While chatting with an acquaintance earlier this week the topic of the pandemic unavoidably came up. Although we tried to stay on point for plans moving forward, we could not help but discuss how we each made it through 2020, then, she said something amazing “I feel bad to say this, but 2020 was actually one of my best years!” and honestly, I couldn’t help but smile.
I mentioned to her how important it is for her to embrace her wins and to not feel bad for doing so. I too had a great year with features in the newspaper, magazines, television, online forums….I even won an internationally recognized award but my greatest accomplishment, particularly during that time was helping my clients stay afloat and make money.
A record 60% of small businesses suffered and I made it my mission to ensure that no one within my community endured the heartache of having to close their doors. One of those persons was Sonia, the owner of a local confectionary here in Trinidad & Tobago. With my help, Sonia was able to increase her sales by 50% for the period as compared to the same time a year before. Here’s how we did it:
- 1. We Streamlined our Message
Like many entrepreneurs, Sonia knew that social media was one of the major ways to get in front of her customers, however she struggled with creating relevant content that would resonate with her people. We sat together, identifying who her clients really were and what were they struggling with at that point in time. Many of them were home, bored and longing for the days that they could head out (we were actually in partial quarantine at the time). A few were looking for hope, inspiration and motivation and others still were trying to figure out how they would make it through. Together we got clear on our messaging, and instead of just trying to push products, we were much more understanding and empathetic. We positioned the brand as a caring entity that focused more on supporting our people.
2. We Consistently Showed up
Now that we knew our messaging, creating content was easy and we were much more consistent with posting and maintained a frequency of being social media a minimum of three times per week. We showed up, we spoke directly to our people with posts, videos and behind the scenes shots ensuring our message was clear. Truth be told I tried to get Sonia to go live a few times……it didn’t happen, but what did happen was engagement shot up and customers not only took notice, they encouraged others to do so as well.
3. We Revamped the Branding
With our audience now hanging on our every word, we truly needed to relook at our visuals. They weren’t hitting the mark based on our new positioning. A photoshoot was in order to reveal the true essence of the brand. Product shots, lifestyle shots, you name it, we did it to ensure that we got what was needed. This was a tremendous success; our audience was now seeing us in a different light and were more than happy to support us.
4. We went Offline
We knew that offline was just as important as online and we made it very easy for customers to connect with and ultimately purchase from us. We included new distribution channels and advised customers on social media were they could purchase; we included direct delivery for clients who didn’t feel like leaving their home but wanted to get the items and lastly we included sampling exercises for persons to try the product and, of course to meet the lady whose message resonated with them so profoundly on social media.
In four months, I was able to help Sonia realize her dream of making money even during what many would consider a very difficult time and she’s still going today. There were weekly meetings and a lot of hand holding but I made sure that she was able to say that 2020 was a great year for her and for her business.
That’s Sonia’s story and I’d love to do the same for you. We can start with a free strategic marketing consultation to help you discover where you are now and how I can help you M.A.P out your business through (M)arketing, (A)dvertising and (P)romotion in order to A.M.P up your business through (A)ction, (M)otivation, (P)rogress.
Click here to book: Chat with Carli
Can’t wait to chat.
