Processes and systems are not the first things that come to mind when you think about the fun parts of running a handmade business, but they are so important to the health of your business. As your business grows, having the right processes in place can make the difference between staying stuck vs scaling your business to the next level.
We had the pleasure speaking with Cashemawo Thompson of @cashemawo on a recent IG Live about how embracing processes helped to shift her mindset and grow her online wellness business. Listen to her story here and check out her tips on simple ways to build process into your small business.
What processes are you currently using in your small business? How have they helped you?
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Featured Topics & Speakers:
“Your Online Business and the Power of Content Marketing” – Maya Dukes @maya.dukes
“How to Get More from your Social Media” – Gwanyan Barker @kpelle.designs
“From Random to Intentional: Creating Business Plans that help you Scale” – Chantel Powell @playpits.
We’ve been following Gwanyan, the boss lady and designer behind Kpelle Designs for a few years now and we were thrilled when we had a chance to talk with her about how she organically grew her culturally inspired hand-crafted jewelry business by being savvy with social media. Here are our top three takeaways from our conversation:
#1 – Go to where your audience is – When she started her brand, Gwanyan took high-quality pictures of herself wearing her loc jewelry and posted them on her feed and also tagged popular loc hair community IG pages. Her pictures usually got reshared on the community page for free and those high-potential customers would follow her. She also invested in advertising with similar pages (where her target audience was already hanging out) and gained lots of customers from that exposure.
#2 – Invest in high quality images – Gwanyan worked with other creative friends who took fantastic photos or had styling skills to make sure her products images and brand put their best foot forward (and was more shareable). It’s easy to skimp on this step, but presenting high-quality, lifestyle images of your brand helps you standout from the pack, engages your audience and communicates the value of your brand.
#3 – Share your journey – The fact that Gwanyan actually cut/forms her own jewelry (she’s a proper craftswoman with milling equipment!), is a plant mom and occasionally goes into rant mode are things that have endeared her to her customers and makes then want to shop with her vs. some faceless jewelry company on the internet. Gwanyan consistently used her IG stories to share her handmade entrepreneur journey in a way that built trust and made her customers feel invested in her story and ultimately, her success.
Our talk with Gwanyan of Kpelle Designs was full of gems! Check out the full IG Live interview here and follow her now. Need a second set of eyes to look at your handmade business Instagram page? Want to find out how you can use IG to get more sales for your online business? Sign-up for our customized Instagram audit service, Up My Gram Game.
You probably already have an IG business page and are a pro at posting product images, interacting with customers and scoping out competitors. Here are 7 reasons to take a second look at your IG business page and invest time and energy to get it to the next level of driving sales for your small business.
# 1 – Your customers
are already hanging out on IG…and they’re ready to make a purchase.
According to AdEspresso, 1 out of 3 of Instagram’s 1 billion
users have purchased an item they first saw on IG. Users also spend an average of 53 minutes/day
on the platform. When it comes to
marketing, it’s wise to go where the people are.
#2 – Easy to build
community and establish trust with your customers
People buy from people they know, like and trust. I can
count at least 5 bloggers I’ve bought stuff from not because I needed it, but
because they were my friends in my head. Engaging with your audience on IG can draw
your tribe in, lead to referrals and help customers to trust you.
#3 – Able to attract
customers who are seeking a solution to a problem
When users search for a topic or product they’re interested
in, hashtags help your content to end up in their feed even if they don’t
follow you. That makes it easy to build
followers organically, who can eventually become paying customers.
#4 – Get clues about
what customers want
IG has been helpful as a feedback channel for my clothing
brand. I’ve gauged interest on new styles and selected color offerings based on
IG story poll responses and engagement level to posts. Are you using your IG feed to gather insights
on customer preferences and interests?
#5 – Make it easy for
customers to contact you
Customers have often DM’d me on IG and then immediately made
a purchase after I answered their question. Top of page contact info on IG removes the pain
of having to dig through an online store for info, which makes it easier for
customers to make a purchase decision.
#6 – Make a great
first impression on customers and collaborators
Major brand collaboration opportunities have come to me through
my Instagram feed. Beside that, then we’re evaluating vendors to accept for our
in-person markets, the first place we look is their IG feed. That feed gives a snapshot of the brand and what
we see (or don’t see) there can be a deciding factor in moving to the next
step.
#7 – IG is a powerful
storytelling tool
If marketing is all about telling stories that your audience
identifies with, then IG is a storyteller’s playground. Are you leveraging your
feed, stories, IG Live and IGTV to show your audience what your brand stands
for and how it fits into their life?
Having an intentional presence on Instagram is a smart way to let customers discover your brand and make repeat purchases from you. How would you rate your IG business page? Are you getting the maximum effect from it, or could it be improved to grow your business? Are you tired of guessing what you need to do next to strengthen your page? Sign up now for our “Up My ‘Gram Game” IG effectiveness audit. We understand the challenge and importance of taking your IG page to the next level and want to help with that.