Best Zoomdweebie's/52teas/Southern Boy Tea Blends Sampler?

Apparently, I’m too stupid to say no.

We closed our tea bar three years ago, and since that time, not a single week has gone by that I haven’t heard from someone wanting us to reopen it. And it looks like I’m finally going to give in.

We’re probably going to launch an Indiegogo campaign to raise some start-up captial, and I was thinking of offering a sampler of some of the best of Zoomdweebie’s teas as a reward at a certain contribution level. I was wondering if you guys could help me decide what blends I should include.

What do you think are our most unique, interesting and otherwise awesome blends?

17 Replies
Lala said

I have like pretty much everything I have tried from you so far :)

My favorites so far would be: pankcake breakfast, butterbeer, pink lemonade SBT.

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I love Caramel Pumpkin Cheesecake, Marshmallow Genmaicha, and Strawberry Pie Honeybush. Well I love most of your teas I try, but I think those would be a nice variety for a sampler.

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ChaMei select said

Definitely something cheesecake (Earl Grey Cheesecake ftw) and something Genmaicha. I like Browncoat Genmaicha but maybe you should avoid any names that are copyright. One sampler grouping could be related flavours representing all the tea types. Not sure if offering t-shirts and other acessories is cost prohibitive but that could justify some larger contributions.

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momo said

Pancake Breakfast for sure, definitely at least one honeybush blend, Marshmallow Treat Genmaicha, and definitely a cheesecake too…but I can’t decide what is my favorite right now. Rainbow Sherbet was my first 52Teas and it remains one of my favorites so it’s definitely my favorite SBT.

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Uniquity said

Very Merry Berry Medley Rooibos
Caramel Apple Honeybush
Lemon Lime Cheesecake (Honeybush?)

Those are the 52Teas blends that I loved. A lot of them were not my faves, but those ones were worth re-stocking for me.

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Lala said

Just looking at steepsters tea ratings for 52teas, the top three rated are: cotton candy SBT, lemon AID, and lemon drop cooler.

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Whenever I describe 52teas to someone, I always use Pancake Breakfast as an example of the unique type of blends you make. Everyone always says, “Whoa, he makes tea that tastes like pancakes??!” So I think that one is a definite must. :)

I agree with ChaMei to stay away from things that are copyrighted just in case. I’m not sure how many teas you think is appropriate to offer, but personally, I’ve never cared much about T-shirts, hats, posters, mugs, etc. That stuff just builds and accumulates in your house until after a while it usually ends up at Goodwill. Instead, maybe just offer different size sampler packs depending on their contribution. So if you give more money, you get more teas. That’s just my opinion.

Here are the teas that seem to be the most popular and liked here on Steepster:
Coconut Cream Pie
Pancake Breakfast
Blueberry Cream Cheese Danish
Cinnamon Roll Honeybush
Marshmallow Treat Genmaicha
Caramel Pumpkin Cheesecake
Cotton Candy Black (or SBT)
Rainbow Sherbet Black (or SBT)

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This fundraising campaign is bending my brain a little. Can I ask people who have contributed to these in the past, do you typically base your decision to contribute on the perceived value of the reward at a given contribution level, or do you take into account the overall value of the project?

I mean, I’ll be asking a lot of people who don’t live in Wichita to help me build a tea bar in Wichita where they may never get a chance to visit. I want to give them something of value for their contribution. By the same token, if I just offer product at a typical markup (per contribution level), I’m going to have to raise a lot more money to earn enough to reach my goal because I’ll be paying a healthy portion of the proceeds out to make the samplers and ship them.

If I came up with a sampler like our 12 Teas of Christmas, but with 12 of our best of all time, maybe including a SBT in the mix, how much of a contribution do you think I should ask for it?

What do you think I could offer for a smaller contribution? And what sorts of cool experiences do you think someone with deeper pockets might be tempted by to make a larger contribution?

I really appreciate all of your feedback and ideas.

momo said

The only one I have funded that was successful was a local donut shop. It’s actually not close to me at all but I think it they had one level that was 6 donuts and a drink for the $10 donation. I know for me this being a limited thing drew me in – they said this was going to be the only time they offered any type of discount (like no Groupon and what have you) and that has been true. After getting those donuts I definitely stop back any time I am in that area now. Maybe for donations between $5 and something you could give a coupon code?

I think starting with like a $1 donation for anyone who wants to do so online would be good. That’s usually like an “internet thanks” type thing I see on a lot of pages.

I think a sampler would be good at least $50. Maybe do a tea party type of option at a $100+ level? I like Sweet Canadian’s custom blend idea but I’d go way higher on that one and give them more tea then maybe sell the rest of it.

I’d say even go with like $15-20 being one packet of tea from the online shop or people who are local can get it at the shop once it’s open.

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I think it’s nice to have a few contribution levels. I’m certain if you look at a number of the most successful campaigns on Kickstarter, sometimes people just want to contribute say $5, and you don’t have to give them anything for that. I know I want you to succeed even if there is no possibility of me going to KS, but I’m also a student so I would be reluctant to throw down $30 for more tea. I bet you will be surprised by the number of people who just contribute without getting anything in return. You could offer a HUGE reward (like $100) to make a custom blend for people. I think that would be cool. If I had more money I would totally drop that much to have you make something just for me (that you could then sell to a broader audience).

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Or something you could do for someone with bigger pockets (like $50) is let them pick any previous 52teas to have reblended, and then send them a 2 oz packet of it. That way you would make money, because you could sell the rest, and you would also get a sizable donation.

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