From your street marquee to your display signs, your newsletter or blog, to your social media posts, marketing begins well before your customers hit the driveway and meander through your store. Here are a few suggestions to attract solitary beekeepers—veterans and new.

ANNOUNCE MASON BEE SEASON ON YOUR MARQUEE

• Get Your Nice-Cold Mason Bees! Right Here
• Mason Bees for Your Fruit Trees
• Mason Bees on Ice—So Nice! A refreshing addition to your garden.
• Tis' the Season and the Reason Mason Bees are in the Fridge
• Movin' On Up! Mason Bee Tower—Upscale Living for the Discerning Mason Bee

Well, you get the picture. Be straightforward or engage in wordplay. Make your customers wonder. Make them smile. Make them roll their eyes, scratch their head, or do a double-take. Let your company's personality shine. 

IN-STORE SIGNAGE

• Floor stickers to guide your customers to your bee display.  
• Prominently display Crown Bees' QR Code poster to direct customers to intro information about solitary beekeeping. 
• Display a Mason bee fact sheet. 
• These gentle bees rarely sting (if they do, it feels like a mosquito bite) - making them safe around kids and pets.
• She's a Hardworking Woman! One female Mason bee can pollinate up to 1600 flowers daily compared to 30 by a honey bee. 
• Mason bees belly-flop into flowers, collecting and distributing impressive amounts of pollen.
• Mason bees are fun to watch: Children love them!
• They venture only about the length of a soccer field from their home.
• They are called Mason bees because they use mud to build and seal their nests.
• Females will lay 30-35 eggs in their 6-week lifecycle. 
• Well-maintained bee homes help increase pollination in your yard and aids in bee conservation efforts.

POST AN ANNOUNCEMENT TO SOCIAL MEDIA CHANNELS

• Visit Social Media and Blog Posts in the Buyer's Info tab for prepared social media posts and blog articles. You can purchase these items for $0.00 in the SHOP tab under Downloadable Marketing Materials. The post verbiage is included in the product description and the download includes the high-res photo. The page also includes a detailed calendar for your planning and posting needs. 
• Use the information you find on Crown Bees' Facebook wall for inspiration.
• Timely posts:
• February - Mason bee cocoons are available for purchase.  
• February / March - Set up your bee house and nesting materials.
• April - Last month to buy Mason bee cocoons. 
• May / June - Remove and protect your Mason bee cocoons. See our article in the MASON BEE section under the BEE KNOWLEDGEABLE tab.
• October / November - A quick reminder that it's time to harvest cocoons.

THROW A MASON BEE HARVEST PARTY FOR ADULTS

Everybody loves a party. The scents of pumpkin cookies and hot apple cider tug at your customer's noses, drawing them into your harvest party and intriguing customers as they watch beekeepers harvest and clean Mason bee cocoons. Arrange our harvest accessories close by for easy grab-and-go shopping. 

Time this workshop for the first week of October. Give a Mason bee harvesting demonstration using the Cocoon Comb, Nesting Materials, and Clean Bee. We have videos that will guide you through the process—Harvesting Mason Bees.

Display harvesting products for quick sales:

• Cocoon Comb
• Clean Bee
• Native Bee Guide
• BeeGuard Pest Prevention Bag
• HumidiBee

HOST SATURDAY KIDS' WORKSHOPS

Saturday kids' workshops are a great way to bring in adult shoppers!

Below is a sample workshop you can run anytime between January and April--prime Mason bee ordering time.

• Create a display of the houses and accessories you offer.

• Cut printer paper in half across the width, so you have pieces that are 5 1/2 x 8 1/2".

• Lay out the following items at each workstation.
• 6 to 10 pieces of the cut paper
• Non-toxic, water-based glue
• 5/16" dowels cut in 8" pieces
• Damp rags or paper towels for clean-up and sticky fingers
• Paper clips, clothespins, or other means of holding the papers together until they dry

• Talk to them about Mason bees as you show them how to wrap the paper around the dowels and glue it in place. We've listed a few talking points below:
• Ask them what they think of when they think of bees. Bet you it's a Honey bee!
• Super pollinators: Each female pollinates up to 1600 flowers per day instead of only 30 by a honey bee. 
• These fun-to-watch bees don't sting unless they are physically threatened; even then, it feels like a mild mosquito bite.
• Mason bees help us grow more food. 

• Display for quick sales:
• Chalet Bee House
• Tower Bee House
• Cabin Bee House
• Native Bee Guide
• Nesting Trays
• Reeds
• Cardboard Tubes with Inserts
• Hatchery
• Mud and Mud Box