Optimizing your time between markets
There are a lot of opportunities for your small business around Charlotte and the surrounding areas, but what do you do between markets?
You probably restock items, create new products, post on social media, etc and while these are all needed to be successful - have you ever found yourself overwhelmed or questioning what to do/prioritize in the downtime? We’ve compiled some helpful tips based on feedback and our personal experiences!
SLOW DOWN TO SPEED UP
Too often, we forget this rule as small business owners because - if you don’t work 1. you aren’t making sales, 2. your inventory suffers or 3. your instagram goes silent. Small business owners are often a one person show and that creates drive, but also pressure! We think everything has to be done right now, but this leads to over-promising, under-resourcing, and running ourselves empty because we fear taking a break. This stress and feeling of overwhelming responsibility will eventually result in losing your passion - so what’s the point?
Before you run off to the races, take a step back. Coming off a market weekend is no joke and your body is feeling that too. We advise taking a 2 day break. The first day is for you to recuperate, get your laundry done, go on a day trip, sit by the pool - whatever makes you feel happy and in control of your personal life. Take the second day to sit down and make notes on your business, create to-do lists, journal, or anything else that puts thoughts and feelings to paper.
A S K Y O U R S E L F:
- What's the goal this coming month?
- What are my top 5 priorities?
- What needs to be restocked?
- What’s on my to-do list for this upcoming week? Two weeks? Three weeks?
- What were my top sellers last month?
- What feedback did I receive from the last market and how should I apply that going forward?
- What is coming up in the future that I need to start advertising for now?
- What month/season is it and will this affect my business/marketing/booth display?
- What is my social media plan for the upcoming month?
- What actions are actually going to move the needle?
Focus on what's most important, get your mind right, and then get to work.
DIG INTO YOUR WEBSITE
Using your website analytics properly can truly make or break your online sales.
It is important to know where most of your website visitors are coming from, which pages they spend the most time on, which pages have the highest bounce rate, and which pages generate the most leads. Once you’ve found this information, use it to your advantage!
Begin reworking or fine tuning your online marketing, give your landing page some deep thought and re work it based on your most popular content, create a new call to action and get some traffic
A D D I T I O N A L W E B S I T E T I P S:
- Read through your entire site and make sure all the information is current and accurate
- Check all links to make sure they’re working
- Explore your listings on local search directories to make sure they are current and consistent information is being given across all listings + platforms.
ENGAGE WITH YOUR CUSTOMERS
After all - your clients are the reason you get to continue making money with your passion. Use your downtime to pay a bit more attention to your clients and begin engaging!
W A Y S T O E N G A G E:
- Check in with prospective clients to see if you can get them closer to a sale
- Share client photos of your products (with permission!)
- Spend at least 30 minutes a day engaging with your social media followers
- Ask your best customers for testimonials to use in your marking materials
- Build an email list to engage clients more regularly
- Make lists for holiday gifts/cards to send to customers
UPDATE YOUR MARKETING PLAN
If you create it, they still may not come. You must get out there and tell people about your business, why your product or service is different from the competition and how/when to find you. We see businesses fail all the time solely because they aren’t marketing themselves correctly - or to the proper audience. Marketing is not a one-size fits all solution. Find what works for you, but whatever you do, you must advertise!
Above all else, we urge you to focus on consistent branding throughout all of your marketing materials. Many marketing professionals believe in the “rule of seven," which means people need to hear or see your message at least seven times before taking any action. In today’s world of constant connectivity, you must make sure you’re seen and heard. The most common reason that people do not buy your product is that they do not know about it yet!
