Day 13 - Time Management

A successful person realizes his personal responsibility for self-motivation. He starts with himself because he possesses the key to his own ignition switch.

- Kemmons Wilson

Founder of Holiday Inn Hotels

Here we are in the last week of January and I have to admit, I'm really frustrated with my progress. I had visions of plowing into my business once the crazy holiday season was over. I thought the rest of my life would slow down enough so there would be minimal distractions and I could dedicate all the hours I needed to grow my business.

It hasn't quite worked out that way.

Life still gets in the way, no matter the time of year. I have a tendency to always look forward and think that next week, next month, next quarter, etc. will be easier and I'll have all the time I need. I was certain that January would give me plenty of time to solely concentrate on myself. How did I ever manage a day job and this business!!

Part of the reason I wanted to run my own business is so I would have more control over my life. And I do. However, I am still learning how to manage my time when I control the clock and priorities. There is no longer a 'boss' telling me which tasks have to be taken care of first and no one to see if I'm in the office by 8:00 am.

I have a long list of goals and tasks, and I naturally want to complete the tasks that are more fun first. While I did write up a schedule and had a clear list of goals for the month, I didn't do a good job of 'chunking it down' and turning these goals into concrete tasks so that I stayed on track.

So, after this month's missteps, I resolve to do a better job documenting the tasks I need to complete in order to achieve the goals I've set for the month.

Here are my new steps to better manage my time and tasks:

1. Every Sunday night:
1. Review my month goals.
2. Write down tasks needing to be completed for the week.
3. For each task, determine a priority level.
1. Priority 1: Absolute Must; Not completing this task is detrimental to my business.
2. Priority 2: Definite Must; Not completing this task affects other tasks.
3. Priority 3: Should; This task is good for my business long term and keeps my momentum.
4. Priority 4: Nice to Have; This task is to be completed after all other priorities are completed.
4. Next to each task, write down which day of the week this needs to be completed for priorities 1 and 2.
2. Each morning, review my tasks for the day and schedule the time of day each task needs to be completed.
3. Cross off tasks as they are completed. If they need to be delayed until the next week, move the task to the next week's list.

This weekly list is being kept in my goal book, in the pages right after my monthly goals. Having all this information all in one book makes it more manageable.

Here is the start to my new weekly list:

I prefer to write my lists in notebooks as I have a tendency to scribble out information and edit. This is just my preferred method and it works for me.

Here is a picture of my goal book for the year. I have January and February tabs already completed.

I have to admit I feel better already seeing it in writing. By maintaining a monthly, weekly and daily list, I hope to stay on track and not get so discouraged when it feels like I'm not moving forward with my goals fast enough.

Day 12 - Creating a Press Kit

A bird sitting on a tree is never afraid of the branch breaking, because her trust is not on the branch but on her own wings.  Always believe in yourself.

A week ago, my hairdresser contacted me and asked if I could provide her my business information (bio, picture, etc.) for her newsletter. Each week she features different clients in her newsletter and she thought it would be a good opportunity for me to promote my business. While I was really excited for this opportunity, she unfortunately needed it in one day. I wasn't prepared to put this together, especially since it was a Friday afternoon when she contacted me and I was heading out for the evening. This really got me to thinking - why don't I have a press kit ready to go at a moment's notice?!?

If I'm going to consider Theresa Rose Designs a serious business (and I do!), then it's imperative that I have press information ready for people the minute they ask for it. You never know when you can get that unexpected phone call from a business, newspaper, magazine, fundraiser, you name it - and they don't want to wait while you take a few days to put it together.

So, I was definitely inspired to take the time and put together a professional package that can be sent out in a timely manner. Fortunately, I already have the photographs, so it was really just a matter of writing up my bio and contact information in a professional format.

There are a few different items I wanted to have. These include:

1. Professional headshot
2. Jewelry pictures
3. Contact information
4. Bio - this includes my 'why', how I got into the business.
5. Shop Information
6. Shop Reviews - copied from Etsy site

By having all this information ready to go, I can tweak it quickly to customize it to the request. I will no longer be taken off guard and lose an opportunity to promote my shop.

How about you? Do you have a  press kit for your business?

Day 11 - January Goal Check up and Final Facebook Ad Results

Instead of thinking outside the box, get rid of the box.

-Deepak Chopra

There are a little less than 2 weeks left in January, so I thought it would be a good idea to review my goals for this month and see if I'm on target and what I need to work on for the next week. January is really about setting up the foundation for success in my business this year. Developing good work habits and scheduling consistent marketing/sales tasks were the main focuses for me this month. While I was working full-time along with running my jewelry business, I didn't set strict measurable goals for myself because it was always easy to fall back on the 'real' job. I made goals in my head, but didn't write them down - if they went by the wayside, no one knew (except me and I wasn't telling anyone!).

The goals I set for January were:

• Sales goal of 50% more than last January.
• Right now I'm on target with my sales goals. I'm seeing a definite increase from last year!
• Design and list 15 new products.
• I've listed 10 new products this month so far. I'm well on track to meeting this goal.
• Start an Instagram account by mid-month and start posting pictures.
• My account is created and a few pictures have been posted. I'm not posting every day, but with Instagram, less is better than too often. I'm going to go easy on myself with this social media venue.
• Post 4-5 pins on Pinterest each day (only 1 per day for jewelry).
• Except for the weekends, I've been fairly consistent with this one. I enjoy Pinterest and I'm definitely starting to see an increase in followers and re-pins. I'm also seeing traffic from Pinterest to my Etsy site.
• Create YouTube channel and have 2 videos up by end of month.
• My channel is created. I expect to create my first video this week.
• Update my website with new pictures and new font. Update list of stores carrying my products.
• Still on the list.  :-)
• Meet with someone new every week. The idea is to facilitate new business contacts and generate business either in the short term or long term.
• In the first 2 weeks, I met with two people. One resulted in a great wholesale order. The other was a meeting with a fellow Wink member about showcasing my jewelry at some of her events. 
• I still need to mark my calendar this month with 2 more meetings.
• Post to my Facebook page every day and run 2 ads by the end of the month.
• I haven't been posting on weekends, so I need to step it up on this goal.
• I've decided not to run 2 ads this month. The first ad did well for the first week and then dropped down to almost nothing the last 3 days. 
• I ended up with 58 new likes (53 in the first 7 days).
• I had a budget of $20.00 and spent $14.80.
• Since the number of likes dwindled down in the last week, that tells me that there is no need to run ads frequently at this point. In February I plan on trying the 'Boost Post' feature to see how that goes. 
• To see my post about the facebook ad I ran: Day 7 - Facebook Ads

All in all, I feel good about my progress. Most of my goals for this month are the type that won't show results in the short term but are designed to create a stronger brand presence for me in the long term.

Day 10 - New Wholesale Opportunity

What a wonderful thought it is that some of the best days of our lives haven't happened yet.

Today I met with a wonderful woman that found my Etsy shop on-line and we now have a wholesale partnership. She has her own business as an Esthetician in the Hillcrest area of San Diego. Along with providing services, she also sells local handmade artisan items. My jewelry is now part of her selection!

The reason I bring this up in my blog is that it really got me thinking about how many times I have allowed wholesale opportunities to slip away in the past. Barbara found me via Etsy and contacted me. While I immediately responded to her e-mail, if she had not replied back and pursued a meeting with me, that would have been the end of it.

I am contacted periodically regarding wholesale and many times they don't lead anywhere. I always assume that perhaps my wholesale prices weren't in line with what the person was looking for or they were contacting a number of jewelry designers and I didn't make the final cut. Whatever the reason, if I don't hear back, it's never occurred to me to send a follow-up e-mail.

Well, as of now, that changes! There is no reason to not send a quick, polite follow-up e-mail if I don't hear back from someone with a wholesale inquiry. In the past, I've been so quick to dismiss these opportunities based on what could be incorrect assumptions. Who knows - maybe the timing was just wrong at the initial contact and my follow-up is just the reminder they need to make an order. We're all busy and I can think of many times that I've had items in my on-line cart at many businesses and never ordered just because I got busy doing something else and didn't get around to it. We can all attest to that, can't we?

So, in order to grow my business, I need to be more pro-active with people who contact me regarding orders. No more just responding then assuming they changed their mind when I don't hear back. I have to realize that it's not pushy to send a second or even third response. As long as it's done politely and I wait a reasonable amount of time, it's just good business!

Can you think of times when you've dropped the ball just because you didn't hear back from someone who inquired about your business?

Day 9 - Setting Up Instagram

The greatest pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do.

One of my goals for January was to create an Instagram account and start exploring how I can use it to promote my brand. I'll admit that I've been a bit overwhelmed learning this social media venue - it's very different than anything else I've tried and its almost complete reliance on smartphones was an additional challenge. While I am tied to my phone all day, I don't really like typing on it and prefer to jump to my laptop for any interaction that takes more than a few clicks! Unfortunately, it looks like most of my Instagram interaction will take place using a 3x2 inch keyboard - ugh!

I've set up my account - http://instagram.com/theresarosedesigns/#

I finally figured out how to add my profile picture (hint: it can only be done from the phone).

I've also started adding pictures - a mixture of business and personal photos. After all, it is a social media venue.

I've spent a better portion of the week trying to research Instagram and the 'rules'. Here are a few things I've learned that everyone using Instagram for their business should know if you want to build an audience:

1.  Learn the art of hashtags! Use relevant, popular hashtags and post them with every image.
2.  Balance fun pictures with business pictures. Don't just copy images from your facebook page or product website. Try creating some fun pictures using your product in a unique setting or while engaging in a fun activity.
3. Follow your followers back.
4. Like and comment on other photos.
5. Follow other relevant brands on Instagram.This is also a great way to learn Instagram.
6. Don't post lots of images at once. This is considered spam and you will lose followers fast. One to three times a day is probably enough and do it throughout the day.
7. Do NOT ask people to follow you. 
8. It's better to post higher quality images less often than lower quality photos more often.

So, here is my Instagram so far. I've only been posting on it since Tuesday but at least I've jumped in and started - that's half the battle, right?

I assume this will be one of those venues that will take some time to build up, especially if I only post once or twice a day. I'll continue to post as I build my image library and hopefully, more followers.

While I'm a bit intimidated by Instagram, I'm definitely looking forward to expanding my photography skills and creating unique images using my jewelry. The great thing about this is that all my images can be used in a variety of ways. If I create a really fun, good quality image, I can post it on Pinterest, Facebook, and Instagram.

As I learn more about Instagram, I will post more information. There are a multitude of apps out there to help businesses use Instagram successfully, so if I find anything interesting, I'll let you know. If you have any tips or have any other information, please share!

Day 8 - Facebook Ad Results, 1 Week Later

I was out of town for the first half of this week, so I haven't kept up on my goals. While I started feeling a bit guilty yesterday, I also realized that this is the reason I'm in business for myself. If I want to take off for the day or a couple of days, I can. I don't need to ask for time-off from work. I don't worry about vacation days. I have no one to answer to but myself!

As I mentioned in my last post, I started running a  Facebook ad on Friday. It's been running almost a full week and here are the results so far.

By Saturday morning, I was able to see that ad #2 was getting a lot more views and clicks than ad #1, so I went ahead and suspended ad #1 and let my $2.00 a day budget be spent entirely for ad #2.

When I started the ad campaign I had 637 likes. I've received 53 new likes this week directly from the ad.

Here's the breakdown:
Friday:             6 likes
Saturday:       10 likes
Sunday:           9 likes
Monday:          4 likes
Tuesday:        10 likes
Wednesday:     9 likes
Thursday:        5 likes (by noon today)

During that time, I had 62 clicks on the ad. So, of those 62 clicks, 53 resulted in likes. That seems to be a good ratio.

By the time this ad campaign is finished running, I will have spent $20.00 and if the rest of the days produce the same results, I should have gained approximately 100 new fans.

What I like about running the ad is that all of these new likes came from people who happened to see the ad and liked what they saw enough to like the page, and hopefully, purchase from my shop. My sales have been very good this week, although I am not sure if any came from facebook.

I will report the end results next week.

Day 7 - Facebook Ads

The things you are passionate about are not random. They are your calling.

Fabienne Fredrickson

I'm really excited about today's post because I feel like I'm finally taking real action for growing my business. The first week has mostly been about goal making, planning, and laying some groundwork. Now I am getting into taking on tasks that I hope will show me some measurable results.

Yesterday I set up a Facebook Ad. It will start running Friday evening at 5:00 pm and run through the next weekend (until Sunday, January 19th at 5:00 pm). I have committed to $2.00 per day, so it'll be interesting to see how long my ad runs each day and how many likes I receive. I promise to report my results.

I created two ads. I'm not sure how it works, but I think Facebook will run them simultaneously. If one ad is producing better results, I can stop the less performing one.

Here are the ads:

I've also included the target demographic information I selected.

I currently have 637 fans. So, we'll see if these ads produce new fans!