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Top 5 Ways to Improve Your Online Presence

Update your shop's/Facebook pages profile and add pictures!

The old adage is true.  People buy from people they like.  If you are a small business share some photos of yourself and a story of how you started your business.  Every shop needs an about page.  This information should also be added to your Facebook profile.

Toot your horn!

Add reviews into your shop posts and share them on Facebook.  If people are leaving you great reviews then share them!  Don’t assume people will just go to your shops review section.  Share your great reviews in your post listings.  Just add a little note at the end of the post that says: This is what people are saying about this product, “….”.

Also, quit struggling to come up with Facebook content.  Reviews are a great this to post.  Just don’t post them too often.  You want to toot your horn, not blow it.  (That’s a great book by the way, How to Toot Your Horn Without Blowing It.)

Collaborate!

Find someone to cross promote with at least once a month.  The options are endless but here are a few ideas:

·         Pair up with another designer that makes complimentary product and do a photo shoot together. 

·         Team up with 5 designers and offer discounts together and promote each other for the duration of the sale. 

·         Find a local studio photograpaher and host a trunkshow/photo mini session and cross promote to get people there.

Facebook

Post regularly, and always work to gain new fans.  If you are an online shop then know that the first thing 80% of your potential customers do when they get up is check their Facebook account.  If you are not posting regularly and if you are not working to expand your fan base you are missing out on sales.

Create an email list

While Facebook is a great marketing tool it should not be your only marketing tool.  Statistic say more than 50% of new business comes from repeat customers so it’s important to engage previous customers regularly.  By creating an email list you can keep in touch and reward previous customers with special deals and coupon codes to keep them coming back.

BIG TIP!  Don’t limit your email list to previous customers only.  Regularly post on Facebook to encourage fans to sign up for your email list.  Lt them know they will receive special offers that only email list subscribers receive.

Start with a matte face. Flawless matte is VERY in season for Fall and WInter 2013. Apply eye primer to the eyes. Allow to dry. Apply a thin coat of flesh color shadow. This will make blending of the colors placed on top much easier.

To bump up the look I used OCC lip tar.  Go with any high gloss vivacious pink color!

Inspired by the Handmade Success Blog I am going to celebrate August with 30 days of sharing my some of my favorite independent designer finds.  Today I am going to kick it off with Rose Hill Design Studio.  I happened upon her page a couple months ago and I am so in love!!!!  Every illustration she makes just makes my heart happy!  Today she introduced new snail mail cards.  How cute are these? 

"If you can dream it, then you can do it."  ~Walt Disney

"You will fail because you didn't follow your passion."  Larry Smith on TEDTALKS, Economist.

What do these 2 quotes have in common?  They both insinuate that there is a greater destiny to your life.  One shaped by the dreams in your mind and the passion in your heart.  They both are also a call to action.  "DO IT."  "FOLLOW IT."

I have never shied away from a challenge.  It is part of my bloodstream to find things people tell me I can't do and then do it.  For a long time I made that my passion.  And that passion has taken me a long way.  Sailing the sea working on a cruise ship, teaching geometry to a class of ADD students, working my way to Vice President of a recruiting firm with 20 reports, starting my own fashion business, and starting this blog.  It has been this journey that has taught me lessons to grow, lessons to understand, lessons to teach.  It has been this journey that has taught me my true passion.

I am passionate about people.  I am passionate about learning about them and learning from them.  I am passionate about connecting with them.  I am passionate about teaching them to connect with others.  I am passionate to help them pursue their dreams, their passions.

When I started this blog, and my Facebook page (because just as much if not more action happens there for TFBM and my followers), I did it with a purpose of connecting with other small business owners to teach then what I know and learn from them, but mostly to encourage them-to empower them.  It has been a year and a half now and I am humbled and amazed at the shape it is taking.

On a daily basis I interact with business owners.  I give them insight to my experiences of what they are challenged with, I point them to resources to help them on their path, I vent or let them vent and then we pick ourselves up and move on to the next challenge.  TFBM has not only been a source of information for my followers but it is becoming a place where business owners can connect and learn from each other.  This month I started adding designer interviews to the blog and I am amazed at the talent and experience out there and how much people are willing to share in the name of helping others succeed.

The next level of teaching connection was for me to start an online magazine.  The magazine will launch in September.  The purpose of the magazine is simple:
1.  Connect independent designers with an audience that will buy their products.
2.  Inspire shoppers by telling the story of the designers behind the product and showing their product in a beautiful way.
3.  Inspire and educate designers with articles relevant to helping them grow their business.

The editorials for this magazine are really coming together!  The talent involved in sending product, styling the shoots, and photographing are awe inspiring and I cannot wait to share it with you all!

Thank you for letting me share my passion with you and I look forward to interacting with you more so you can share your passions with me!

This is the Little Collab that could!  We had a rough start to this collab so I hopped in and offered up a newly designed dress to be included in the shoot.  I love how cute the little purse looks with it!  You can win the dress, the purse, and the pattern to make your own purse in a giveaway at the end of this post!  But first meet the designers and photographer behind this collaboration...

First up is Charlotte Avillo Designs who provided the pattern for this cute little purse.  She has lots of fun bag designs for big and little girls in her SHOP  FACEBOOK

Stitches by Laura makes all sorts of cute things for little girls but for this collab and giveaway she made the purse below.  I LOVE the colors!   Shop her items on FACEBOOK

You will also have a chance to win this dress by kangacoo designs as part of your prize package (choice of size 6m up to a 10/12 girls).  kangacoo makes all sorts of ruffly girls clothing SHOP FACEBOOK

All of these darling photos were taken by Rachel Proctor Photography from Murfressboro, TN. She does wedding adn portrait photography  WEBSITE FACEBOOK

Good Day Sunshine!  Spring has sprung and Summer is right around the corner.  How cute would your little girl look in this darling dress, heaband and necklace?!?!  Even more darling if you won it, right? 

As part of my Collaboration Workshop Series I have brought together some very talented designers to bring your this ensemble and these photos.  I just brought them together.  They made all this magic happen!  Let me introduce them to you.

Create Kids Couture made the pattern for this darling dress.  Shop  Facebook Prize: a pattern
Two Modest Mamas made the dress.  Facebook Prize: the dress
Snickerdoodle Stew made the matching headband.  Shop  Facebook Prize The headband
Palest Pink made the darling necklace.  Shop  Facebook Prize the necklace

This collaboration was photographed by the uber talented Rock & Royalty Photography! 
Website  Facebook

Enjoy the photos she took of the dress, necklace, and headband you can win plus as a bonus the winner will receieve a pattern from the Creat Kids Couture shop so you can do some home sewing of your own!

Welcome to our Play Hard, Look Pretty Giveaway. 
One lucky winner will recieve the dress shown here and either a necklace or headband to match! 

Let me introduce the designers sponsoring this giveaway.

First is a fabulous headpiece and necklace designer Rebekah from Bella Blossoms. 
facebook  shop her designs on her facebook page.

Winner will pick either the headband shown here or...

the necklace shown here.

The winner will also receive this dress in the size of their choice 6-12m to 5Y.  This gorgeous dress is the work of Jennifer of Princess B and Livy Too Designs.  Facebook   Shop

This collaboration all came together with the amazing photography talent of Candace of candace Rock Photography.  She completely captured todays little girl.  Pretty and sweet yet playful and tough!  To learn more about Candace Rock and her services please visit her Facebook page or Website.

Here are a few more of her wonderful photos and below that is the rafflecopter gadget you can use to enter the giveaway!  Good Luck!