by Wendy Batten
Listen on: Apple Podcasts |Spotify | Radio Republic | YouTube | PlayerFM | Stitcher | iHeartRadio
Episode Summary:
Comprehending what sets us apart may seem too obvious, but many creative retailers spend time focusing on the day-to-day of their business that they forget about the big picture. This is totally understandable, but if you fail to look at what makes you stand out over your competition can make all of your marketing efforts ineffective.
The key to reaching a new customer is connecting on an emotional level. If you can speak to your customers’ challenges and offer a solution, it will make it much easier for them to do business with you. And that’s exactly what I want to talk about with you this week.
In this week’s episode, I talked about the secret to getting your customers to choose you over your competition. We discuss whether customers choose you because of the proximity of your store, the price of your product, or simply because they are loyal to your brand. I also talk about creating that emotional connection with your customers. Why do you think it’s important to share your story? Whether you have an antique shop, a paint shop, a bookstore, a chocolate shop, or whether you’re selling beautifully curated gifts, everybody has competition. Everybody has a reason for them to want to go to your shop versus the shop down the street. I discuss the different ways we can share what we are doing and what our business represents.
This week’s talking points on the Creative Shop Talk Podcast:
- Supporting other businesses
- How do you stand out
- What makes you different from your competitor
- How do we get customers to know of our business
- How do we get customers to trust us
- Creating emotional connections
- Sharing stories on social media
- How Front Porch Mercantile started
- What your Facebook page should convey
- Business values
The Big Takeaway:
Don’t be afraid to share your passion and what lights up your heart. Don’t be afraid to do that over and over again.
Our Favorite Quotes:
- “It’s important for us to share our stories with people.” – Wendy Batten
- “You should start sharing as much as you can about your story.” – Wendy Batten
- “People want to deal with real people.” – Wendy Batten
Our Sponsor:
This week’s episode was brought to you by my monthly coaching group Retailer’s Inner Circle. Inside my exclusive inner circle, I offer support to you and your business in any way possible. Feel free to reach out at WendyBatten.com. Click here to learn more and join my Retailer’s Inner Circle today.
Subscribe, Connect & Share Your Favorite Episodes
Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Creative Shop Talk Podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, please head over to Apple Podcasts or Google Podcast to subscribe to the show and leave your honest review. For more great content and helpful tips to grow your creative retail shop, visit our website. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram, subscribe on YouTube, and don’t forget to share your favorite episodes with other creative retailers.
by Wendy Batten
Listen on: Apple Podcasts |Spotify | Radio Republic | YouTube | PlayerFM | Stitcher | iHeartRadio
Episode Summary:
Hey there friends and welcome to Season 2 of the Creative Shop Talk Podcast. I want to start by thanking each and every one of you for all the support throughout Season 1. We’re jumping into season 2 with a retail success story – meet Melanie Curley from Mango reclaimed. Her story inspires. Being successful is the biggest dream every creative retailer has. But success doesn’t happen within hours or days. Success comes out from hard work, dedication, perseverance, and love for what we do.
Melanie Curley is the owner of Mango Reclaimed, a vintage furniture studio that opened in 2013. Originally a small studio designed to sell reclaimed furniture, Mango Reclaimed has grown and evolved over the past 8 years to encompass a 5,000 sqft studio space that retails multiple paint lines, various DIY products, custom furniture reclaiming, and is host to a variety of hands-on workshops and customer events.
In this week’s episode, I talked about a success story of a creative retailer that started as a photographer but now has a successful retail business, and a new paint line that became highly sought after by retailers across North America. We will discuss how she ended up in the retail industry and I’ll share how Melanie exemplified the proper way to run a retail business. We also talk about what to do when something doesn’t work in our businesses so you can grow and expand exponentially. Melanie discusses the scary business decisions she has made, and how she manages to be a mom of two, fiance, and keep her business up and running throughout a pandemic.
You’re going to love meeting Melanie.
I want to remind you that if you need any support or if I can help you in your business in any way, please reach out. You can always reach out by emailing me at WendyBatten.com. I do one-on-one coaching and host a fabulous group of retailers inside my monthly coaching group Retailer’s Inner Circle. I say fabulous because it’s a space where we support one another and grow together. Click here to learn more.
This week’s talking points on the Creative Shop Talk Podcast:
- Creative retailer success story
- One-on-one coaching
- Diversifying and changing
- Running your own business
- Accidental entrepreneurship
- Choosing the right business model
- Being brave and confident
- 5-Step marketing plan
- Building a community matters
The Big Takeaway:
There’s so much work behind the scenes, you need to just keep moving forward. You can adjust, update, and refine things, but if you don’t put it out there, no one will be able to see it.
Our Favorite Quotes:
- “Things don’t make sense until it makes sense.” – Melanie Curley
- “If it doesn’t work, just do something else.” – Melanie Curley
- “You have to build excitement.” – Melanie Curley
- “Marketing means getting people excited and in love with your business.” – Wendy Batten
- “Even if you can do all the things it doesn’t mean you should.” – Wendy Batten
Our guest:
Mango Reclaimed – A vintage furniture studio established in 2013 by Melanie Curley offering reclaimed, refinished, and restyled furniture. Now offering Mango Paint. Mango Paint is a Canadian made, water-based paint that is specifically designed to reclaim furniture. This paint imparts a beautiful soft matte finish that is incredibly smooth to the touch. With minimal prep work required, you can breeze right through to the fun part!
www.facebook.com/mangoreclaimed
www.instagram.com/mangoreclaimed
www.pinterest.com/mangoreclaimed
www.facebook.com/mangopaintinc
www.instagram.com/mangopaintinc
Subscribe, Connect & Share Your Favorite Episodes
Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Creative Shop Talk Podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, please head over to Apple Podcasts or Google Podcast to subscribe to the show and leave your honest review. For more great content and helpful tips to grow your creative retail shop, visit our website. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram, subscribe on YouTube, and don’t forget to share your favorite episodes with other creative retailers.
by Wendy Batten
Listen on: Apple Podcasts |Spotify | Radio Republic | YouTube | PlayerFM | Stitcher | iHeartRadio
Episode Summary:
Do you ever feel like you resent your business? What do we do to continue to stay in love with our business? How do we get back to the honeymoon phase?
In this week’s episode, I talk about resenting our business. I know this past year has been eye-opening. One of the things I discuss is the importance of being intentional about the business that we have and figuring out what we want from it. If we resent it, if we burn out, if we just try to do all the things all the time, we cannot grow our business. We need to take back our calendars and have systems, marketing, and processes in place.
If you want to take back your calendars and stop resenting your business, I want to invite you to join The Retailer’s Inner Circle, a custom-made online community made for creative shop owners looking to learn and grow their business. Inside the Inner Circle, you will find valuable resources that will help you fall back in love with your business. This is not a course. We offer a community & resources for retailers just like you! Click here to learn more.
Also, want to let you know that this is our last podcast for this first season. Can you believe we have done a year of podcasting? I’m so grateful for everybody that has been here. I am sending you all the love and good vibes so you can stop resenting your business and start seeing your business grow. I’m here to support you in any way so you can get back into loving your business and finding that right path. Please remember to reach out. It is my mission to help creative shop owners feel better about their business. You can find me at WendyBatten.com.
This week on the Creative Shop Talk Podcast:
- Resenting our business
- How to fall back in love with your business
- Burning out
- Vision planning
- Importance of visualizing
- Understanding where we’re going
- Taking back our calendars
- Personal development
- How to be vulnerable
- Firing yourself
- Asking for help
The Big Takeaway:
It’s okay to be happy in our retail job. We can’t grow our business if we resent it.
Our Favorite Quotes:
- “We’re not in it to just be hustle mentality.” – Wendy Batten
- “It’s important to visualize and understand where you’re going.” – Wendy Batten
- “We have to be very open to personal development.” – Wendy Batten
- “We have to be vulnerable.” – Wendy Batten
- “Fire yourself from every job that someone else can do.” – Wendy Batten
Our sponsor:
Online Course: Retail Made Simple – The Success Path for Creative Shop Owners
This is a four-week online program designed by and for creative shop owners. You will get the information and resources you need to simplify and lay the foundation for your creative retail business so you can get it going and growing.
Subscribe, Connect & Share Your Favorite Episodes
Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Creative Shop Talk Podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, please head over to Apple Podcasts or Google Podcast to subscribe to the show and leave your honest review. For more great content and helpful tips to grow your creative retail shop, visit our website. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram, subscribe on YouTube, and don’t forget to share your favorite episodes with other creative retailers.
by Wendy Batten
Listen on: Apple Podcasts |Spotify | Radio Republic | YouTube | PlayerFM | Stitcher | iHeartRadio
Episode Summary:
In this week’s episode, I share four must-have ingredients that every creative retailer needs for a successful business in 2021. I also discuss some major shifts that we are seeing in the retail industry. One of the four-must have ingredients I talk about is being a CEO. Often retailers just want to own a business and forget everything that entails. Being the CEO of your creative business presents you with a lot of benefits. Other ingredients I shared are being money savvy, being streamlined, and being efficient. I also discuss how marketing and sales help creative retailers grow their businesses.
Have you joined My Inner Circle yet? This is a monthly group, a one-of-a-kind community for select retailers only. Click here to join the experience combining coaching, training, and community support led by me, Wendy Batten.
We are in a niche of caring about people and caring about their success. I want you to be successful. So, I invite you to take some time, sit down, and think about what you can improve in 2021, where you can get more training, what goals you want to achieve this new year, and how do you feel about those four ingredients. In my Retail Made Simple – The Success Path for Creative Shop Owners we go over these four must-have skills in more depth. This incredible online program starts in just a few more days. Register now by clicking here.
This week on the Creative Shop Talk Podcast:
- Four must-have ingredients for a successful business
- Retail industry trends
- Our customers
- How our businesses are affecting our lives
- Being money savvy
- Understanding your numbers
- Ideal customer avatar
- Five pillar marketing strategy
The Big Takeaway:
We are seeing retailers making more and more business decisions based on how they will affect their lives.
Our Favorite Quotes:
- “We need our customers to be our priority.” – Wendy Batten
- “We need to build our confidence.” – Wendy Batten
- “Understanding your numbers does not mean just looking at your bank balance.” – Wendy Batten
- “We don’t want to get to a point where we resent our business.” – Wendy Batten
- “Retailers that have a plan in place move forward.” – Wendy Batten
Our sponsor:
Online Course: Retail Made Simple – The Success Path for Creative Shop Owners. This is a four-week online program designed by and for creative shop owners. In this program, you will get the information and resources you need to simplify and lay the foundation for your creative retail business so you can get it going and growing.
Subscribe, Connect & Share Your Favorite Episodes
Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Creative Shop Talk Podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, please head over to Apple Podcasts or Google Podcast to subscribe to the show and leave your honest review. For more great content and helpful tips to grow your creative retail shop, visit our website. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram, subscribe on YouTube, and don’t forget to share your favorite episodes with other creative retailers.
by Wendy Batten
Listen on: Apple Podcasts |Spotify | Radio Republic | YouTube | PlayerFM | Stitcher | iHeartRadio
Episode Summary:
Are you excited about planning your best retail year ever? Listen to this my friends: we need to celebrate the wins and acknowledge that we’ve been working hard throughout 2020.
In Episode 40, we talked about looking back and how to move forward by looking at what worked and what didn’t work. Later on, in Episode 41, we discussed how an ideal 2021 would look like to us. Last week, in Episode 42, which was our third part of our series, we talked about what we needed to do to get where we want to be.
This week’s episode is the last part of our “Plan Your Best Retail Year Ever” series. I’m sharing two things you need to know when planning out for 2021: how to put all the pieces together and how to build to move forward. We will identify how you can reach your goals and what you need to do to step out of your comfort zone. We’re wrapping up the end of the year and you must end it strong.
Have you already started planning out 2021? Do you have questions or do you need guidance in any of the parts? Join my free Rock Star Creatives Facebook group. I’m hosting a coaching session and will talk about the four-part planning process on Thursday, December 30th. You don’t want to miss it.
Also, I have a big surprise for everyone on the waitlist for my Retail Made Simple – The Success Path for Creative Shop Owners. A new session of this four-week online program starts in January and registration is now open (click here). This course was designed to simplify the business side of running a creative business and help retailers get their business going and growing.
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Plan your best retail year ever by following one of our most popular series:
Part 1 – Why looking back is key and what to look for
Part 2 – Look forward to plan – revenue and finances
Part 3 – What do we need to do to get where we want to go
Part 4 – How to put all the pieces together and reach your goals
This week on the Creative Shop Talk Podcast:
- Planning your best retail year ever
- Putting all the pieces together
- Stepping out of our comfort zone
- Personal development skills
- Understanding cash flow
- Marketing is not just social media
- The domino effect
- Hiring a coach
The Big Takeaway:
It’s possible for all of us, even if we hit some bumps and things don’t go in a straight line.
Our Favorite Quotes:
- “Marketing is not just doing more social media.” – Wendy Batten
- “Magic happens when we step out of that comfort zone.” – Wendy Batten
- “We have to keep moving ahead with hope.” – Wendy Batten
- “We’re going to know where we’re going if having a solid plan in place.” – Wendy Batten
- “Retailers that have a plan in place move forward.” – Wendy Batten
Our sponsor:
Online Course: Retail Made Simple – The Success Path for Creative Shop Owners
This is a four-week online program designed by and for creative shop owners. In this program, you will get the information and resources you need to simplify and lay the foundation for your creative retail business so you can get it going and growing.
Subscribe, Connect & Share Your Favorite Episodes
Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of the Creative Shop Talk Podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, please head over to Apple Podcasts or Google Podcast to subscribe to the show and leave your honest review. For more great content and helpful tips to grow your creative retail shop, visit our website. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram, subscribe on YouTube, and don’t forget to share your favorite episodes with other creative retailers.
