While it’s very possible to have a successful Spreadshop without any investing anything at all, a couple dollars can go a long way with Facebook. It’s an effective way to broaden your reach and expose your amazing merch to thousands of potential customers.

Just $5 will do the trick!

We’re living in a time where people spend a huge portion of their day on social media. Facebook alone has over a billion active users, so why pass up such a great advertising opportunity? More and more businesses are experiencing undeniable success with advertising through Facebook, so jump in and give it a try!

What can a $5 investment do for you?

• Target exactly where and who you want to advertise to. Facebook’s targeting parameters will allow you to reach anything from countries, to professions, even to unique interests.
• Fast results. The best part of Facebook advertising it that it’s quick. You won’t have to play the waiting game to see results.
• Expose your ad campaign to THOUSANDS of people. Yes, you heard us right, thousands of people that will LOVE your merchandise.
• You’ll be impressed with the amount of traffic your shop will gain with such a small investment.

Get started with Facebook Advertising

Whether you’re looking to boost sales or ready to make your first sale, there are a couple things you should know before diving into Facebook advertising.

• Have an ad campaign goal in mind
• Know your audience so your targeting is accurate
• Create an eye-catching ad that will draw in consumers
• Consider the best time for your ad to go live

Next, you’ll want to visit Facebook and

• Click on the “Create Ads” button
• Choose your marketing objective. If you’re trying to boost sales, we recommend selecting “conversions”.
• Set up your ad account
• Create a Facebook Pixel and connect it with your Spreadshop
• Follow the listed steps. You’ll be required to choose your audience, your desired ad placement, and your budget.
• Analyze your results. The best way to improve your conversion rate is understanding what works

Continue tuning in over the next few months for more advice on these individual steps.

It’s easy to get excited about the sales that come in because of Facebook advertising. Before you get excited and take your profits to the mall, consider using your profits to reinvest into ads. If it worked for you once, chances are it will work for you again! Plus, the more often you invest, the more analytics you’ll have so you can determine what’s working and what’s not.

The post Advertise Your Merch Shop on Facebook appeared first on The Spreadshop Blog.

Facebook

Our Facebook page will give you an all-access pass to everything Spreadshop. Whether you’re looking for updates, news, promotions, or inspiration, you can rely on a community we’ve built just for you!

Instagram

Our Instagram provides more than aesthetically-pleasing images. It’s a place where you’ll find anything from behind-the-scenes footage to marketing tips and motivation. You can also share your designs, ask us questions and learn entrepreneurial hacks. You can never have too many resources, so Spreadshop’s Instagram is just another benefit waiting for you!

Twitter

Twitter is all about interaction. The whole point of tweeting is to share your voice with the world. We want to know what you’re working on as a Spreadshop owner. Share with us, tweet at us and update us on your entrepreneurial journey, and we can help you ultimately reach your goals.

Pinterest

Think of our Pinterest page as a Spreadshop search engine. Whether you’re looking for tutorials, design ideas, downloads or software recommendations, it’s all readily available on our Pinterest page! Pinterest is another community that will make your life as a Shop owner easier.

YouTube

Our YouTube channel is packed with information, tutorials, promotions and pure Spreadshop fun! Tune in every Wednesday for our video of the week, which features shop hacks and ideas! If you’re looking for an entertaining way to learn, then smash that subscribe button…our channel is perfect for you!

As you know, the resources don’t just stop there, as we have a plethora of tools in our user area. However, when you’re on-the-go and feeling motivated, our social media community will be ready and waiting for you!

The post Shop Owner Communities for You! appeared first on The Spreadshop Blog.

1. Document Your Daily Life

If your brand’s character is connected to you personally, then this should be the easiest step. Simply document your workplace and show things that you like. Share what inspires you, and don’t forget to tell your audience why. Think about why your work is exciting, and find a way to express that sentiment. Encourage your followers to comment and engage with your posts, and ask for their opinions.

Rupi & tea?? _________________ Wer knipst hier eigentlich um 14 Uhr immer schon das Licht aus? ??‍ Ich versuche morgens immer so früh wie möglich aus den Federn zu hüpfen, damit am Tag wenigstens ein bisschen was dran ist. Aber irgendwie werden sie dadurch auch nicht länger. Das Gute ist aber, dass ich auch abends gern an meinem Maltisch sitze und an Aufträgen arbeite. Könnt ihr abends noch kreativ sein? Und was macht ihr Lieben denn eigentlich beruflich? #neugierigkeitsrunde ? • • • • • • #folksouls #teaandseasons #teatime #bohemian #rupikaur #poesie #diewocheaufinstagram #bookstagram #freepeople #comeinandfindart #vintage #folkmagazine #hygge #heitermoments #seeksimplicity #dailyquotes #verilymoment #culturetripbooks

A post shared by E l i s a (@press_liz) on Nov 27, 2017 at 9:58am PST

If your brand’s character is not suitable for this approach, you might have to be a bit more mindful about your content. Still, the same lesson remains: share things that excite and inspire you.

2. Show Work in Progress

Document your design process. Share glimpses of your next graphic project. When it comes to engaging content, GIFs and videos are always better than static images. If you do your own photo shoots, you can create a feeling of exclusivity for your followers by showing some “Behind-the-Scenes” content.

View this post on Instagram

Who thought it was a good idea to give a machine gun to a pregnant lady? … oh yeah, I guess I did.

A post shared by D.J. Coffman (@djcoffman) on Jan 6, 2018 at 6:38pm PST

3. Competition

If you can afford it, start a competition. Give away shirts or build fan packages. However, make sure you’re sticking to the respective social media competition guidelines.

We are so excited that "Eat Your Feelings", the new book from Food Mood Girl Lindsey Smith is now available! This book is NOT what it sounds like. We love the many incredible ways to kick your cravings with ingredients that boost your mood. To celebrate, we’ve teamed up with her for a giveaway. To enter, make sure you’re following @bobsredmill and Lindsey Smith @lindseysmithhhc. Like this image and tag a friend that you think would also love this book! We will select a winner at random from all who enter by 11:59 pm Pacific Time on 1/14/18. We will announce the winner on 1/15 and send that person AND THEIR FRIEND a copy of "Eat Your Feelings" and a set of Bob's Red Mill ingredients featured in the book. Winner must be US or Canadian resident 18 and over. No purchase necessary to win. #contest #giveaway #food #foodstagram #instafood #instagood #health #healthyliving

A post shared by Bob's Red Mill (@bobsredmill) on Jan 11, 2018 at 9:03am PST

4. Collaborate

Look out for a separate community that shares the same audience as your brand. Get in touch with the individuals and ask if they’d be interested in collaborating. This shouldn’t require much effort, but they can lead to great results for both parties. Be prepared before making your move, and have something of value up your sleeve that will appeal to others. For example, offer some products from your shop.

There are many ways you can collaborate, from simply sharing each other‘s content on Facebook, creating guest posts, recording a podcast or making a YouTube video together.

5. Instagram Takeover

Instagram takeovers are a very popular way of expanding your exposure. It’s a strategy that’s worth mentioning, even if it may not be suitable at the early stages of your community building. Takeovers work best when you already have somewhat of an established audience… that’s the Instagram currency, after all.

The general idea is to let someone take over your Instagram for a day or a week, and both of you benefit from the crossover audiences. You can let someone take over your channel or be the guest on someone else’s.

6. Finding an Influencer

It’s important to have a “quality over quantity” mindset when looking for influencers to collaborate with. Don’t just look for a high follower count; instead, look for motivated individuals who are confident in your product and believe in your brand.

Start by browsing your current followers. You probably have some influencers with similar interests who also like your brand. Take your time and go through their content. Observing their images and videos can help determine who’d be suitable to team up with. Engage these influencers and start building a trustworthy relationship. Don’t get discouraged if an influencer doesn’t want to work with you. As long as you’re driven and confident in your brand, your fan-base can only get bigger!

5 Most Important Tips

• Don’t stop – Even after a successful campaign, you always need to attract new fans.
• Don’t fake – Do not invest time in trying to create an artificial image of your brand.
• Be agile – Avoid steady advertising. A good mix of entertainment, inspiration and a bit of promotion will work.
• Learn and adopt – Keep an eye on the competition. What works for them will probably work for you.
• Feedback loops – How do non-related individuals feel about your brand? Feedback will help detect flaws with your brand recognition, and this may open doors you haven’t seen before.

Have you found any other strategies that work well? Have you had success with any of the tips mentioned above? Give us a shout in the comments.

The post 6 Tips to Get Your Audience Going appeared first on The Spreadshop Blog.

Now, content gives you full bragging rights. Talk your brand up, reveal your values, your industry knowledge, even your plans for the future. Prove that you’re the best and why you should be their go-to brand. Consumers have become deaf to advertising, so the world of content marketing is where you need to exist.

The following platforms are a good place to start as far as content marketing goes. Give them a try and see how they can improve your eCommerce content strategy.

Medium

Many well-known brands and influencers use Medium as the backbone to their content marketing strategy. The platform takes informational and educational content and gives users an opportunity to add their own personality and meaning. Medium isn’t about sharing facts, it’s about sharing your voice and ideas. If you want your thoughts to be heard, then Medium is the place for you.

Tumblr

While Tumblr has been under the radar for the past couple years, it’s officially made a groundbreaking comeback. To make it simple, Tumbler is blogging made easy. The platform allows users to post anything imaginable. Stories, photos, facts, GIF’s, links, literally anything. You’ll never run out of interesting things to share! Now that Tumblr’s acquiring users at a record-setting pace, don’t pass up the content opportunities that it has to offer.

Pinterest

There’s a good chance you’re already familiar with the power of Pinterest. However, you may not realize that Pinterest isn’t a social media platform. It’s a search engine, just like Google and just like YouTube. Pinterest takes the functionality and engagement of social media and implements it into a search engine environment, filled with SEO opportunities. By producing content on Pinterest, you’re inspiring and educating your audience while driving traffic to your website. Pinterest offers a lot of possibilities for your brand, so be sure to use the platform to its full potential.

Flipboard

If you haven’t already explored the idea of implementing Flipboard into your eCommerce content strategy, then now is the perfect time. While Flipboard is similar to a social network, it’s more of a magazine staring your brand and other relevant content. You can feature new content created by you or “flip” articles into your magazine! Invite people to read your content, invite people to contribute content, whatever you want to produce, Flipboard has the tools to make it happen.

Reddit

Reddit is a creative social platform allowing users to hold discussions and connect with others on certain topics. Now, Reddit is unique in a way where it creates smaller groups within the platform to bring people with similar interests together. By utilizing Reddit for your brand, you’ll be able to broaden the reach of your content and support a community of people that love your brand as well.

Quora

Quora is a user-friendly question-and-answer platform, used by millions of professionals in various markets. From a content perspective, Quora is vital for building brand awareness. There’s thousands of consumers asking for help, recommendations and suggestions from the public. This is a place where your brand can become a solution. Share your industry knowledge and build a presence until you become the go-to, reliable source for relevant information.

The list doesn’t end here. There are many wonderful content marketing platforms that will do amazing things for your business. Try out a couple, see which feel right and hammer away at content marketing plan.

The post Content Marketing for eCommerce Stores appeared first on The Spreadshop Blog.

Linking social media accounts

It’s vital to utilize the proper tools as you’re looking to save time and optimize your social media’s effectiveness. We recommend capitalizing on services like Buffer, Hootsuite and IFTTT, which will allow you to schedule posts for all of your profiles. Instagram also allows users to link their other social media platforms, saving you time and energy.

Other important tips:

1. Target a specific social media channel that you know your customers are using. For example, if your customers are more active on Facebook and Instagram, then it might not be worthwhile to use Twitter.
2. To improve your chances of selling a product, write and share interesting, funny and informative content when linking to new products or special offers. Of course, make sure the content isn’t monotonous or repetitive.
3. Keeping these channels in line with your branding is essential. Focus on colors, images and word choice to leave a lasting impression. Your social media accounts are essentially your shop windows! Embrace this creative freedom, and configure your accounts so they suit you and your Shop’s style.
   

Social media benefits

Linking your social accounts will save you time, and the consistent brand image should improve sales. Coordinated social media accounts will also allow you to:

• Show a product to a certain target group.
• Create and convey a uniformed brand image across all your channels.
• Stay in touch with fans and customers.
• Demonstrate the diversity of your brand.
• Save time and effort by sharing a post on all channels at the same time.
• Divert traffic from a successful channel to another social media profile.

Convinced? Then get your social media channels sorted, and start networking now!

We want to find out about your social media experience. Please share your comments, questions and anecdotes below!

The post Social-Media Networking Made Easy appeared first on The Spreadshop Blog.

Pinterest effectively combines attributes of both impulsive consumers and practical consumers through images on its aesthetically pleasing platform. Even just one simple pin has the power to improve your brand’s visual identity, SEO and website traffic. To make the most of your Pinterest account, here are some tips and tricks to effectively sell on Pinterest.

Link Your Website to Every Pin

You’re not going to reap the benefits of Pinterest if your pins aren’t directing your audience anywhere. Whether you’re trying to drive traffic to your website, your Spreadshirt shop or your social media profiles, be sure to include the URL in each pin. That way, when someone wants to learn more about one of your pins, they have a direct passage to further information.

Highlight the Benefits

As an entrepreneur, nobody knows your brand like you do. It’s your prerogative to brag about all the benefits of your business, and Pinterest is the perfect platform to do this. If consumers are aware of your strongest selling points, they’ll be a lot more willing to learn more.

Verify Your Website

Nothing gives a consumer more trust and reassurance than that little verification symbol. Luckily, with Pinterest, you don’t have a bunch of requirements to make this happen. All you need to do is verify your website, and voila, you’re official.

Share Success Stories

When a consumer can witness customer satisfaction, they automatically associate your business with success. Use Pinterest to share brand-related content produced by your customers. Dedicate a Pinterest board to customer success and your audience will want to experience that feeling as well!

Provide Inspiration

Many people use Pinterest for finding vacation destinations, recipes, car reviews and everything in between. Why? Because people want to feel inspired. Share exciting and inspirational images related to your brand. If you’re promoting your Spreadshirt shop, some inspiring images might be outfit ideas or design ideas. Link these pins to your website, and your products could make someone’s inspiration a reality.

Add Discounts and Pricing

Product rich pins reveal real-time pricing and discounts. By sharing rich pins that feature your products, consumers can easily make a purchase from your shop with just a few clicks. This is when Pinterest basically does the selling for you, so don’t wait any longer to take advantage of this powerful tool.

Use Trending Keywords

Using keywords on Pinterest doesn’t only give you more visibility on the platform, it also can improve your organic search ranking on Google as well. Populating your pins with trending, relevant keywords will help give your pins the exposure that they deserve. In order to properly use keywords in Pinterest account, try implementing some of our tricks below:

• Incorporate keywords in the description of your pin
• Incorporate keywords in the title of your pin
• Use Pinterest Analytics to gain insight on your most effective pins
• Use the Pinterest search bar to help nail down long tail keywords
• Incorporate keywords in title of each pin board

So, there you have it, some helpful hints to make the most of your Pinterest profile.  Now, are you ready to start selling with Pinterest?

The post How to Sell on Pinterest appeared first on The Spreadshop Blog.

We’ve made a social media checklist to help grow your social media kingdom and optimize your brand presence. We know, there are many other social platforms out there, but we found the following 5 to be the most beneficial for designers and shop owners. These platforms are your most important marketing tools. Use them correctly and your following can only grow!

Facebook

Why:

Sure, Facebook has been around for ages, but it will never become outdated. It’s the largest social media platform and one of the most efficient ways to gain exposure from a relevant audience. Facebook is one of the first places consumers go to find information on a business. If your business isn’t on Facebook, we promise, your competitors will be. Be sure to use Facebook to its full potential and post content that will draw your audience in. You won’t regret it!

Daily Checklist:

• “Like” up to 5 relevant pages each day
• Post 1-2 original content posts
• Share at least 1 post from a relevant user
• Respond to call comments and messages
• Research trending topics and keywords
• Tag or mention a brand

Twitter

Why:

Twitter may seem intimidating because it’s so fast-paced, but in these tech-savvy times, fast-paced is what your business needs. Twitter isn’t just a great tool to efficiently drive traffic to your website, it’s also one of the best tools to promote new designs, deals and promotions. It doesn’t matter what type of business you’re trying to grow, Twitter is an essential. If you’re not promoting your shop on twitter, start now and start engaging.

Daily Checklist:

• Retweet or tweet at 5-7 relevant tweets
• Respond to any tweets or direct messages
• Follow 7 new relevant accounts
• Research trending hashtags
• Schedule at least 5 original tweets each day

Instagram

Why:

If your business isn’t already on Instagram, then you should rethink your marketing plan. One of Instagram’s biggest advantages is it’s perceived as a communication tool, not a marketing tool. By engaging users visually, Instagram allows your brand to tell a story and connect with your audience on a personal level. Don’t leave your fans in the dark, let them know what your business is all about! If you’re new to Instagram, check our our blog post, How to Promote Your Designs on Instagram!

Daily Checklist:

• Post 1-2 pictures
• Respond to any messages or comments
• Follow at least 7 new relevant accounts
• Comment on at least 5 relevant accounts that don’t follow you
• Research trending hashtags
• “Like” at least 10 posts from relevant accounts

Pinterest 

Why:

While Pinterest isn’t as crucial for every business, it’s one of the strongest tools for promoting merchandise. Like Instagram, Pinterest is a visual platform using pictures to engage users. What sets Pinterest apart from Instagram, is its ability to drive massive amount of traffic to the right places. By pinning different images and linking them to your website, your followers basically do the marketing for you. If one of your pins is shared, then a whole new spectrum of people will be reached.

Daily Checklist:

• Reply to any comments
• Repin at least 5 old posts
• Like at least 12 images from relevant accounts
• Constantly pin from Pinterest’s Smart Feed
• Research trending keywords
• Create at least 3 new pins each day

Blog Platform

Why:

Blogging is one of the easiest ways to generate content and improve SEO for your business. By using relevant keywords in your blog postings, your brand reach will continuously increase. Blogging is also an efficient way to keep your audience in the loop and educated about your brand. Think of blogging as the fuel to your brand presence. If it’s generating content, then it’s generating awareness.

Daily Checklist:

• Respond to comments
• Promote your posts on all relevant social media channels
• Check and respond to emails
• Edit and schedule posts for the week
• Comment on at least 5 relevant blog posts
• Update any old blog posts
• Save at least 5 relevant blog posts

No two social media platforms are the same. That’s what it’s important to utilize each platform correctly and know how each tool can benefit your business. It may seem like a lot of work at a glance, but if you plan ahead and keep this checklist handy, then upkeeping each social media account will be a breeze!

Tips to Keep in Mind:

• Use a scheduling tool
• Make note of upcoming holidays
• Jump on any trending events or relevant breaking news
• Frequently analyze competitors
• Use a reporting tool
• Analyze best posting times for your business
• Create a strong header image
• Make a content calendar and plan ahead

Are you a social influencer? Want to make money with your creativity? Monetize on your designs by opening a 100% FREE online shop today!

Open your own shop

The post Social Media Cheat Sheet appeared first on The Spreadshop Blog.