Christmas Cupcakes Gift Ideas

Looking for some festive treats to share with your family and children for Christmas 2013 with sweet cute cupcakes?  Here's some of our best finds and hints and tips to get you started on making this Seasons Greetings one of the most memorable and enjoyable for your family and friends.

Choose Christmas Theme Cupcakes

From the rich luxury of Profiterole Cupcakes to the light-hearted fun of Snowman Cupcakes, there is something for everyone this year and in the adorable format of cupcakes you simply can't go wrong.

Creative Twist Cupcakes

Martha Stewart takes us all on a veritable journey into downtown Christmasville when she combines the crunchy snap of waffle cones with the delicate snowiness of frosting to create her version of a snow encrusted Christmas Tree Cupcake.


Whatever you choose, please drive carefully and make sure to keep your cupcakes out of the sun so they don't melt.  Eat plenty of Fruit and drink plenty of fresh cold water too.  And best wishes for a Happy New Year!

Christmas Cupcake Ideas 2013

Little Christmas Tree cupcakes with mini presents make
such an adorable and cute addition to any Christmas Table Setting Spectacular

Away in a Manger - btw what is a manger anyway?  But seriously, this fondant creation is simply evocative of the real reason behind Christmas, something about a little boy being born in the Middle East.

Loving the dark rich moistness of the chocolate cake base on these cupcakes as well as the simple fun and movement of the twirled Christmas Tree.  5 Stars, highly recommended.

If you know how to manipulate fondant, you are well on your way to designing the best ever Christmas Cupcakes for 2013.

Christmas Day Countdown

The Future belongs to those who plan, a famous woman once mused as she prepared a week out for Christmas Dinner.  And one of the keys to success is careful and well thought out organisation which can give your big day and seamless flow from morning to evening on Christmas Day.  To save you time and worry we have compiled a schedule to act as a guide leading up to Christmas so you are never overwhelmed or feel as though the whole thing is getting beyond you.

12 months in advance?

It may sound completely crazy and beyond the scope of this article, but you can save money and feel super organized by having a look at the post Christmas Sales and making some critical purchases a year ahead.  Think long expiry and ease of storage, so you most likely will be looking outside of food and beverage items and more towards styling and design elements.

Best Selling Australian Cupcakes 2013

Best sellers with good storage life are for example wrapping paper, cards and decorations – and if you can keep the original packaging intact all the better for long term safe keeping.  Be mindful that just buying up everything without an overall style in mind can be hazardous – try to keep you theme to two complimentary colours and stick to this.  It is easier on the eye and makes adding to your presentation simply a matter of finding matching colours.

Gorgeous Cupcakes at the Markets

Gourmet Gift Baskets Australia

PRESS_RELEASE-SEPT-2013; Gourmet Hampers Australia announces a double celebration - the 25th Anniversary of Hunter Valley Hampers and the launch of the latest incarnation of the website.

Kacy, owner operator of the successful franchise, expressed her pride and satisfaction at having come out of the GFC unscathed and still supporting a valued core of loyal clientele.

"It's really amazing how well people identify with the Hunter Valley Hampers brand." she said, cradling the youngest of her three daughters, "We never thought this business would be so resilient and teach us so much about not only business, but life as well."

For more on the story behind Hunter Valley Hampers, call 1300 284 684.

Handmade Cupcakes at the Markets

 There's nothing better than finding some fresh handmade cupcakes at your local markets on the weekend.

 Whilst you browse the markets keep an eye out for some other locally produced gourmet fare - you'll always be surprised at what's on offer at the markets.

Creating a Gourmet Gift Basket

Here's our secret list of hints and tips to create a memorable gourmet hamper to thrill your friends and impress them with your savvy knowledge of what makes a difference when putting together a gift basket.

First things first - get a decent basket, container or hamper to put everything in.

Find Your Gift Basket

Now you can get creative here, but remember, we want to convey that it is a gift basket - not a jumble of unconnected items you rummaged out of the bottom drawer.  So go for classic, tried and true wicker baskets.  You can usually buy these at your local five and dime or two dollar shops - but be warned they are expensive and sometimes they are a bit small.

Collect Your Inclusions

Once you have a fair idea of what you are putting in, you can go ahead and start collecting items to arrange artfully inside your hamper.  I always try for seven eight or nine items, but always of different shapes, sizes and packaging so it doesn't look too same/same if you know what I mean.

Build Your Basket

Start with the larger items at the back as support.  Use some sticking tape for support at this stage so it doesn't collapse in on itself.  Then, when you have a back wall, start in-filling the rest of the hamper with the smaller items, again being mindful of texture, colours and appearance generally.  People want to feel as though it all just works together. 

Good Luck and let us know in the comments section how you are going - after all we all want you to succeed!

Fruit Hampers Info

When you want to send a Fruit Hamper or Fruit Basket, there are three things you need to keep in mind.  Making sure you are getting value for money, getting a generous fruit arrangement, and being able to rely on an experienced designer to create you fruit hamper.  Importantly, it is not about the sheer convenience of using a local florist - there is a distinct difference between a florists' effort and the generous market fresh of a true fruit hamper specialist.

1.  Getting Value for Money
Fruit Hampers Info offers a simple pricing schedule of $59 small, $79 large and $99 Grande.  Most times you will be satisfdied with a small, as it is generous enough for a couple of people to have a few serves fo fruit over the week. 

For a bigger impact, go Grande and share the benefits of larger fruits, more diversity and seasonal gems as they are available.  Be aware that a florists' idea of a fruit basket - and the small size of counted fruit pieces - like eight pieces of fruit in an arrangement for $80.

2. Generous Fruit Arrangement
Fruit Hampers are all about sharing the freshest seasonal fruit in a way that shows generosity, abundance and a genuine feeling of giving - all of this is dependent on an approach where plenty of fruit is included.  You want the basket overflowing with fruit, and brimming with whatever is in peak season.

People appreciate a good serving of fruit and notice that the time and effort is equal to the occasion.

3.  Experienced Designers Make a Difference.
Knowing how to put together the right fruit basket makes a real difference when you are aiming to make a lasting impression.


 

Removals Hints and Tips

Making Removals Easy

Moving furniture, clothes and digital hardware can be simplified if you follow these simple tips.  Making your move efficient, well-organised and in your timeframe is what you should expect from an experienced removalist in Newcastle.

1 Use Plenty of Packaging.
Careful and well thought out packaging makes a bug difference on moving day.  If it fits in a box, put it in one.  Keeping things in a box encourages putting like with like - which is convenient when you are unpacking at your destination.  An adaptive, free void filler is shredded paper in plastic shopping bags.  Wedge these between any hard surfaces that may come into contact.  When you box doesn't rattle when shaken, you have packed it desely enough to support boxes being packed on top of each other.  This means you can fill the Newcastle Man and Van space most efficiently.

2 Prepare the Workflow
Take advantage of moving your boxes to a convenient packing point, so there less time is spent carrying boxes across your premises.  Remember, what you want from your removalist is pick up, transport and unload at destination.

3 Use a Local
Local service around Newcastle for a removal service is important.  Locals take the most direct route and can offer advice on the best times to move to avoid traffic congestion.

Making Removals Easy is often overlooked as during the move you are distracted by leases and estate agents.  Being prepared and armed with these simple tips for removals make a difference for your best move.

http://newcastlemanandvan.blogspot.com.au/2013/05/making-removals-easy.html

Fruit Box Delivery

Ever thought of a fresh fruit box delivered as a way of saying thank you?

The Folks over at Newcastle Fruit Baskets make great hampers and local same day delivery is just great when you're busy.

Diversifying Your Online Presence

1.  Have you got a web presence already?  You might have a blog or a Facebook page – that is great, and can be a launching pad for an online store with ecommerce functionality.  If you don’t have a web presence, get started today by going over to blogspot.com and registering a blog in your niche.  It’s relatively straightforward and there are a multitude of tools, tutorials and support forums available to help.

2.  Once you have any sort of web presence, fill out your landing page with relevant content – that means get busy writing a meaningful and honest About Us page for starters.  This way, potential customers can see what you’re all about and tell where your passion and enthusiasm for your niche shows.  Include images, video, testimonials – anything that relates to your market stall and what you are about.  This gives the search engines something to find when people go searching for your brand online.

March is Fruit Basket Month!

With the best seasonal fruit now available at rock bottom prices, there is no better time than now to share a $50 Fruit Basket. 
You can easily assemble your own fruit basket, using a reputable fruiterer and handsome fresh fruit.

There is simply nothing much better than a premium fresh-that-very-day fruit basket, and here's a simple few hints and tips and advice on making a fruit basket.

First

Get Freshest Quality Fruit,
Handpicked and
"touched-once" out of the fruit box.

Choose Local Fruit Baskets

Second

Assemble your fruit in trios and pairs - this adds to their own colour effect and lends balance and depth. 

Third
Fruit sitting on fruit on a bed of straw is a great way for transport and delivery.

Cupcake Directory

The Value Of Markets Directory

At The Australian Markets Directory, we have collected the attention of a vast group of people with similar interests, beliefs and experiences – that being Local Markets.  And as a focal point for these many businesses, markets organisers and enthusiasts, we are able to offer a unique selling proposition – having the industry as a whole at your fingertips.

Now we have the attention and focus of the Australian Markets Community, it is important to channel that value into the best proposition for new and existing member of the directory.  And we do this by offering a direct connection between your individual concern and the wider markets community. 

After we have assessed your application and where applicable, edited your submission to meet our strict quality control guidelines, you will be granted a listing in the directory.  This opens up great opportunities for your brand and with the consistent online promotion of the Directory, increased exposure to traffic and potential business arrangements.

It is critical that whislt we value so highly the attention and participation of the markets community, we do not go too far with cross promotion or advertising of content that is not directly related to the specific niche.  So you won’t see ads for locksmith North Carolina or Real Estate Vancouver.  Just real world listings of local real world business and markets and stallholders.

Best Website Design

Promoting your website online is as simple as regularly updating your blog, keeping tabs on a Facebook page, maintaining a presence in industry forums and submitting relevant articles and authoritative advice.  Sounds confusing?  Well it can be to those who have to maintain their business in the “real world” and then find there is a parallel “online world” that demands the same level of commitment and accountability. 

So you are best advised to outsource you online web promotion – or at least get steered in the right direction with an introductory training session with Newcastle Digital Web Designers.

But back to the fundamentals of online web promotion - which is the basic truth that a website just left to it’s own devices will not magically flourish and attract traffic and convert sales – it will slowly wither and age and not really do much at all.

So what we need to do is get your website out there mingling with the crowd – with like minded similar sites brimming with customers and sales reps from your suppliers and your tradeshows and conferences and the like.  Someone has to be putting your website out there so it is slowly building an presence in your chosen niche and most likely growing in authority and recruiting for itself a higher flow of link juice.  Which roughly translates into being high in the search results.  Which is what we want, after all.

So with some regular training and updates, like reading the Newcastle Digital newsletter and following the hints and tips for increasing your organic ranking, you will soon be practising online web promotion without even knowing it.

And that’s when you start to see some really dramatic results and entrench your site at the top of the rankings for your most lucrative keywords.  So the prevailing advice it to get off to  flying start with some sustained online web promotion for at least the first twelve months so your site gathers some initial momentum.

Getting Found on Google

Search Engine Optimization is improving the visibility and exposure of a website through careful attention to the website itself and the websites that link to it.  At Organic Digital, we have sustained success optimizing local sites for high traffic and exposure to buying customers – and we can do it for your site as well.

Most people use Google or Yahoo or Bing and type in a few words to search for some results.  And the results displayed are the closest match the search engine can find to give the correct, most accurate answer.  The search engine finds these results from the literally billions of pages of information online by giving each page a rating, or ranking, based on what the page is about (the content) and how trustworthy, reliable and authoritative the information is.

Starting by identifying the relevant keywords that apply to your niche, we will execute a plan to increase your visibility over the course of 6 or 12 months.  Over time, you will appreciate more customers and visitors to your site and can reasonably expect growth in your business.  It is beyond the scope of this article to go into the details of SEO, but it is enough to say the best thing is for you to go about your business, and let Organic Digital go about SEO.  That way, you don’t have to study the workshops and learn the constantly evolving scene of Google updates and new strategies to maintain first page results.

Organic Digital offers set up and account creation for many social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, as well as copy writing and blogging so your small business can stay in touch with the customer base at all times.  This is especially relevant for promotions, updates and the roll out of new products and services.  Keeping in touch with your clients has never been easier!

Again, the slow build of momentum is the most efficient practice to ensure a steady rise to the first page of Google.  At Organic Digital, we can make your website and ensure that it does not just stagnate on page 16 of the results for your most lucrative keywords.