2 Hands Made This

Today, we're gonna be talking about planning, based on some wisdom that my father told me years ago that I never listened to. It was really like the eye roll when I was a kid. It wasn't until I got older, actually when I had my own business that I started listening to that bit of advice that he gave me and it was all about planning. And my dad used to say, You've got to make your plan. And you've got to work your plan. It's all well and good to talk about make a plan and work your plan. The hardest thing about that advice from my dad was I had no idea what to plan. I was like, Okay, great. What do I do? Why do I need to do that?What plan am I planning?  What are we talking about? Sure, you can say "let me make a plan." But do you know what to plan? Do you know not only what to plan but how to go about planning it in a way that's going to be the right plan forYOU? There's tons of advice out there on the internet. You've seen it. There are gurus and planners and planning books. For YOUR plan to work, however,  they all need to work together. And your plan needs to stop you from feeling lost or stuck. Or wondering where do your go from here?So...your plan. Yes, you have to make one and then you have to work it. What are those plans? We're going to talk about all the plans that work together? Because really, you're not going to just have one massive plan. For a plan to work it has to be broken down into manageable pieces. So pull your chair up to the kitchen table...and let's get startedResources:Marker Marketing (e)Mail - sign up for maker marketing tips and ideas to grow your product business,

When people subscribe to your list, you’re inviting them into your community, your tribe. But the mistake that people make (a lot) is leaving your reader to figure things out for themselves. What should they do first?Do they know why they’re there?What should they do next?What’s in it for them?Leaving your reader without a clue will only make them frustrated, confused...and probably a little pissed off.Many just let their email service provider do the job with the automated “welcome” and “please confirm by clicking the link.” (You know the emails.)I was really surprised to learn that most didn’t go beyond this step.People that decide to join you in your business adventure are your advocates in training!When people give you their precious email address, they are saying “I give you permission to enter my life.”That’s a big deal!So, the best way to start the conversation and really engage each person that joins your list is to start with an email WELCOME sequence. Resources:Your Welcome Sequence - Nothing says “I’m glad you’re here” better than a big welcome.

With all your emails, content, and everything else that you're putting out there to the world.  What better time to talk about headlines and subject lines.When you've read something. When something grabs your attention. What is it that makes you continue to read it? When the subject line or headline is generic or boring, if it's something that makes you think twice about, you don't read it. If it doesn't interest you. You WON'T read it.But when a subject line or a headline grabs your attention...you keep reading. That is the job of your subject line or your headline, whether it's an email subject line, whether it's a blog post headline, whether it's a newsletter headline.You're writing those headlines to grab your reader's attention and keep them reading down the page.ResourcesBreakthrough Advertising - Gene SchwartzRule of One blog postLevels of AwarenessJustin Blackman - The Headline Project - 100 headlines in 100 daysJay Abraham - The 100 Greatest Headlines Ever Written

I hear this question a lot from people..."How long should my marketing messages be?"When you're writing, whether it's your copy on your website, whether it's your product descriptions, whether you are writing a sales page (both long form and short form) they come in different forms. Same with landing pages, blog posts, social media posts, how long should you write them? And my answer to that is......it needs to be long enough that your reader understands what you're talking about, and brings them to an action. Listen to this episode as I explain how your audience's stage of awareness and the type of reader they are (do they skim or want to take a deep dive into the details?) makes a difference in the length of copy you write in your marketing messages.

Your brand is more than your colors. It's more than your fonts. It's more than the layout of your catalog or your product pages. When we talk about brand, the one thing that we don't really think about is the experience we want our customers to have when they read your messages.We want to be able to create an experience for customers, and that experience should be part of your marketing strategy. Your brand is about the experience. When people come to your website, what do you want to give them? You want to give them something!Do you want to give them just product images? Do you want to give them just a couple of photos?  Or do you want to give them an experience?On today's episode, I'll talk about how to find just the right words to given dimension to your messages so that you're creating an experience every time your customer reads your words. Resources:Caroline MyssBa6 MarketingMaker Marketing MailChristine Laureano - FB groupChristine Laureano - Instagram

I love interviewing product makers to hear their story and to find out the marketing tips that have worked...and the ones that haven’t. One of the things I realized is that, you don’t know my product business story.So today on 2 Hands Made This, I’ll share with you the same things I ask my guests. And I’ll tell you about the marketing strategies that worked best for my product business (and yes, there are some ugly cries of failed campaigns too.)Kitchen table epiphany - remembering how you started.I’ve been a maker...it seems like forever. In the mid 90’s I had a gourmet deli. After that I had a drastic life change with my first daughter...which lead me to give up the idea of going out and working a JOB. When my second and third children were born...I was a stay at home mom. Which gave me the opportunity to fulfill my desire to do my own thing. I always loved making...I had a line of baby clothes - called Hampton Baby...which in 1995 - 1997 there really wasn’t ecommerce so I sold to like shops. But...with a toddler, my days at the sewing machine where few and father between. Which was ok.I got into aromatherapy in the late 90s. I ended up getting my aromatherapy certification (clinical aromatherapy) from the West Coast Institute of Aromatherapy in BC. I loved making blends. It was when I read the ingredients on the baby lotion bottle that I started my own skincare line. The ingredients I read were toxic...and I was putting that on my babies skin. That’s when I created my skincare line...first called Good Ground Botanicals. In 2002 discovered the Indie Business Network...which then helped me source great raw materials suppliers and gave me ideas on product development and creating a handmade skincare business.I had product on every flat surface in my house. It was the point at which I had to decided, do I go find a small production/warehouse...which to me at that time freaked my out...because that meant I would either have to bring my kids there...or have someone watched them (and that was OUT OF THE QUESTION) and a story for another time.So I took a time out...a decided to also get a life coaching certification and did a lot of mindset work...but I really missed making stuff.So I also took a chocolatier class and ended up becoming a professional chocolatier. That was fun!! I made wedding favors and things like that. I wanted a shop after doing a feasibility study, realized that where I live I’d have to sell a lot of chocolate just to pay the rent…(but there’s a chocolate shop still in my future.)So I went back to skincare. I had people asking me for products so I started back up...rebranded, renamed to Ba6 Botanicals, and jumped in. I also took a GMP class that IBN had...because if I really wanted to scale I need a production studio that was GMP compliant and met FDA standards for production.LOL my first website was on Web.com… it was horrible. The product photos were so bad. But...over time I learned how to take product photos and how to put together a marketing strategy that would sell product. How did you come about your brand voice - When you first created your brand voice - because this matters when it comes to your marketing. Your brand voice is reflected in every piece of marketing.What have been the marketing “things” you’ve tried over the years.Events - Spark and Hustle was a big one for me...though it “looked good” I maybe got ONE sale. It was then I learned to be strategic with events… and NOT be a sponsor because that was just a way for the presenters to have other people pay for the event.Social media...IG since 2014...didn’t post a lot...but it was back then...when everyone got seen.Ugly cries of failed campaigns - the things that didn’t work...that you thought would.Ugly cries for me were events and sponsors

When it comes to handmade businesses, Etta + Billie was my first maker crush!Yep, I was like a tongue-tied, school girl when I first met Alana Rivera. I mean, Etta + Billie has a big following, has a big list of well-known stockists and was doing all the business things far and beyond what I was doing in my product business at the time.And after hearing Alana talk about her business...I knew she was like the rest of us. Passionate about making product, courageous enough to make it a full time business and as down to earth as you can get when it came to asking for help in her business AND sharing her wisdom with those of us that asked.A rock-star entrepreneur, Alana talks with me about her early days and her kitchen table epiphany that started Etta + Billie, the marketing things she tried that worked and the one that haven’t...and her soapy marketing secret...email. Email campaigns, referrals, reward and more. And how she uses testing and analytics to optimize her marketing (because her real nature is “let’s just do it.”) Well, as entrepreneurs, we all have to learn from our mistakes and grow in ways we don’t expect.So, pull your chair up to the kitchen table with us...and enjoy the show.Resources:Etta + BillieEtta + Billie InstagramEtta + Billie FacebookSusan Miller Cavich - soapmakingCalifornia School of Herbal StudiesEtsy Indie Business NetworkMaker Marketing Mail 

Marketing expert and copywriter to some of the biggest names in internet marketing, Abbey Woodcock has written million-dollar launch campaigns that skyrocketed these online businesses.I’ve known Abbey for a few years now, and as a matter of fact, she’s one of my mentors.But that’s not quite why she’s here today.Abbey is also venturing out in a new direction...as a maker (of sorts.)While most people are going the other way when they branch out in their businesses, taking their brick & mortar online. Abbey is going from an online business to a brick & mortar.As she says...it's just the right time for going local, and opening a business and just really bringing people back to the community.From journalism to corporate marketing to freelance copywriter for online businesses and course creators...to owner of Calle Farm Cheese Shop (www.Calle1945.com).This is going to be a good one as Abbey opens up about her marketing ideas for her new shop and how she’ll use her experience as a marketer to build a new business from scratch. Grab your chair on pull it up to the kitchen table with us...and enjoy the show.Resources:Liz Thorpe - Murray’s Cheese Shop NYCCopy Chief Live eventAnnie - Bagel GroveCallee1945.comAbbey Woodcock Inc - FacebookAbbey Woodcock - InstagramFreelance CoopMaker Marketing Mail (c’mon and sign up so you get to know about cool people like Abbey)

She doesn’t sell nail polish...she sells confidence!This is probably one of my favorite lines from an indie maker! Why, because when it comes to indie brands and marketing, early on, makers look at what they sell...the features and the benefits of the product.As you become more seasoned in the industry, and as you put your big marketing bloomers on, you realize that you’re doing SO much more.Pam is a full-time nurse practitioner...and Stella Chroma is her “side gig” but don’t let that fool you. She has created one helluva brand with almost 10k Instagram followers, almost 13k followers on Facebook and a healthy revenue to boot!In this episode, my guest Pam Rodgers shares what she’s learned along the way to growing her nail polish brand.Like...getting reeaallly specific about who her ideal customer avatar is. (BTW her name is Jenn. not Jennifer...Jenn.)She talks about trends in her industry…Being wise about where you spend your money...ahem...advertising and promotions…The social media strategy that’s her biggest HIT so far...and helped her put Stella Chroma on autopilot in 2020.So pull your chair up to the kitchen table with us...and enjoy the show.Resources:Andrea Evans - 2 Hands Made This Episode 9Andrea Hence Evans, Esq.Lela Barker - Brickhouse BrandingErika Firm - Graphics DesignerStella Chroma Stella Chroma InstagramStella Chroma - FacebookDani Authentic - IGShopifySusan Bradley - Social sales GirlsMakerMarketingMail.com

Her 2 hands make a lot of yummy things! And she’s continued to make a lot of yummy things for her clients as a personal chef.Certified Personal Chef and Owner of Tailored Taste Monica, Thomas is a graduate of the Culinary Business Academy, a premier member of the United States Personal Chef Association, and a ServSafe© certified food manager. In 2017 she was inducted into the esteemed Les Dames d’Escoffier, a membership-by-invitation philanthropic all-professional association.At the USPCA national conference in August 2012, Monica was named Personal Chef of the Year.But she’s not here today to talk about making food. She’s here today to talk about marketing.A few years ago I met Monica because she needed some help with her copy and her marketing.She has a thriving business with many satisfied clients. Monica is also a coach and mentor to new personal chefs. What I love about Monica and her marketing is that she is not afraid to try new things! She also will tell you...when something isn’t working...LET.IT.GO!Monica has a lot to share today...especially one particular marketing strategy she is working on to grow her business in 2021.Pull up a chair to the kitchen table with us and enjoy the show.Resources:Tailored Taste Personal Chef ServiceTailored Taste CoachingFlavors & Fun - IrelandMakerMarketingMail.com