Gardeners: Sow Seeds in a Competitive Market

March 2006

singlepage

Each spring, millions of Americans head outdoors to turn over the soil and plant gardens. Approximately 79 percent of all U.S. households participate in one or more types of gardening, according to a 2002 survey conducted by the National Gardening Association on behalf of the Mailorder Gardening Association (MGA). What’s more, these 85 million households spent an average of $466 on their lawns and gardens in 2002 for a total of $39.6 billion.

The typical gardener is a home-owner between the ages of 45 and 65, who cares about the appearance of his or her home and property and enjoys spending time outdoors. How gardeners spend their time has changed a bit in recent years. In general, fewer gardeners are growing seedlings in their basements for planting in the spring, according to Bill LaPierre, vice president of the catalog brokerage division at Millard Group, which
handles list brokerage and list management for a number of gardening catalogers. Another interesting trend to note is that people are planting fewer vegetable gardens and more flower gardens. Indeed, according to the MGA survey, the most popular gardening activities for mail-order gardeners were flower gardening (95 percent), vegetable gardening (72 percent), lawn care (71 percent), houseplant care (71 percent), container gardening (64 percent), and landscaping (59 percent).



A Tough Row to Hoe

While gardening still remains a popular hobby, not everything is coming up roses for mail-order gardening companies. The MGA survey finds mail-order sales account for only seven percent of the gardening market. Of the 85 million U.S. households who garden, just 28 percent purchased one or more categories of mail-order garden merchandise.

National Gardening Association Research Director Bruce Butterfield attributes this to the fact that the average gardener doesn’t always plan ahead and mostly buys plants and products spur of the moment at retail. LaPierre concurs, adding that big-box stores like Wal-Mart, Target and Home Depot now represent half of all the gardening products purchased in the United States.

On the upside, households that purchase mail-order gardening products tend to be the most avid, participating in all types of lawn and garden activities at a rate 50 percent higher than the national average, according to Butterfield.

Mail-order companies have the advantage when gardeners are looking for something a bit more unique, explains Butterfield. Indeed, according to the MGA survey, when asked why they ordered garden products by mail, 59 percent of respondents said it was because mail-order companies offered unique merchandise not available elsewhere.

Seeds and live plants still account for the majority of garden products purchased via direct marketing channels, but gardeners also purchase a bevy of tools and hardware, consumable supplies, such as fertilizer and insect control, in addition to books and magazine subscriptions.

In general, mail-order merchants that exclusively sell seeds and live plants have had their share of ups and downs in the last five years. LaPierre says most housefiles have been relatively flat, with few new gardening lists coming onto the market. “Most [seed] companies have been around for quite some time … the problem is that these companies haven’t evolved to keep up with the changing needs of the consumer.” There are some notable exceptions. Park Seed, for one, sells nothing but live plants through its Countryside Gardens catalog, and the plants are more unusual varieties that you can’t find at retail, notes LaPierre.

While the market for seeds and bulbs is relatively flat, LaPierre points to the growth in gardening supplies and accessories. “There’s still a lot of growth in that area, despite that garden centers also sell tools. I think where catalogs still have an advantage is that they are able to offer a lot of new technology. For example, Gardener’s Supply has a drip irrigation system for the home gardener, which you may have trouble finding or having someone explain at a big-box store,” adds LaPierre.



A Time to Plant

Traditionally, the first quarter of the year is the strongest for mail-order gardeners. LaPierre explains that the thinking behind this strategy is to get people’s attention during the darkest months of the year while they are spending most of their time indoors and can plan their gardens.

While most gardeners buy items to plant from January to June, the companies that are growing, points out LaPierre, are those that are taking advantage of the fact that average U.S. consumers do a good deal of their mail-order shopping in the fourth quarter. He points to catalogs such as Brookstone, Plow and Hearth and Gardener’s Supply that have a strong business during the spring and summer selling gardening accessories, but also have an inverse business during the fourth quarter when they’re selling some of those same products as gifts. While most seed and bulb catalogs don’t have this advantage, LaPierre says Jackson & Perkins bucks the trend with a fourth-quarter gift offer of prepotted bulbs and greenery.

Gardening publications also can capitalize on gift purchases in the fourth quarter. For example, Jim Woods, vice president of circulation for Rodale’s women’s publishing group, which includes Organic Gardening, says his publication’s insert media programs are strong in the first quarter, then pick up again in the third and fourth quarters. “We use the end of the year for gift giving campaigns where we push our own file pretty hard to give gifts of Organic Gardening.”



More than Shrubs

For mail-order gardening companies and gardening publications, the selection of prospect lists and insert media programs are somewhat limited to other gardening publications and catalogs. Rodale’s Organic Gardening, for example, relies on a mix of internal cross promotion with Rodale’s gardening books, insert media and e-mail marketing to keep its circulation flowing. “We find we need to find active gardeners [as opposed to] people that flip through pages looking at beautiful gardens. We need people who are out there pulling weeds, picking flowers and growing vegetables … and we find that direct response to gardening books or product catalogs is one of our strongest indicators,” explains Woods.

In addition to gardening-related products and services, gardening lists respond well for marketers with home furnishings and home-improvement offers. And because gardeners spend a good deal of time outdoors, some gardening files have seen usage by fundraisers for conservation efforts and environmental causes.



An Interactive
Community

In addition to print media, many mail-order garden merchants are tapping into the interactive nature of the Internet to not only sell product but to communicate with the gardening community. Many gardening merchants dedicate portions of their Web sites to gardening education and customer success stories. As a selling channel, notes LaPierre, the Web is suited for mail-order gardening companies because if you’re selling a plant that comes in 15 colors, you may only be able to afford to show five in a print catalog, but you can show all 15 on the Web. It also behooves gardening companies to drive traffic to the Web from a cost perspective. “The average order of a seed or bulb catalog is quite low, so any efficiency you can get in handling that order and getting it out the door goes straight to the bottom line,” says LaPierre.

Indeed, many mail-order gardening companies have bumped up their online investments. For example, W. Atlee Burpee & Co. recently has implemented both an RSS feed and a customer ratings and review community to its Web site as a way to boost natural search rankings and, consequently, online sales. Gardener’s Supply Co. also has invested in
e-commerce analytics to test internal search engine effectiveness, as well as to optimize product placement and streamline navigation.

So whether you’re capturing eyeballs online or in the mail, the message is clear: To compete with retailers, mail-order companies better be prepared to offer gardeners a product that’s unique. yy

American Gardener Magazine: 31,075 subscribers who receive a bi-monthly subscription as a benefit of membership with the American Horticultural Society. Price: $100/M. Call: True North List Marketing, (203) 459-4348.



Gardener’s Supply Co.: 444,865 12-month mail-order buyers of earth-friendly gardening products. Price: $105/M. Call: Millard Group, (603) 924-9262.



Gardeners’ Choice Catalog Buyers: 372,862 12-month buyers of live plants, trees, shrubs and bulbs. Price: $95/M. Call: List Services Corp., (203) 743-2600.

Gardens Alive! Enhanced

Database: 1 million 12-month buyers from seven Gardens Alive! catalogs, including Breck’s Dutch Bulbs, Gurney’s Seed & Nursery, Henry Field’s Seed & Nursery, Michigan Bulb, Spring Hill Nurseries, Gardens Alive! and Audubon Workshop. Price: $100/M. Call: Names and Addresses, (847) 850-1021.



Rodale’s Organic Gardening: 71,870 active subscribers to a bi-monthly publication on gardening without synthetic fertilizers or pesticides. Price: $100/M. Call: American List Counsel, (609) 580-2800.

Lists To Test

The following is a sample of lists available to reach this market.

• MORE ON
• LISTS & INSERT MEDIA