With Robin away this week on vacation, I thought this would
be the perfect time to sneak on here and write a post I’ve been meaning to
write for awhile. While the cats away the mice will play right?!? I’m such a
rebel! Lol.
When Tiffany and I started this business we never dreamed we’d
be where we are now. We get asked almost daily for tips on how to help WAHM
businesses grow and we are so honored that so many of you value and respect our
advice. We thoroughly enjoy teaching, helping, and watching all of our fans’
boutiques grow; it’s genuinely one of our favorite aspects of our business.
While I wish I could give you a simple answer in this one blog post, I just can’t.
In fact, I’ve decided to turn it into a
monthly series because we have a lot to tell you! And we’re excited to share!
Over the next few months we’re going to go over setting up
and establishing your boutique, how and where to effectively sell your
products, how to get your name out there, how to price your products, and many
more topics that will have you calling yourself a *successful* Momprenuer in no time at all.So continue below for the first installment of Boutique Basics!
This past weekend, Robin told Tiffany and I that one year
ago we were celebrating that we finally reached 700 fans on our facebook
page. I still remember the excitement
Tiffany and I felt at that time anxiously awaiting reaching 1,000 fans! I would
say gaining over 10,000 fans in one year is a little bit of a success story—or so
we’ve been told. So for this first weeks topic I’m going to discuss Facebook
and how to properly utilize what we consider to be the absolute most important feature
it possesses: Tagging.
Although we consider tagging to be the most important
feature, Tiffany and I have recently noticed that it is also one of the least used
features by our fans and we just don’t understand why? In 10 seconds you can
share your newest creation with a couple of different fan pages just by tagging
them, thus having the potential to be seen by the majority of their fans. That being said, here are a
list of Do’s and Don’ts that should be followed while tagging:
- Do visit as many pages that relate to your business as possible and spread the word about your business. For example, if you sew, write on your favorite fabric designer’s wall, tell them how much you love their fabric, tag your boutique, and maybe share a picture of an outfit you made using their fabrics.
- Don’t troll your “competitor’s” page and promote yourself to their customers. Ever! That is a great way to make yourself look bad and hurt someone else’s feelings. Do feel free to mention your business on your “competitor’s” page—no links!—to tell them you admire their work, love their fabric combinations, or any other genuine compliment. Then spend a few minutes commenting on their pictures or even write them a nice message. We’ve said this SO many times, but we really believe that you should be friends with your competitor’s, or at least civil. There is more than enough business for everyone! Work is so much less stressful when you’re excited for other boutiques and wish them well than when you spend have your time stalking your competition’s pages worrying about what they come up with next. I can honestly admit that I’ve been there and it isn’t fun and it really does hurt your business worrying so much about other people! This is a post for another day though…
- Don’t tag yourself on your “competitor’s” page with hopes their fans will see. If you don’t plan on actually showing your support for them, don’t bother tagging yourself…or even mentioning your business.
- Do tag other businesses as a way of showing support or appreciation. This is the perfect way to promote a business or fan page you love. Who knows…they may return their appreciation by tagging you back!
- Don’t tag other businesses as a way to imply that they endorse you in any way—unless, of course, they DO endorse you.
- Do consider how your tag will come across on someone else’s page. The goal is to not upset any one or spam any one’s wall. The goal is to show support, show appreciation, and promote your's and other’s pages thoughtfully with genuinely good intentions.
Another thing that is important to note is that when you tag a business from YOUR page, it shows up on their wall. If they or their fans would like to comment on it, they have to come and "like" your page. Consider who you are tagging when you do this. For example, we *try* our hardest to go and like our fan's page when they tag us, but if we are in a hurry--which is A LOT lately, lol--we don't get a chance to go and "like" their page to comment. If you post on their page, they can "like" your page if they want, but they at least have the option to comment.
Finally, you are able to tag up to 6 pages in a post. We like to tag as many people all the people we can in one post rather than going to all the different pages to post.
I hope that this blog was helpful and you are ready to go out there and start tagging all your favorite businesses! The most important thing is to remember that a well written and well intentioned tag can help you increase your fan base.
I'll be back next month with another great topic on how to improve your business. If you have any questions or ideas for future business topics, please include them in the comments below!
Happy Tagging!
Shannon
Happy Tagging!
Shannon
