We are butterflies. How to emerge from the chrysalis 🦋

This is a challenging time for all small businesses around the world. From the fires and floods earlier this year we’ve seen how pulling together and supporting small local businesses benefits everyone. The pleasure and satisfaction when I receive a local business delivery is unparalleled. The handwritten note, the personal wrapping and small gift inclusions, the unexpected personal email to ask if everything was ok, OMG I love it! It makes me feel connected, part of the tribe.

We’re a small business and the gratitude that I feel when an order notification pops up on my phone is overwhelming. (yes, I still have that setting on – it even has a bell sound!) I literally do a happy dance and get butterflies 🦋 Silly I know, but true.

No matter what life throws at us let's keep small business owners butterflies 🦋. Here are some ideas on supporting your favourite little shop or service without spending a cent.

Sign up for their Newsletter

Check out their website, click the BIO and sign-up to their newsletter. I promise you most small businesses are so busy working in their business, they will NOT spam you. This way you’ll be kept in the loop with what they’re up to, a new service, an exciting product launch or event. Knowing what’s on will help you to share, even if you can’t attend an event and you don’t need their product right now, you might know someone who does or you might need a gift in the future. I use Klaviyoto generate my newsletter, that’s why they always look so professional!

Read their Blogs

Yaya you’re here! Thank you xx By simply spending some time each week reading blogs helps small business SEO and tells Google that this website is relevant, and this gets more traffic to the website, which means more conversions [sales=butterflies]. 🦋 A shout out to Digital Eagles who helped me get my SEO rocking and rolling.

Social Media Likes and Follows

Face Book, Instagram and Twitter, are the holy grail to modern marketing – both paid and organic posts are critical to small business reach and visibility. I’m constantly confused by the ALGORITHM but one thing is plain and clear. The more likes, comments a post gets the more it’s shown and the wider it goes. This is pretty damn cool, the more you like and comment on a post, the more that post is then shown to a wider audience, eventually reaching a person who might need the product and purchase!

The best way to do this, is SHARE the small business content you love to Instagram stories or tag a friend. The butterfly effect! 🦋🦋 

My social media content has been crafted with the help of Sonia at Scribe and Social. As well as some brilliant advice and online courses with Cherie and her awesome team at The Digital Picnic.

Write a Review

Sharing your experience and spreading a little good news is the best way to support a business. It gives the business legitimacy and others will often purchase on recommendations. I know I do, I always read reviews before opening my purse. It’s old fashioned word of mouth gals. This is also Google gold for searches, and helps others find real, relevant businesses. Go now and write a review!!

My Google goddess is Kaity Griffin at Sunday Digital with the Profitable Promotion online course. Prepare to be blown away by the depth of knowledge and speed at which Kaity delivers results.

Build Affinity and shoot them an encouraging comment

As a small brand, it can be lonely work. I absolutely love beautiful messages and cute pictures sliding into my DM’s! And the butterflies whirl and swirl, it is wind beneath these fragile wings people. It gives me motivation to bring my A-GAME and make my work better and better. Please reach out! 🦋

Share a Pic

Lights, Camera, Action... Snap and share! I absolutely love all the beautiful holiday and backyard pics of cuties in swimmers that are generously shared. Small businesses are hard pressed for content, so you’re giving them the best gift by either tagging them on your socials or sending them some snaps. Try and use their hashtags because this will take it to the next level, as we try and stand out in the crowd.

Without the talented photographer Cat Black I wouldn't have any snaps at all. 

Enter their Competitions and Giveaways  

I have my go-to list of friends and family that I tag and share a competition with, one because I know them well enough that they’ll love the opportunity to win a great prize and if I don’t really know them, well, my hope is that they will send it to their community and it will have a DOMINO effect. Even if you don’t WIN, it’s about spreading the word and wings of those butterflies.🦋

It’s a brill way to gain a new audience and show off what you’ve got. You don’t need to be spamming your friends, but by simply tagging 2-3 friends will really help a small business, TAG away.

Show up

When ISO is over and we’re getting back out there! It’s gonna be like a flash mob. I’m going to attend everything [opening an envelope? – I’ll come] Join in community events, go to your local markets – be it craft or fresh produce. Meet your friends, grab a coffee and make an outing of it! Expo’s are another great way to find new business and engage, there are also loads of free samples and special offers on at the bigger events. Looking forward to seeing you all there. Check back to our Events and Markets page to see where we'll be!

The Live events that my business coach and mentor, Elizabeth Formosa and her A-team at Fashion Equipped have curated have been RED hot diary dates over the past few years. The industry experts and panel discussions that have been hosted are invaluable to the growth of my fashion business.

When we go INSTA LIVE

It takes GUTS to go LIVE. If you see a small business stepping out of the comfort zone and into an Instagram Live, Please please join them. Head over to your settings and turn on your notifications, you’ll get a pop up when you’re online if someone goes LIVE. The more people hopping on the easier it is to chat, because you’re talking to people and not just being a mad person speaking to yourself. Say Hi and let them know you’re watching, ask a question if you’re familiar with the brand: you don’t have to stay the whole time, just show up and sending hearts lets the algorithm know this small business has friends.

So there we go NOT one penny spent and deeply contributing to the small business community. Just five minutes of your time online will be hugely appreciated if spent circulating and sharing a brand you truly love. You don’t need to have deep pockets or write like Shakespeare, you need only to Be You and share to set the butterflies free.🦋🦋🦋