Tribute to a Reviewer

Hi Online Small Business Owners (and anyone else who wants to read this):

I just had a wakeup call!

How many times has a youtube (or other) "guru" emailed you with the intent to have you send them free products so that they may review them for you online? Me? I have had several times many. Too many. And, unfortunately, I have sent some free stuff out. Guess what? Never was I contacted again in those instances. No reviews, no response to my emails, etc. *shakes head* Have you had like experiences?

Today, I received an email from someone who does reviews on youtube. Not only that, she has placed her second order. She placed her first one without fanfare - I didn't know about her youtube presence. So, she was treated like all my customers. That is important for us to realize. How can a reviewer talk about our customer service without experiencing what all customers experience?

She might have not told me now except one her followers is asking about some of my other products, and she wanted to know which ones were top sellers.

My lesson in this? Other than what I've already said, "No, to all the freebie requests." How disrespectful anyway! We work hard and longer hours than we are paid for to produce products we are proud to sell around the world. And, some one writes and asks if they can have it for free.

Thank you, Janee. ♥ You are an awesome lady!!

~kathleen

FREE SHIPPING SALE !!!

Happy Thanksgiving, you all!

I'm not doing much celebrating, my friends. Something sad happened on this day last year. So, I'm burying my nose and mind into my business and having a whopping big sale today through Cyber Monday, November 29th.

Free Shipping to all domestic orders, no minimum required. Reduced shipping on all international orders, no minimum required. And for all orders $10 or more, I'm including a free lip balm. If you read this blog and order and want something other than a lip balm, request a sample of my MEmu Facial oil, and I'll send that instead.

Thank you. That's all. Just wanted to tell you about my sale over at Etsy. You all have a LOVELY weekend.

♥kathleen

Continuing Holiday Cheer

Good morning...

Getting up a new and unique promotion running today. I am giving away coupons with every order OR if you choose to follow my blog and my fan page at Facebook.

Here is how it works:

1. If you choose to follow my fan page and blog for your coupon, message me anywhere (convo, twitter, facebook, etc.), and I will send you your coupon magic words.

or

2. Place an order between November 9th through the 24th. I will send you your coupon magic words.
The coupon is for 25% off any order for any amount. It is only good, however, January 1, 2011 through June 30, 2011. You have 6 months to cash it in.

This does not include shipping. It cannot be honored any other time than what is given. (may be dire exceptions) It is for any amount - if you choose to buy one lip balm - you may use your coupon. You may also choose to place a $200 order and use it.

Thank you. ~kathleen

ps. Yes, you may order more than once, and you get a coupon for every order from Nov. 9-24. But, you may use only one coupon for one order Jan-Jun, 2011. So, if you have 3 coupons, you may use one coupon per order, but you are very welcomed to order 3 times using all 3 coupons. :) But because there is no minimum order to get one, I have to limit this to 3 coupons per run of this sale per customer. Thanks for understanding.

Who loves you, Baby?

Hi again.

I am pondering a subject the last few days. How to find and promote your product to the right market. It is funny how when something occupies my mind I keep running across the topic from other sources. Etsy's storque has been bantering this about, too. The common theme is that your market isn't you, but others, usually with money.

Okay, I have to put the brakes on here. I'm thinking some of us play to the market of us and we are correct in doing so. I know my market is me! And, of course, those like me. I'm glad to have all others - I think my products' quality rises to meet all of our needs and wants. But, affordable quality skin care is my motto, so affordable has to apply to all of us, even me. :)

What if your market is everyone?

Again, I have men products, unisex products, children products, pet products, and fun stuff for everyone. I make fragrant free products, green herbal all natural products, sweetly scented products, exotic from other lands products, etc.

And, this is not just because I'm a soapmaker. I am a soapmaker of one type - there are several types, I've noticed. My type is simple. I realize the simpler I make a product, the more appealing it is to my customers and the better it sells. Not hard for me - staying simple. When I get carried away and try to complicate things, my product suffers. So, I know my type.

The other types are wonderful. There is the fancy type. The complex type. The round type. The mold type. And, many more, I'm sure.

I go out into the other shops both on and off Etsy, and some of these soaps are just gorgeous. Who is their market? I wonder.

As the Holidays fast approach, I'm reminded again to promote to my market. And, I say again, my market is everyone. In a way that makes it simple, I just promote to everyone. In another way, I wonder if I'm right? hahahahahaha

Anyway, thanks for reading my ramble. Sometimes, it is just what I need to do.

~yours...kathleen

Promotional Giveaway at Sweet Creek Herbs

Hello again...

I'm doing a promotional giveaway November 1 through 8. I'm giving away a sample of my newest whipped shea butter and a lip balm with every order regardless of how small is may be.

My new whipped butter is based on a few customer requests. 1) something vegan friendly, 2) sinks in super fast - no greasy feeling even without the emu oil, 3) less shea and more light oil or jojoba added, and 4) light and creamy

So, I've created a wonderful recipe, I think, of 50% shea (as opposed to 75%) with aloe butter added. Aloe butter is really aloe enfleuraged in coconut oil. (A very nice skin oil that is not drying unless used too much in a soap recipe.) To the butters, I add jojoba and an herbal oil I make for my MEmu Oil, which consists of marshmallow root, echinacea leaf, and elder flowers macerated in extra virgin olive oil. And, that is all.

Having less butter and no wax (so you may use it on your face!), this is a creamier lighter butter, not as stiff even upon setting. It melts right on the skin and is very easy to spread and/or massage in. And, it sinks in quick.

I have a story about the sinking in...last night I burned my foot using a concentration of essential oils too powerful for our skin - it was a mistake. It burned and burned (cinnamon, clove, lemon, eucalyptus, and rosemary) and I knew to cut it with oil (not water). So, I reached for my pot of this butter and coated my foot with it - it eased the pain pretty quickly and in an hour, it had soaked into my foot. Boy, was my foot soft all over! An hour is a long time - but I had that butter on thick - I wasn't using it as a moisturizer, I was trying to cut the eo's and ease the burning pain. And, it did do that. :D

Anyway - promotional giveaway. A little warm up before the Holiday madness. :) I hope you choose to enjoy it.

Thanks again - Kathleen

Changes!!!

Hi again.

It might seem an odd time to do this, just before the big Holiday season, however, I feel compelled to change my shop sections.

I have them simplified at this point: products grouped by product category. You know...shampoo bars, bath soaps, butters and oils, lip balms, etc.

At the farmer's market this year, my products were arranged and sold by scent category instead of product category. I have 5 I work with...Fragrance Free products, Lavender, Exotic (like amber, patchouli, vanilla, etc.), Green Herbals, and Fruits and Flowers. This seem to make it easier for customers to find that for which they were looking.

I'm not convinced I should sell this way in my shop. But, I want to change it up and bit and give it some pizzazz for the Holidays. What do you think?

It would look like this: Fragrance Free
From Exotic Lands
Fruits & Flowers
Gift Items
Herbally Green
Lavender Lands
Paks, Pets, & Samplers

as opposed to this: 6 pak, samplers, pet care
Body care, other
Butters and Herbal Oils
Gift Items
Herbal Salves
Lip Balms
Shampoo Soaps
Soaps for the Bath
Special Soaps

Now, I'm in a bit of a hurry to do it IF I am going to do it. I'd want to get it done by November 1. It would only take an hour to do it at most - but the big part is the decision to do it. I am so open to hearing what you think about it. Because, it is not necessary I do it if it would put off shoppers, you know what I mean?

If you want to look at my present shop sections, go to http://sweetcreekherbs.etsy.com/. And, I look forward to hearing from you.

~kathleen

Tips on Shipping Skin Care

Hi You All

The soap and skin care business is not always a "fun" time, but when it comes to packaging orders to ship around the world, it can be quite enjoyable. I think there is something special about receiving a skin care package that looks like a gift.

I'm not the world's best at anything, I wager, but it seems I can pack a nice box of skin care for shipping. I know this as my feedback continues to come in about it. And, I'd like to share some tips with you. I took some pictures, too.

The first thing I do is line the package. I use Kraft tissue paper, but I think many things can be used...white or print tissue paper, seasonal tissue paper, wrapping paper, etc. You'll see why I line it at the end of this post, but I think it gives it a finishing touch. I've started lining my First Class bubble mailer orders, too. I think it conveys my sense of caring about their products all the way to their door.

I like everything to look "pretty". I think of companies like Godiva, Swiss Colony, Figi's, etc., and how they package their orders so nice. I try to do the same but with regard to skin care.

So, I like to tissue wrap the soaps. I wrap large and small soaps in white tissue paper.

I seal jars that I think may leak (including butters in the summer) with electric tape around the lid and jar. I place them in zipper bags to ensure, if they do leak, they are confined to themselves. If it is a plastic jar, I package it as is. If it is glass, I then wrap it in bubble wrap I've received in my orders. It is perfect to use - still looks good, functional, and recyclable. But, unsightly in relation to all the other packaging, so I wrap all bubble wrapped items in tissue paper, too, and then I top it off with a raffia bow.

I place 4 oz. jars in large zipper bags that I think are not attractive (sandwich bags), so I then wrap them also in tissue paper and raffia bow. I do this with the lotions, too. I place them each in zipper bags then wrap in tissue and bow. The lip balms, tube salves, and small jars look pretty good in just the sealed bags and I think complement the tissue wrapped items - giving the look some variety. Going with this idea, I often will enclose a sample soap unwrapped, like the occasional chocolate that is wrapped - just to offset everything else.
I think it is a good idea to enclose your business card with each and every order. It is not just a business card, but a personal thank you note, too. I write on the back of the cards a note to all my customers. Selling online, you have to make an extra effort for the personal touch. So, I have all the orders ready and the cards enclosed. When I begin processing printing labels, I write each card at that time, pulling on all the experiences I share with each particular customer. This goes into my little note.

After the label is printed and trimmed to fit, I close the package by tucking the top half of the liner over the order. I'm still after that gift package idea, so when receiving an order, the customer opens the liner first and sees the "gift" or you know, their order. It seems to be, overall, a nice experience, they say.

The motivation to do this comes from how I would like to receive a package. It seems to provoke a feeling of joy, and if I can spread some of that around? ~it seems to come back around. :)

Thank you for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed the post and pics. ~kathleen