Hi there.
It's Sue.
And thanks for joining me for tips and talk day.
These are bite-sized topics that I pull from community questions and
things that I'm observing in the world of handmade small business.
If you'd like to submit a topic,
DME over on Instagram at gift biz unwrapped,
before we get into the show today,
I want to make sure that you know about the newest
thing happening over here.
It's called the gift biz bash a zoom party that turns
into a podcast episode.
Several weeks later,
the party consists of a short training with Q and a
from yours truly.
And then an opportunity for you to give a shout out
about your business.
You can tell us about a promotion you currently have going
on or share a collaboration that you're considering so that you
can find a perfect partner for the event.
A little bit of learning and visibility for your business.
What could be better?
There is a catch though spots are limited to keep the
party to about 45 minutes or so.
That means you should grab your spot right away.
It's totally free to make sure you're included.
Why not do that right now?
Pause this episode,
go to gift biz,
unwrapped.com forward slash bash to sign up and then come back
and listen to the show.
I'll see you at the bash.
Are you a lurker or a loyalist?
I'm going to venture to say you're both,
depending on the situation,
let's define a lurker as someone who observes,
but doesn't participate and a loyalist.
I think this is self-explanatory a lurker.
That could be you.
If you go into a retail shop,
just to look around,
to pass time before meeting a friend for coffee or something,
it could be you in a Facebook group,
observing what others talk about and taking in new ideas and
thoughts, but you never participate.
It could be you looking at products on a website,
reading a blog,
watching videos on YouTube and being entertained and informed in all
sorts of ways through someone's content.
It's great to have access to all these things.
However, when you're a business owner,
it can be discouraging.
People come into your shop or your show booth,
pick things up,
chat for a while,
and then leave without buying.
Or your Facebook page may have hundreds,
even thousands of followers,
many who even contribute by posting and commenting,
but they never support you through sales or take part in
your special promotions,
or there's a lot of traffic to your website.
But conversions to purchases are few.
When you do the lurking,
you're scoping things out,
deciding if it's right for you and grabbing all the value
you can from that spot after all it's out there for
everyone. Right?
And that is perfectly okay.
Here's the thing of all the people who interact with you,
regardless of how so in-person or online only a small percentage
of them will ever buy from you.
It varies by business and product,
of course,
but let's say a good average is about three to 7%.
Some offers for sure will do better than others.
And certain times of the year will produce greater results.
But over a calendar year,
consider that somewhere between three to 7% of all of the
people who find your business will actually buy,
it might even be lower.
And that feels like a super low number.
I know,
but that's the truth of it.
So what do you do about this?
What should you do specifically with your lawmakers?
Here's my answer,
everything and nothing.
You might have a tendency to say.
I put so much work into writing my blog,
doing reels,
other social posts,
putting up images on my website and I'm done.
It's not worth it because nobody's buying consider this just last
month in preparation for my son's wedding.
I finally purchased two dresses from a company whose catalog and
Instagram account I've been lurking on for at least two years.
If they had chosen to stop their marketing efforts to me
or their posts on social media,
I wouldn't have remembered to check them out when I had
the need for their gorgeous clothes.
What my lurking did was reinforced that I love the brand
and I've come to trust them and also can accept their
higher prices and feel like they're deserving because I've learned about
their social give back.
And I've also learned about the quality and dedication and the
commitment they have for their materials and the style for them.
It's probably way too long,
a time to roll over one customer.
But to me,
it was just right.
And guess what?
Since then,
I've been back for another more casual style purchase.
That's the way businesses you offer.
And then they buy when they're ready.
But this only happens if you stay in front of your
potential customers and keep offering content that they find interesting,
entertaining or educational,
you have to make it worth their time to stay connected,
or you will completely miss out when they're ready to buy
bottom line,
respect your lurkers.
Now let's talk about the loyalists.
These are the folks who press the buy button,
swipe their card in your store and open your emails regularly.
They reply to your posts and leave reviews.
They are the gems and deserve all of your attention.
I have certain brands,
including many handmade makers,
whose products I support over and over again.
I bought a jewelry,
travel pouch for myself and loved it so much.
I've repeated this gift for many,
many friends.
I'm obsessed with a certain sugar scrub and order,
probably about a dozen jars at a time and have for
years, I also have a favorite popcorn and to my way
of thinking,
nothing else compares when it comes to cheddar customers like this
are the ones who deserve your attention.
I know you know that it's a lot easier to get
new orders from an existing customer.
Why then do we focus so hard on always getting new
customers versus doubling down on our current supporters?
Specially when the conversion rate of lurkers is so low and
repeat customers is much,
much higher.
If you're one who has unintentionally ignored your loyalists,
here are some things you can do to correct this wrong
one, pick five customers a week and either call them or
send them a message on their social account,
telling them how much you appreciate their business,
no sale pitch here to send an email to your existing
customers, offering them something special.
This doesn't need to be a product discount,
even though it could be.
What about a download you created that shows updated new ways
to wrap your shawls or creative storage ideas for jewelry or
give them first access to your new holiday sense before they're
even available to the public.
Here's another one.
Tell existing local customers that if they come to the next
craft show,
you're at,
you'll have something special waiting in the booth for them.
I know you can think of all sorts of ideas on
this front.
The trick is to actually do them,
not just think about them lurkers and are important to your
business, but you shouldn't treat them equally.
If you switch up your energy investment to weight it towards
your loyalists,
I think you'll be surprised by the reactions you get and
the numbers will speak for themselves.
That's a wrap.
I'm a get to the point kind of girl.
And this is what you can expect from these quick midweek
sessions. Now it's your turn go out and fulfill that dream
of yours.
Share your handmade products with us.
We want them and they bring us both so much happiness.