Okay, so you’ve planned a Local Artist’s Fair for the Saturday before Thanksgiving in your consignment shop.

Great! Count on me!

I’ll be there. Look at those terrific offerings in the email body text. What resale shopper in her right mind wouldn’t LOVE a chance to:

• Shop Local
• Get amAZing hand-crafted gifts for their loved ones
• Keep the $ in the community rather than buying Made in China meaningless trinkets
• Find something new and different for gift-giving (oh and there’s that whole one-for-you, one-for-me shopping phenomenon this time of year)

And, oh, how a shopkeeper will deLIGHT in this event as well:

• All the artisans’ friends have been, natch, e-vited: new faces to see your wonderful resale shop! More exposure! More traffic! More fun! More dollars in the till!
• News coverage: Local Artists Highlighted Thanks to Local Merchant More community acceptance! More recognition as a “player” in your town!
  
• Excitement and enthusiasm in the shop, even for those whose primary mission that day wasn’t really the Artists Fair
• Establishing close ties with local craftspeople and artists, always a plus in any community

Me, I read that list and really, truly, make a POINT to get there. Tin stars? One of MY favorites, as are berry wreaths. Ornaments? That could be my “gift theme” this year for almost everyone on my list!

And I, as a shopper, would be able to:

• Get my shopping done before Thanksgiving and avoid that stupid mad rush from then til my holiday celebration
• Use some of those decorating items for Thanksgiving, when I have family coming
• Give meaningful things, rather than last-minute grabs like bath sets and scented candles

Look at all those wonderful WIIFMs…

so why oh why did this consignment shop choose to use, as the email’s subject line, something so pass-byable, something so deletable-without-reading-it’s-a-busy-day… as

Christmas Open House … TOMORROW

Snooze. So what? Click, delete. Or even click, spam. Because that subject line sounds

BOR-ing.

That subject like tells the WHAT and not the WHY. It sounds, once I take the time to OPEN the email, like a fabulous opportunity for me as a shopper. But why are they hiding their light under a bushel? What subject line would YOU choose, if this were your event?

So your great idea, your perfect plans, your spectacular promo….

wouldn’t fizzle out?