Soaper's Shout Out: Kokolele Soaps

Yesterday, I posted on FB about a give-away for soaping aprons courtesy of Mold Market brand molds. The catch? You must email me a picture of one of your best soaps along with a short bio. If I showcase your soap on my blog, you will receive an apron with something special tucked inside one of the pockets. I have five aprons to giveaway. This is a great opportunity for free business exposure, plus free stuff. Can't beat that!
Maria, from Kokolele Soaps has been a long time customer of GoPlanet, and was also the first to submit her entry. Her soaps amaze me and leave me wondering, "How'd she do that?" Maria told me the above soap was made with Mold Market's #001 Basic Rectangle mold and GPE's liquid gel colorants. Look at what you can do with just a simple, basic shaped mold. Or, should I say, look at what Maria can do.
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Maria's Bio
My friends and family ,including my grandkids, they were the first persons who tried my soap creations, they loved them and gave me the idea to start to share them with others.

I have some business in Australia and the last year I traveled to Central America and I could start another little business in Costa Rica with success....and now the best part is that I am making a lot of Free Soap for children in Kenya, Africa..♥

I am very happy working in my home in Arkansas, making every soap by myself when it is ordered, I don't pre-make soaps, I like for my customers to receive freshly made soap , for this reason you can tell me your favorite scent and colors about any design you like, I will make it for you with love ♥
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I will be showcasing Maria's awesome soaps that were made using Mold Market molds. The things she can do with a mold is impressive. Check my blog over the next couple of days to visually sample her blue ribbon (at least in my opinion) soaping artistry.

Thanks, Maria for your submission. Your apron and special gift is on its way!

Scratch Off Savings

I don't know about you, but I love surprise savings. When a Kohl's scratch off promotional flyer arrives in my mailbox, I scramble to find a coin to see what I can save on my next purchase. There's no need to scout out a coin with GoPlanet's new "Scratch and Save" cards. We include the coin!

For a limited time we are randomly including a scratch-off card inside your order shipment. The scratch off reveals a discount or FREE product when placing a future order. Enter the discount code at checkout and we will make sure you receive the appropriate gift or discount.

The scratch off card and coin will be attached to the receipt that is included in your shipment. Good luck!

Scratch off tickets expire 9-18-2012. Don't miss out.

Why I Love the USA Soap Mold GiveAway

And the winners are.....

Christina from TN and Jean from IA. Congratulations. My staff read every entry and, believe me, it was hard to pick. For that reason, I am sending every person who entered this giveaway an "appreciation gift". As for the winners, your molds and soaping apron are in the mail.

Here is what Jean had to say about the USA:

I love living in the USA because we have the chance to follow our dreams. Our country gives us a chance to pursue our dreams by providing educational opportunities for all, and the freedom to choose what path we wish to take. Here is how our family members have taken different paths to follow our dreams. My husband and two daughters are all graduating from college on the same day (Michelle Obama is scheduled to be the keynote speaker). One will get a doctorate, one a masters, and one a bachelors degree. Thankfully, all are gainfully employed : ) in the fields of their choosing. Meanwhile, our son is a member of the US Army. He chose that path as his way to a career and an education unlike any other. As he entered basic training, he commented that it's ironic that in order to defend freedom, he has to give his up. It amazes me that we have so many wonderful men and women who are committed to sacrificing their own comfort so they can defend the freedom that we enjoy. That is another reason I love living in the USA. Because of the freedoms we enjoy because of freedom defenders who gave up their freedom (and in many cases, their lives) in order to defend mine, I had the chance to attain my masters degree (I have no interest in pursuing a doctorate) and enjoy teaching online. Oh, and I also used my education and my freedom to pursue my dreams as I started my own small soap making business.

Thanks for the chance to tell what I love about living in the USA! God bless you, and God bless the USA.

And, this was Christina's entry:

I love living in the USA because of the freedom we are still allotted here. Freedom of religion is a great and cherished freedom that should never be taken for granted. Many Christians around the world are tortured and put to death for a freedom and privilege we in America take for granted every week. We are not punished, houses are not broken into, and we are not hauled to prison for praying or having a Bible in our house or car. So many times in other countries around the world people are dragged out of their houses or cars and either sent to a fate worse than death being a prison of such horrific conditions that they suffer with diseases for years prior to dying and are tortured daily for the "Crime" of having a Bible in their possession.

We also have a wonderful freedom called Freedom of Speech. We are allowed to say what we want when we want although some people do take that privilege to extreme but most of us use it wisely yet we take it for granted.

America is blessed with many privileges and freedoms we simply take for granted as The Constitution protects us and guarantees us these freedoms and privileges. Many people in countries that are not allotted these freedoms risk their lives time and time again to try to grant their families a taste of this freedom we take for granted everyday.

Thank you for our freedom and the privilege of living in the USA!!

Soap Mold Giveaway! Will You Be the Winner?

Don't you just love free stuff? I do! Well, if you're a FB (Facebook) friend of GPE (GoPlanetEarth) then you will qualify for this giveaway. Not a friend? Then jump on over to our FB page and "Like" it. Then, follow the instructions below to register for our FREE MOLD giveaway. There will be two lucky winners.

It's so easy to register and here is the scoop:

1) You must be a FB fan of GPE. This means you must have clicked on the "Like" button on our Facebook page.

2) Send an email paragraph stating why you love living in the "USA". Include your first and last name, plus shipping address in the email. If you win, we will post your first name along with city/state on my blog or our FB page. No personal info will be divulged (scout's honor).

3) Two lucky FB friends will receive (4) newly released mold designs from Mold Market AND a Mold Market Logo Soaping Apron. This is a $45 value PLUS GPE pays the shipping cost. You can't beat that! Thank you Mold Market for this special offer.

You can take a peek at the molds you could win here.

Good Luck to all. Drawing will be held May 8th (Mother's Day) at 8 AM ET. Winners will be notified by email. OK, gang, you've got one week to register. Spread the word to all your soaping friends via Twitter or Facebook.

Customer Appreciation Day: Yippee!!

It's always such a pleasure to start the work day with an email that reads, "I just want to thank you for your outstanding customer service and products." It puts me in the mood for a "CUSTOMER APPRECIATION DAY". That's good news for all of you reading this post. Today, and today only, the following customer appreciation discounts are in place.

• Spend $50 or more and receive $5 off *discount code YIPPEE5



• Spend $100 or more and receive $15 off *discount code YIPPEE15



• Spend $200 or more and receive $30 off *discunt code YIPPEE30
  
  And, did I mention this is over and above the instant reward points you receive through the shopping cart. How about that?

Now for the Little Print:
Customers, discount will not be honored on orders placed before or after sale or if you do not enter the coupon code during check-out. Ends 11:59 pm ET, April 21, 2011.

Life is Good, and Free Stuff Makes it Even Better!

It's been a looooonnnng week for me and I'm feeling like a FREE FRIDAY is in order. Yep, I'm giving away some "free" stuff to 7 lucky people. Why seven? Because there are seven days in the week and like I said this has been a loooonnnng week ;)

So what's the free stuff and how can you get it?

TO BE ELIGIBLE:

Place a minimum order of $25 or more (in product) through GoPlanetEarth's online shopping cart. Order must be received today AND MUST INCLUDE the following in the comment section at checkout: FREE FRIDAY FOR ME

The first seven orders we receive that have this in the comment section get the "free stuff". BTW, all orders are date stamped by the server, so there is no guessing on our part about the winners. We have already randomly assigned numbers to each "free" item. If you are the first winning order then you receive "free item #1, third order will receive "free item #3 and so on.

So what's the free stuff?

FREE STUFF:

Can't promise who will get what, but these are the items I'm donating to Free Friday.

• 2-lb. block of melt & pour soap base (I'll let you be surprised about what I pick!)


• 4 ounce bottle of fragrance oil (hmmm... what one should I pick?)


• Mold Market soaping apron (I do believe that one of the apron pockets holds an added surprise.... wonder what it is?)


• Five dollars off your Free Friday order (we will apply when winner is determined)


• Up to, but not to exceed, $10 off the shipping rate shown at checkout (UPS ground ONLY)


• Pebble Rock Soap Mold from Mold Market ($7.75 value)


• 2-ounce bottle of soap colorant (for use with CP or MP soap)

So there you have it! Winners will be notified by email and your first name/state will be posted on our company's FB page which, BTW, you can "like" and be notified of other coupon/free/discount offers. HAPPY FRIDAY ALL!!

The New Shopping Cart is Up & Running

It's been in the works for many months now and FINALLY the launch day has happened. Our new shopping cart went live late this afternoon and we've been tweaking and checking for glitches for several hours now. So far, so good. We only found one page that had not been updated with the new cart links, but that was an easy fix. Here are some upgrades that I think will benefit you over the old cart as well as some added changes on APO shipments.

• The Paypal payment option will now happen in real-time. No more waiting for us to send you a Paypal payment request. Yippee (on my end)!!! The only reason we would need to send a payment request from here on out is if you owe additional in shipping due to dimensional weights or multiple cartons. The cart cannot factor these into the shipping calculation.
  
  
• Real-time postal priority rates. Keep in mind, that an additional charge of $5.00 is reflected on all postal priority rates displayed through the cart. UPS is our preferred provider for domestic shipments. It takes additional time to batch postal shipments separate from UPS, prepare shipping labels, schedule pickups, and in the case of international shipments, complete international documents. For some domestic shipments, you may find that USPS returns the better rate particularly when shipping to AK, HI and PR.
  
  
• All APO Military orders will ship postal priority mail. The post office does not offer online postage service to certain APO addresses. Postage must be purchased at the post office which means one of our staff members must hand deliver the carton to a postal station. A $7.50"hand-deliver charge" is added to the cost of shipping for this service.
  
  
• International customers will now have postal priority shipping rates returned at checkout. You will no longer have to wait for us to email you the shipping total. There is a $5.00 international document fee added to every international order. The cart does not display this fee. It is manually added when the order is received. This is the same document fee we have been charging from the get-go.
  
  
• We have implemented a new INSTANT REWARD program which instantly applies your qualifying discount as items are added to your cart. You start earning reward points as soon as you add $35 or more in product to your cart. The more you buy, the greater your reward discount. You can earn Instant Reward points every time you shop. Plus, Instant Reward points can be combined with other discount offers we showcase on our FaceBook page. Be sure to "Like" our FB page so that you earn even more savings when you shop.
  
  
• We will be working on some Bundle Offers in the near future. Bundle Offers are a group of products purchased in a "bundle". For example, if we showcase a how-to project, we might put together a "bundle offer" that includes everything you need to make the project. With one click you can buy everything instead of having to shop and add, shop and add, etc.

We will continue to monitor the new shopping cart program over the course of the next few weeks to make sure all is well. Should you find an issue, kindly email to let us know. If you don't tell us, we can't fix it :) We would also appreciate your feedback on the new cart both good and bad.

OK, time to get shopping and give the new cart a try-out. To help you get started, we're offering a 10% off coupon on an order of $40 or more in product. There are a few exclusions, but for the most part it includes just about everything on our site. Excludes: Base Products, Digital Thermometer, 16 ounce Fragrance Oils and already discounted items). When checking out, use Discount Code:

NEWCART

Enjoy! (Discount code expires Monday, March 28, so don't delay.)

Customer Service: It's All In the Eyes of The Receiver

FACT: Customers behave and react to their needs and expectations when placing an online order. Sadly, as retailers, we don't know the needs and expectations of each and every customer. It is safe to assume that customer will expect "bare-bones" customer service such as shipping an order timely, or responding to an email about a product. But, how a customer reacts and behaves to order errors is hard to predict. Some are just plain "ugly" and unforgiving. And, then, there are customers like this. Here is an email I received this morning:


Hello,

What wonderful speedy service, however one item must have jumped right out of the box on you! I did not get the Water dissolving paper, 3 sheets ordered. None in the box. :-(

Hope you have a wonderful weekend, thanks for the vanilla and fudge brownie sniffies. They are great!

Blessings,
Carol


Wow, an email like that is refreshing. One of my staffers messed up, but here is a customer who throws in a twist of humor. Here was my reply....

Hi Carol,

You are so right... the paper did jump right out of the box and right back into the packing bin! Imagine that, I believe a little elf was up to some mischief. The paper was sent out yesterday by first class mail (large envelope). One of my workers found it in a packing bin the next morning. Big oopsie!

Thank you for your kindness and fun nature in addressing the missing item. It's very refreshing on our end.

Kindest Regards,
Denise M.


THE POINT: Customer Service is in the eyes of the receiver. Another customer may have reacted differently. As business owners, we should offer top-notch service and strive to be error free as humanly possible. Sadly, none of us can predict how any given customer is going to respond when service or an order error fails to meet their expectations. Our company is diligent about fulfilling orders and responding to service requests. Yet, there will be those times when our best isn't good enough based on the eyes of the receiver. When those times happen (and they will), I will remember customers like Carol.

Enjoy your weekend!

Get Your FREE GoPlanetEarth Logo Luggage Tag

Besides being known for our FREE Fragrance oils samples that we include in orders starting at $30 or more, we occasionally include other FREE items. This happens to be a "just for fun" freebie that is ideal for anyone who travels. If you are traveling to one of the many soaping conferences held throughout the US, this sassy luggage identification tag will make it easy to spot your bag on any airline luggage carousel.

Front side of tag displays our GoPlanetEarth logo and the flip side reads "OMG! Stop grabbing me! Order $60 or more in product starting October 1 and receive one for FREE. Limited quantities, so order early to ensure one is included with your order.

A Special Note of Thanks

A while back I posted about Kids Saving the Rainforest which is a wonderful organization that I firmly believe is worthy of attention. Well, as promised in my post, GPE did ship the free soap supplies plus some. Here is the email I received over the weekend:


Dear Denise!
Thanks so much for sending the soap making materials! We just got them when we got to Miami! They are absolutely wonderful! It felt like Christmas morning opening them. We are all so grateful and excited, we can't wait to get back to Costa Rica to start making them.

We will keep you posted as to how it goes and we can't wait to order more from you and pay for them!!! We are very grateful to you!

Thanks so much,
Jennifer and KSTR

To Jennifer, I say this. Your gratefulness is noted and it is refreshing to have someone take time to express it by sending a note of thanks. I hope Jennifer keeps all of us posted about the soap making endeavors of Kids Saving The Rainforest.

Emails like this (and many other wonderful emails we recieve from customers) is what motivates our company to offer the best possible service.

Customer Appreciation Days August 24-28

Customer Appreciation Days August 24 - 28
Look what we have for you!

• FREE 1/2 ounce fragrance oil with every $15 of product purchased. Limit of six per order.
  
  
• FREE GoPlanetEarth logo zipper cosmetic bag to first 5 customers to place an order of $100 or more in product. We will notify you by email if you are one of the lucky five and include the bag in your shipment (along with some other goodies!)
  
  
• 20% off UPS GROUND shipping and 10% off international postal priority shipments. We will take the discount off your shipping total once the order is received. For international customers, we will email your shipping cost for approval (with shipping discount) before processing the order.
  
  
• We're giving away two loaf soap miter boxes and straight soap cutters sets- $31 value per set. To qualify for the drawing place an order with us during the customer appreciation days. Drawing will be held on August 29 at 10 am ET. Winners will be notified by email and the prize will ship to the address the winner specifies.
  
  
• Everyday we will annouce a SURPRISE DISCOUNT on our FaceBook page. To receive the discount, simply visit our FB page, "like" it, and then place your order. The daily discount code will be given on our FB post. The discount will apply to the item total (does not apply to shipping/handling, but you will still receive the shipping discount mentioned above). You must key the discount code to receive the discount.
  
  
• FREE 6-pack soap color set to the first customer placing an order between 12 pm and 1 pm (Eastern Time) on each day of our Customer Appreciation event. We will notify the winner by email. All orders on our servers are date and time stamped to ensure fairness. Up to a $35 value!
  
  
• We're giving away 50 goodie bags throughout Customer Appreciation Days. Ten per day. Orders will be randomly selected based on order numbers being processed for that given day. Even if you place your order at midnight or 3 AM in the morning, you will have a chance at the goodie bags ; )
  
  
• 15 TOP-SELLING Mold Market molds will be given away during Customer Appreciation Days. Three molds per day. Drawing for molds is based on order numbers being processed for the given day. Winners will be notified by email that a FREE mold will be included in their order.

And if that isn't enough... every order will include a random discount coupon for use on a future order. Think of it as a scratch-off. One lucky person will get a 50% off discount for use with a future order at GoPlanetEarth. Could it be you?

As the owner, of GoPlanetEarth, I want to thank you for your business. I know you have choices in your suppliers and I hope you continue to choose us for your soaping needs.