There I was, standing in the Target aisle. I was on. the. hunt.

So what was so important that I put on a real bra and drove myself to the store??

Dry shampoo!

But it wasn’t just any random dry shampoo. It was a brand that a friend had recommended to me because she loved it. We were sharing a hotel room. She was using it one morning and she let me borrow some, and the rest was history…..She wasn’t selling it to me, but man was I sold.

This is marketing.

Marketing is sharing things we care about (our products/services) with people we care about (our customers). That’s it!

Social media platforms, radio ads, email newsletters…those aren’t marketing. Those are the tools we are using to do our sharing. So when people tell me they don’t like marketing, it’s pretty easy to diagnose the root of the problem! It’s usually either:

1) No passion for their product

2) Disconnection from their customer

3) Not feeling confident in using the tools in their “toolkit”

4) Prioritizing other things on the “to-do” list

I know florists. We always joke about this career being a labor of love, right? Because we genuinely love what we do! We are passionate about creating beautiful things for people. We get that tingle up our spine when we make something good. Creating something beautiful - the perfect thing to make someone’s day - is what gets a lot of us out of bed in the morning. I still get excited when a box of fresh flowers is delivered. Yep, every time. So are you passionate about your product? Probably.

Florists are also some of the most caring people I know. I don’t think disconnect is an issue for most of us. You hold the hands of those in mourning, you celebrate with that fresh faced fiancee. You truly care about your customers.

So why wouldn’t you take every opportunity to share what you care about with the people you care about?

One thing that may be holding you back - and hey, this a factor for me too - is platform overwhelm. There are sooooo many shiny tools out there it’s hard to know what to select and use. That’s why I recommend focusing on one until you’re feeling confident and being consistent. Then add another. Then another. Once you get a system in place, it’s a pretty stress-free process! Because you can re-purpose what you’re creating to work on any platform.

Ok, the last reason you may have a bad taste in your mouth when it comes to marketing? Because you’re busy AF, right? I feel you. It’s hard to run a business and juggle all the things. But what makes me prioritize marketing is because it’s so tangible.

It drives sales and makes me money.

It's what makes people think of my brand when the occasion arises. I know it’s what gets my business through in the “dry spells”. So it’s time well spent. I can track the results and make adjustments. And I’ve found that with the proper planning and strategy, I can actually get a lot of my marketing done in just minutes a day!

I know that every time I share with those I care about, I’m planting seeds of connection and trust. And when the time comes for them to put on a real bra and drive to the store? It’s my aisle they’re going to be coming to :)