Social media is a very very important tool for knit wear designers, as it is for everyone selling anything, really.
I have gathered some of the best tricks I've learned into this post.
I am not a social media marketer or specialist, I just know that some things make sense and I wish I knew this stuff when I started.
Get to know your customers…
Who buys your patterns and why?
Answer to this questions will give you valuable info on how to present your patterns, what people like about them so that you can do more of that.
Where they hang out?
This one is obvious but I’ll say it anyways, the answer to this question is where you should advertise. And go hang out with your customer!
…and let them know you!
First of all, you no-one knows you exist, no-one can buy from you. Obvious, but you may not have thought about it before, what it really means. Like really.
So you need to go out in the world and let people see into yours. This was a struggle for me as I am an introvert and after some mishaps in my late teens (no biggies, just some stalking issues) I had a really hard time to let people to see into my life. Only lately have I let people see my face! You can check out my older IG posts, no face showing. And I don’t use my real name on IG either and I don’t have a personal Instagram account. I know that is a huge no-no, but I’m fine with it for now.
So, the point is, if people know and trust you, beyond knowing that you exist, they are more likely to buy from you.
Join FB knitting groups
This is a tricky one to do gracefully and right.
Don’t just join them to promote your stuff. Some groups have strict policies about self promoting and you get kicked out if you even try. Some groups have promo days and/or promo threads.
The purpose of joining groups and communities is to learn to know people and for they to learn to know you and to have fun! The groups are filled with knitters and they have so much talent and wisdom and it’s just to inspiring!
Instagram is the visual social media tool of the era! That’s why it is the best platform for people, like knitwear designers who sell pretty things. IMHO. I’m not a IG marketing specialist!
Proper introduction
Make sure your bio tells your followers who you are, what you do and where they can find you.
Where do I buy?
You only get to put one link in your bio. ONE!
It needs to send your customer to your shop, or to a landing page that has a very clear direction to your shop. People now days don’t have patience to search you and click through several links to find your shop or even what you sell!
Don’t just drop a photo and run
The more interaction your photo gets the more it will show up in other likeminded peoples feed. It’s all in the algorithm. So try to include three things in your caption
- Header: This is my this and that
- Some kind of deeper facts: I bought it from Bla Blasson and it’s made of whatnot
- Question: What is your favorite this and that?
That will start a…
…Conversation!
It’s so important to have a conversation! You get to learn to know new people who are interesting in something you do! They have to be interested in what you do, otherwise they just wouldn’t bother.
Challenges
Oh, they are so much fun! And useful in growing your audience!
A mutual hashtag brings traffic to your profile, other people participating want’s to see what you’re doing with the prompts.
Prompts make you post more often and that too leads to more traffic.
I could go all day (apparently) about the importance of IG so I might dedicate a whole new post for that only…
Look up Tara Swiger
She is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!
She has her podcast “Explore Your Enthusiasm” and I used to listen to it all the time! I especially love the way she breaks down things so I can understand the concept of the thing she is talking about.
She emphasizes the importance of knowing your customer base and marketing. I used to feel so icky marketing my self, but after listening to her podcasts it all changed!
She is a very smart person, so go check her out!
Twitter is not my cup of tea, meaning it’s not a plat for I spend lots of time on.
I do re-post my Instagram content directly to Twitter, but that’s pretty much it. I do get Twitter notifications to my phone when ever I get re-tweeted or someone I follow tweets something and I do love seeing them! But… Twitter is so much politics that I purposely avoid going there.
