28 Things Small Business Owners Can Relate To
When you run a small business you are usually the one that does it all, from handling e-mails, social media, marketing, inventory, etc. The struggle is real!
1. When you wake up ready to hustle and sell some shit.
2. When you have a million e-mails to respond to, orders to fulfill, a family to raise, and a house to clean.
3. When your turn-around-time is 2-3 weeks and a customer e-mails you 5 minutes after placing their order & asks why it hasn’t shipped yet.
4. When you have a really good sales day.
5. When you have a really bad sales day (or week. or month):
6. When you find out someone is copying your work:
7. When people refer to your business as a hobby:
8. When you’re catching up on e-mails:
9. When a customer asks to return an item they received 5 months ago and already used multiple times:
10. When people ask you if you ever sleep:
11. When you’re feeling uninspired and you’re having a creative block:
12. When you spend hours working on something that you end up hating:
13. When you come up with a genius idea:
14. Trying to figure out Facebook Ads & Instagram’s new algorithm like:
15. When you’re participating in a loop giveaway and the host gives the 5 minute warning:
16. When it’s 60 seconds into said loop and it’s not looping, so you have to figure out who needs to be skipped, and everyone is trying to figure out who hasn’t posted, and everyone is commenting in the DM:
17. And when the loop is finally looped :
18. When you think you have an original idea, and then research it only to find out that someone else is doing it:
19. When you’re in an online group made up of other makers and there’s drama:
20. When you have way too much on your plate:
21. When someone comments on one of your products & says they can get it cheaper somewhere else or make it themselves:
22. When someone messages you trying to figure out all your secrets & who all your resources are:
23. When you get a really good review on your product or business:
24. Remembering that owning a business is hard work, and the fact that anyone likes what you’re putting out there is something to be very proud of:
25. When a customer is testing your patience:
26. That feeling when you realize you effed up on something:
27. When a customer is very kind and understanding about a something that you messed up on:
28. When people assume that you have a ton of free time since you own your own business:
I’m sure this list could go on and on and on and on.
Branding Your Instagram Feed
6 Tips For Branding Your Instagram Feed
So, in case you didn’t know, I’ve recently started working as a virtual assistant and social media manager. Owning two businesses has helped me gain first-hand experience with social media marketing. My first business, Root Avenue, was instantly successful by using Instagram as my main marketing tool. In fact, I would say that a majority of the small apparel businesses that started a 1-5 years ago can thank Instagram for most of their success.
Unfortunately, Instagram has changed a lot over the last year. While it is still a great marketing tool, it takes a lot more effort to get your product and brand seen by consumers.
With that said, it is definitely still possible to have amazing success on Instagram. There is ONE main thing that I highly recommend you do, and that is to have a clear vision of your brand and portray it across all of your social media, ESPECIALLY your Instagram.
I will be doing a whole post on branding your business, but for now I am going to focus on branding your Instagram.
6 Tips For Branding Your Instagram Feed
1. KEEP YOUR FEED CONSISTENT
Find your style and stay true to it. If you like warm tones and nature, then stick to it! If you like cool tones and city backdrops, then stick to that! Consistency is the KEY to branding! A couple things that you can do to keep your feed consistent is adhering to a color scheme/filter, and creating a pattern for your posts.
I really love @lizakoshy‘s feed, and think it’s a great example of a consistent feed that sticks to the same filter and tone. (I am not sure which filter this is, but I love it!)
2. PICK A THEME
This goes hand-in-hand with branding. One reason that “niche” accounts do so well is because they focus on one thing which draws people in. Picking a theme goes along with being consistent. You don’t NEED to have a theme, but it really does help!
A good example of a brand that does this is @thebeeandthefox. They have that vintage/70’s vibe.
3. KEEP YOUR FEED VISUALLY APPEALING
A good looking feed is going to have more success gaining and keeping followers. If someone lands on a page that is visually appealing they’re more likely to browse for a while.
@vickiee_yo‘s Instagram catches your eye right away, and keeps your attention.
4. DON’T BE AFRAID TO ASK FOR ADVICE
Sometimes a second (or third or fourth) pair of eyes can help when you’re stumped on what direction to go. Don’t be afraid to reach out to marketing managers, or even creative friends, and ask for advice on how to style your feed. Often times I will go through my feed and delete pictures that I feel stick out (in a bad way) and clash with my tone.
One of my clients had a great grasp on their brand, and their website is amazing. When I took over their social media accounts I noticed that their Instagram did not portray the vibe of their brand. Here is a side by side look at their feed before I took over, and after.
Left is before, right is after. I totally brightened the feed and made sure that their brand’s message (“There is always a reason for a party!”) was portrayed to people that came across their page.
5. REACH OUT TO SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCERS/BLOGGERS THAT FIT YOUR BRAND
Just because a social media influencer has a large following or takes good pictures doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a good reason to reach out to them. If their style doesn’t match yours you might not want to use their photos on your feed, and their audience might not be the customers you are trying to reach. Find people whose photography style fits your tone, and whose personal style/interests match your target market.
@nenaandco is a great example of this. They work with a lot of social media influencers, and they all have that boho style and/or an adventurous feed.
6. UTILIZE HASHTAGS
While hashtags don’t have anything to do with the look of your feed, they do have the ability attract your target market. Instagram has recently been cracking down on activity that looks like spam, and unfortunately using the same hashtags over and over again can cause your posts to be shadow banned. So, I suggest having 3-5 different sets of hashtags to choose from. Use as many as you can think of. (Up to 30 per set.) And post them in the caption or comments of your post.
Those are my six tips for branding your Instagram feed. I hope you were able to take away at least one thing from this post!
If you want to reach out to me for branding advice/social media management or even a second set of eyes on your social media pages, don’t be afraid to holla at me! Click Here to email me.
xx
Britt’s List Of Unique Baby Gifts
I’ve gathered up some of my favorite baby items for this blog post.
WARNING: This post may cause baby fever.
I don’t think I want another baby, but damn, this stuff is so cute it sure makes me consider having one more!!
BURRITO BABY SWADDLES
As if you didn’t want to eat up a new baby already, this will make it even harder to resist! These burrito baby swaddles are hilarious and adorable. SHOP HERE by Mirando Brand
PERSONALIZED BLOCKS & UNIQUE WOODEN TEETHERS/TOYS
Little Sapling Toys has the cutest selection of wooden teethers, toys, and blocks. Personalized blocks that spell baby’s name would be a lifelong keepsake. I really like the idea of finding a teether that fits perfectly with the family, for example the guitar for musicians, the castle for Disney lovers, the airplane for a pilot’s baby, etc. There’s seriously SO many cute ones to choose from!! SHOP HERE by Little Sapling Toys
SLUMBER SLOTHS
Who doesn’t love sloths? Exactly. These super soft, handmade sloths are perfect for little ones to cuddle with. And they’re super duper adorable. SHOP HERE by Slumberkins
MILESTONE BLANKETS
These milestone blankets by BatzKids are such a great way to photograph and treasure those special milestones. There’s so many to choose from, including age blankets, monthly milestones, first holidays, and even a monthly pregnancy blanket. SHOP HERE by BatzKids
MILESTONE CARDS
Another great product to track milestones are these milestone cards! There’s a lot to choose from, and they are all super cute. SHOP HERE by Milestone
DOCKATOT
If you haven’t heard of DockATot yet, then you’re missing out! (From what I hear, at least.) I always read rave reviews about this product. Basically, this little spot is designed to help your baby sleep like…well…a baby! I wish I had known about it with my littles. SHOP HERE by DockATot
SHOPPING CART HAMMOCK
I’m not going to lie, these shopping cart hammocks look too good to be true! What a great little invention. Putting a car seat in the front of a shopping cart is frowned upon because it can be dangerous, and putting it in the back takes up the entire cart. I would have loved one of these when my kids were little! SHOP HERE by Binxy Baby
MOSES BASKET
I am obsessed with these Moses baskets! They are seriously the perfect little spot for a new baby to sleep. Bassinets take up a lot of room, and are hard to move around. I would have loved one of these for my babies. SHOP HERE by Plum + Sparrow
BABY BOOK
Baby books have been around for forever, but they’ve never been as cute as they are today! These adorable Baby’s First Year books are so unique and modern. SHOP HERE by Lucy Darling
MULTI-USE NURSING COVER
I actually own a Covered Goods nursing cover, and still use it even though I am done nursing! This cover not only acts as a traditional nursing cover, but it also functions has a carseat cover, shopping cart cover, and a scarf! SHOP HERE by Covered Goods
BABY WRAP
Baby-wearing is a new-mom NECESSITY! I didn’t master the art of baby-wearing with Cash, mostly because I didn’t find a carrier that I loved/felt comfortable with. Thankfully I discovered Solly Baby wraps before having Sawyer, and it ended up being a lifesaver! I love that it’s very lightweight and breathable, and holds baby super close and snug to your body. SHOP HERE by Solly Baby
These are my favorite unique gifts. I hope this came in handy with your registry or the next baby shower you’ll be attending! I’m sure I’m missing some other amazing unique gifts on here, so if there’s any that you recommend, LET ME KNOW!!
xx
Britt