tone was gruff, ” I can always tell when I drive into this state – my wallet gets lighter.”

The worker politely smiled. “It’s five dollars to visit the park, sir.”

He appeared to be physically uncomfortable. “We’re not visiting the park!” snapped the man.

The worker looked surprised, “Visiting or not sir, everyone needs to pay the day use fee.”

The man shook his head, “Five bucks, for a ten minute stop?”

The worker dug in her heels. “Sorry, sir. Those are the rules.”

“Rules!” blurted the man, “Every time I visit this G%&-D#*n state I am always being nickel-and-dimed for something.”

The young worker appeared uncertain of what to say next. People in the Visitors Center were becoming uncomfortable by the language. The man huffed under his breath, “Fine! I’ll pay the fee – just tell me where the restrooms are.” The girl pointed to a side door. He quickly disappeared out of the building. The worker mumbled, “If you’re going to be that way, we don’t want you here anyway!” The wife must have heard this because at that moment she quietly put down an item she had in her hand and left the store. Neither the elderly man nor woman returned. They would probably think very differently about parks from that day forward.

This was a sad and unnecessary escalation that could have been avoided. Obviously better training for the worker; improved visitor signage with larger text; or even an identified 15-minute parking area would have helped. But at any point during the escalating conversation the worker could have sincerely looked at the man and asked, “What would you like me to do?”

The question is powerful and direct. It does two things: Firstly, it identifies that you can act, or are at least prepared to act and; secondly, it requires irritated visitors to state what they want/need to resolve the issue.

If the elderly man had been asked, “What would you like me to do?” he may have responded with, “I need a bathroom and my wife is looking for a gift for our grand-daughter. I don’t want to pay $5.00 because we will be here less than 10 minutes.” The worker could have replied, “OK. The restroom is around the corner. If you decide to spend more time in the park can I get your assurance you’ll pay for day use?”

Most people are not irrational; they can be irritable because they are uncomfortable or stressed about something besides you. This elderly man was loud and obnoxious, but these personality issues were probably exacerbated because he was very tired from a long drive and needed a restroom. The worker became a target for his frustrations. When the occasional visitor is irritable and not communicating effectively, ask:

What do you want me to do?

This question can move the dialogue from a possible confrontation back to a conversation.

Park store shoppers are more than just visitors; they are also customers and clients.

The word visitor implies a singular, even passive, reason for the person being in the store. This can lead to developing a message that does not include the whole park store shopper.

Separate Audiences

Over the years I have heard park store staff refer to shoppers as visitors but rarely as customers. When asking staff and mangers to clarify why this is so the responses have included:

“People visiting the park store have been called visitor since I can remember.”

“I think of customers being interested in a good price, the visitors who spend time in our store are interested in something emotionally deeper.”

“The park store sells products to visitors to help them understand this special place; the concessionaire sells to customers.”

“Customers consume, visitors leave footprints.”

These are revealing statements that demonstrate visitors and customers are perceived as separate audiences. How an audience is perceived will influence marketing, merchandising, product selection and customer interaction by store staff. An early father of interpretation, Freeman Tilden stated, relate to the personality or experience of the visitor or the interpretation will be sterile (Tilden, 11). All stores, especially a store with an interpretive focus must relate to their audience.

Visitor, Customer, Client

Visitor, customer and client can all refer to a park store shopper. Here is a closer look at these words.

VISITOR: from the Latin visitare ‘to go see, come to inspect”. Today a visitor is defined as a person who goes to see or spend time at a place with certain intent, to stay with as a guest.

CUSTOMER: Derived from the Latin word custodia, “to guard or keep”. Today a customer is one that buys goods or services. Without customers a business (or non-profit) will die. In a sense, customers are the economic custodians of the park store.

CLIENT: Derived from the Latin word clients, “a follower, one who leans on another for protection.” Today a client is referred to as “a professional relationship that goes beyond a commercial transaction. A client suggests something of a partnership that lasts based on the service provided, not on the life of the product’s warranty” (Knudson, 81).

The Whole Park Store Shopper

Interpretation should address the whole person (Tilden, 40). Interpretive retailers must address the whole shopper – visitors, customers and clients. Each of these groups shop based on different wants and needs. A visitor-shopper might want to browse, a shopper-customer might seek a transaction, and a shopper-client might need to invest him or herself in the larger interpretive organization. Identifying the whole park store shopper will impact how products are identified, customized and merchandised.

Park store shoppers include visitors, customers and clients – they are part of the whole shopper, not separate audiences. Stores can serve their interpretive messaging by deepening their understanding of these audiences and what the shopper seeks.

Welcome all visitors, serve the customers, and nurture your clients.

References:
Online Etymology Dictionary
Knudson, Cable and Beck. (2003). Interpretation of Cultural and Natural Resources
Tilden, F. (1977). Interpreting Our Heritage.

Park associations understand that branding is important, but often overlook the intangibles when developing a brand strategy.

A brand “promotes the identity and underlying values of a unique culture by communicating the messages, products and services by that culture.” (Holland).

Imagine you are in the “Old West”. One day while herding cattle you spot a stray. This stray has a logo, a brand mark on its side – this cow belongs to another ranch! You look more closely…immediately you know this cow belongs to the ‘Interp-Ranch’ a respected brand in these parts. The staff of the Interp-Ranch are representing their land well; they are good neighbors, friends, honest folk who are generous and will watch-your-back. The owners of the Interp-Ranch understand the strength of their brand is not solely in the tangibles: the ranch’s name, location, terrain, number of cows or acreage; but the brand’s intangibles: friendship, honesty, self-sacrifice, reliability. The intangibles must be linked to brand’s tangibles for a successful branding strategy. Too often park associations focus on a brand’s physical qualities: as a topic, advertising tool, or appearance. But, like a small dust cloud on the horizon, branding is often more than it first appears.

Branding is more than a topic; the brand’s message lives in the theme.

The owner of the Interp-Ranch says in a twangy voice, “The Interp-Ranch isn’t so much about cows, as it is about Freedom! For the staff, it’s the Freedom to work at something you love in a place you love. For our neighbor’s, it’s the freedom in peace-of-mind they will always have supporting friends. For our customers, it’s the freedom of knowing they will always get an honest business transaction and a product that adds value to their lives. For visitors to the ranch it’s the freedom to be outdoors – the freedom to visit a place that is loved, respected and honored. Cows are just the commodity on this ranch; freedom is the true product.”

Too often park associations brand the topic, the physical aspects of a Park. But often overlooked is the theme, the message you want the customers to remember and take home. The theme “goes beyond tangible design elements to something more abstract and far-reaching. As an expression of the core values of your organization, your brand creates expectation and makes promises to your audiences – whether they’re already captivated (staff, board members) or they’re people you wish to attract (constituents, funders, opinion shapers). (Holland).

Branding is about a message that resonates in the heart and mind.

The owner of the Interp-Ranch says, “I have seen ranching brands come and go out here on the frontier, but the ones that survived were the one’s that folks could relate to.”

A brand is frequently seen as a tool to sell, or even compete against other businesses or organizations for valuable resources. These are valid goals, but the best branding campaign will fall short unless customers see value in the message. Remember the theme is what helps to weave the story of the park into a meaningful whole. A central theme “defines the approach that you will take with your interpretation. If correctly interpreted through whatever variety of media elements are appropriate the central theme statement is what visitors will take home in their heads and hearts.” (Brochu). Growing a brand is accomplished with consistent products and services.

A brand that provides continually solid products and services will thrive.

The owner of the Interp-Ranch says, “I remember some homesteaders who started a ranch…they bought some cattle and branded ‘em. It was a fancy brand,- looked good too. They had the look of ranchers, but after dealin’ with ‘em several times you realized they never walked-their-talk.”

Sometimes park associations focus only on the brand’s appearance. The appearance can include a logo, Pantone colors, typefaces, business cards, web site and similar tools. Obviously these are very important but a brand must help promote optimal experiences. Optimal experiences are helped with consistent products and services. A consistent brand reaffirms to the park visitor or donor that people value the place. Consistency can be seen in a positive attitude, behavior, enthusiasm, quality of product selection, and programs. All of which reinforce your brand at every point and help to further thrive in the heart and mind.

In the modern world, “branding” has a similar function to the cattle’s brand – it protects your identity. It can create a tangible and intangible association. A park association’s brand must include the tangible and intangible elements of the message to be an effective strategy. The theme of the park is the message the visitors will take home with them. That message must relate to the hearts and mind of the audience. Consistency in the association’s products and services will reinforce the message. Grow your brand, protect it, be consistent. Let it thrive not just on your own ranch, but also in the hearts and minds of others.

References:
Brochu, L. (2003). Interpretive Planning: The 5M Model for Successful Planning Projects: 100.
Holland, DK.(2006). Branding for Non-Profits: 5.