Whether you’re a small business owner, solo practitioner, marketer for a start-up, or interested in any of the above, you’ll need to know a bit about advertising. So I asked Margaret Kasper, creator of the Mountain Girl Clothing shop on Etsy and blogger, to let us know how she gets the most bang for her advertising buck.
And she’s come up with some great advice.
From Margaret:
I’m sure many of you already know some little tricks of getting your business name out there, but just in case, I wanted to share how I get Mountain Girl Clothing out there, internationally and locally on a very small budget.
Local
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One of the best things I’ve done for myself on a local level is get magnetic signs for my car. It has my shop name and a little design on it. For two of the signs, it only cost me $25.00 and it’s wonderful when I’m at a gas station — people will come up to me and chit chat about my business. That’s when you pull out your business cards and exchange info! I’ve gotten a lot more business locally this way than I ever had before. The best thing about the signs is that you can remove them and put them on whenever you’d like. I went on a road trip with friends of mine and advertised on their car through 7 states! Just make sure you check with registration rules/insurance rules about having a business name on your car before you do so.
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I always make sure that every bar/restaurant/bookshop, etc., has my poster or business cards where they allow them. Especially if you make an eye catching/viewer friendly graphic. And at bookshops and the library I make sure I have business cards in the shape of bookmarks. It’s something people find functional and don’t mind carrying around with them slipped inside their books or magazines.
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Get involved and sign up for local business groups/farmers markets, etc. I’ve signed up for a “shop local, support local” group in my area and it’s brought lots of business and interest my way at no cost to me. It’s not only a great support system but it can really boost your moral in times of slow business.
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Get bumper stickers made or just regular stickers and leave those places where you would normally leave business cards, people love stickers….at any age! Also your friends probably wouldn’t mind slapping them on their cars as well.
Advertising Through Customers
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Obviously customers are your best bet to get your business name spoken about in a positive light. They are familiar with your work, they most likely love it and will talk about it. So make sure you send a few extra business cards with your orders, or in shopping bags in case they feel so inclined to carry them around or at least be able to recall your shop’s name and location.
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I also always try to send out a little gift for my customers to not only show my appreciation but also to help get my name out there even more. So I’ll send a bumper sticker, a small trinket for them to wear (with the shop name on it if possible), a bookmark, or a refrigerator magnet.
The Internet
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I’ve had great success advertising on Facebook and Google Adwords with a VERY small budget. You can set your own price and it’s a great way to keep track of where your customers are finding you and what they’re searching for to get to your shop. It’s also very easy to create the ads as well — literally just uploading a nice picture and your shop name, they do the rest of the work for you.
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Do your friends have blogs? Twitter accounts? Facebook accounts? Have them feature your shop or mention your items! It’s been great to network with other friends from etsy and help each other out because even though we all only know one another on a “world wide web” basis, we can still create a supportive community.
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Make sure you have a Facebook page, a Twitter account and a blog, even your own “.com.” I don’t update them each everyday but I try to do it at least once or twice a week, and they are free!
Special Advice For People Using Sites like Ebay/ArtFire/Etsy and Other Online Marketplace Communities
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If there’s one thing I do everyday multiple times a day for etsy, it’s RELIST, RELIST, RELIST. Just a few items, a few times a day can make a huge difference, even if it’s only every other day. I use my phone to do it if I am away from home, so if you have that ability use it! I’ll do it if I’m just waiting in line at a store, waiting for coffee to be made at the coffee shop, etc.
Help out others in forums. Answer questions, give advice, critiques and share your knowledge with others around you. I find it’s a great way to discover new business’s that I’ve never seen and network with similar ones. I try to do that once a day either in the morning or night before bed.
Have you heard of Google Analytics? And Craftopolis.com(Etsy)? Those are AMAZING site to use as a resource for finding out information about WHO your shop is reaching, and WHERE your shop is popping up online. Also be sure to do a social media search on sites like WhosTalkin.com and SocialMention.com — you might be surprised to see your name in places you didn’t see before!
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Etsy-specific: Everyday I change my featured items in my shop. People who heart you will notice it looks different and take a look! Even if it is not a completely new item, it’s really great to keep the cycle moving and make sure your customers see all you have to offer!
If you don’t have a featured items shop on your website make sure you keep a space on your page where you keep your viewers and customers informed, like a news section. Update it every few days and let them know what you are up to, like products that will be coming in soon or even mention other shops with products that would complement your own.
I hope some of these suggestions have helped you or at least reminded you to keep the positivity going for your work and your shop. I go through very slow times in my store and very busy times but I always try to stay consistent with how I get myself out there. Even if I’ve had a slow week, I’ll still make sure I do ALL of the things I’ve listed above.
Don’t loose the energy you’ve got for what you love to do.
Thanks for reading and I hope this helps!
-Margaret Kasper, Mountain Girl Clothing
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Excellent ideas! I like the suggestions of removable car magnets. I didn’t know they were so cheap! And bookmark-shaped business cards are a wonderful idea.
I will keep those good ideas in mind! Thank you!
Great ideas! So much emphasis is put on social media that many of the more traditional, tangible tools are forgotten. Social media is great, but is not the only tool.
Having business cards shaped like bookmarks is an awesome idea!
Wearing t-shirts and having tote bags with your logo is also great. I use my bag when I go to the gym and I’ve gotten lots of interests that way.
Really helpful tips, thank you!!
Those are all really great ideas (and I like the tote bag idea in the comments above)! I’ve also recently discovered a way to connect or stay in touch with potential customers. SproutSocial.com helps you manage your relationships on social media websites like Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn for only $10 a month.
Hope that helps!
This is super helpful to me, especially now that I’m getting ready to open my Etsy shop. Thanks for commenting on my blog – your posts weren’t showing up in my RSS for some reason so I hadn’t been by in a bit! :) But now I’m back!