HOW DO YOU SERVE YOUR AUDIENCE AS A PRODUCT BASED BUSINESS?
Serving your audience as a product-based business is about more than letting them know where to click and pay. It’s about creating connections and sharing your passion with your ideal clients! If you’re a product-based business struggling to find ways to do more than sell to your audience, this one is for you.
Finding Balance Between Sales and Value
When you are making and selling products, it’s easy to feel stuck when it comes to posting on social media. If you are only writing and sharing sales posts, you can quickly feel uninspired. The thing to remember is that social media is all about getting social!
So, when you’re creating social media content for your product-based business, it’s important to strike a balance between selling and offering value. There’s even a ratio you can use to make sure you get the balance right!
Your content should be 80% value and 20% sales.
The sales part is pretty straightforward. You have a great product, so put it out there with information about what it is, where to get it, and how to buy it. Easy peasy!
It’s the 80% value that can feel tricky for product-based businesses.
Creating Value In Your Social Posts As A Product-Based Business.
If you are feeling stumped when it comes to creating posts that bring value to your audience, think about your WHY and ask yourself some questions:
Why did you start making your product in the first place?
Why do you make it the way you do?
How does it help people or add value or joy to their lives?
What do people love about it?
The answers to these questions are where you will find that 80% value!
It really can be that easy. Get social! Share what your business and product are all about and your audience will feel connected to you and be much more likely to support you by buying your fabulous product.
Three Ways to Bring the Value: Connection, Inspiration, Education.
Bringing value to your audience can happen in a lot of different ways. That being said, the three main categories of value I suggest to product-based businesses are connection, inspiration, and education.
Let’s check out some examples of some amazing product-based businesses and see how they are bringing value to their audiences.
Connection
Connecting with your audience as a business owner (product-based or otherwise!) is all about being open and honest, sharing real-life moments and connecting with your ideal client. This type of value is all about making sure your audience knows there is a real person (or people!) behind the business.
Watson & Lou is a local Peterborough business owned by two dynamic women and a team of magical shop staff. Aside from selling an amazing variety of locally and Canadian made product, Watson & Lou brings loads of value to their audience with some up-close and personal connection. From co-owner Anna’s choreographed dance routines to the amazing newsletter they send out, you can’t help feeling connected to (and curious about) Watson & Lou.
Inspiration
Go on, let your audience dream a little! Inspire your ideal client to purchase your products by showing them scenes that they will want to be a part of. This is something that the folks at Pink Lemon Decor (a decor and design business run out of a vintage 1975 mobile shop!) do so, so well; especially on their blog!
Each blog post tells a story with words and pictures. The blog really allows their audience to feel inspired to create a similar space in their own home! What’s more, they make their sweet modern style feel accessible to anyone. Each blog post is an invitation to get inspired and to shop!
Education
Education is a value category that most product-based businesses can really dig into. There really is so much to talk about here. You can start by talking about what each product is and what it does, but the possibilities for content go far beyond that! Try educating your audience about things like:
How to care for your product
Ways the product can help create a lifestyle
Different and creative ways they can use the product
Social or environmental causes that inspired its creation
Swell Made Co. hits this one out of the park. Education about their products and the slow and simple lifestyle they help foster can be found in every piece of content they create. From the photos they use to the posts they make, it is all about showing the how and why behind every product all wrapped up with a swell little bow.
Are You Ready To Serve You Audience and Create Content That Connects, Inspires, Educates (and Sells)?
As a product-based business, it is easy to focus exclusively on selling. Don’t get stuck in a profit-over-people mindset! By offering your audience valuable content when you post to social media you are creating real connections with them. Remember, you can serve your audience and sell your product at the same time. In fact, the more value you offer the more connected and invested your ideal clients will feel towards you and your business!