Marketing

How to Stop Being Twitter-Blind and Grow Your Woodworking Business.

by Adam

Twitter for woodworking business.Last time we looked at why Twitter wasn’t working for you in growing your woodworking business (it had something to do with fear), and why your current use of it won’t get you and your customers together in a blissful union.

This time, we’ll examine how using Twitter can actually get you in direct contact with the people who will either a.) buy your work, or b.) connect you to the people who will.

First a Little Good News/Bad News.

The bad news: If you’ve just joined Twitter in the last year, you are no longer at the forefront of the new media revolution.

Things change extremely fast in these parts, and since 2010 Twitter is considered mainstream social media. This means the incredible rags to riches stories you were reading a while back are becoming closer to impossible to achieve.

The early adopters a few years back had a great time watching things unfold in a big way for them because there was less people, less competition for attention, and less noise.

Now, it’s a crowded marketplace with unfathomable amounts of communication going on at once, so getting the kind of attention possible in the early days takes some real forethought. Julien puts it better than I can.

The good news: Twitter is still a place that makes it infinitely simple to connect to your ideal client, but these days, you need to have careful strategy, and a message that resonates with them so you stand out from the crowd. In other words, you’re gonna have to work at it. (I hear the groaning now)

**Disclaimer: I am not a social media expert. Those don’t exist. I’m an active participant who’s been learning through doing since I joined Twitter back in 2008. Everything you’re going to read are simply lesson learned from trial and error. Also, no matter what you do you’re going to screw it up at some point. Suck it up, learn a lesson, and change your approach. The more you allow that to happen the better off you’ll be.**

Go Find Them

Twitter makes it pretty easy for your customers to find you, but the best solution is to be proactive and go out and find them instead.

Twitter has search functions built right in that allow you to search for certain terms and even search by people’s descriptions of themselves. But that can be a little overwhelming when you see a bazillion people Tweeting the phrase “custom furniture” and realize that one in fifty thousand might qualify as a potential lead.

A better way, in my experience, has been to search for the things your ideal customer is into or would be involved in.

In order to do that, you need to have a very specific profile of who your ideal client is. Anyone in the Woodworking Can Pay Your Bills E-course can tell you how to do this.

Twitter chats are also a fantastic place to meet and greet about particular topics that your people are into. There’s a seemingly infinite number of chats going on all the time. To help you find the right ones your customers might be involved in, try searching Whatthehashtag.com.

Be Relevant

All that above, about going to them and finding where they are online? Yeah, none of that will matter one bit unless you’re showing up as a person that can be of great value to the ideal client and the people in their gang. What do I mean?

Let’s say your ideal client is into flower arranging. The last thing you want to do is waltz into a flower arranging Twitter chat and start trying to pick up clients. You’ll be booted, blocked, and reported as spam faster than your can say “daisy.”

Being relevant to your potential client isn’t about forcing yourself into the same hobbies or pretending to like the same cooking blogs. It’s about taking the time to find where your interests and values intersect.

Are you into green living? I bet your client is to. Do you enjoy sailing? Maybe they do as well. The key here is, again, taking the time to know your ideal client inside and out so you can “predict” where you two will naturally meet and exchange value in that area.

This means taking time to actually engage them too. You can’t just follow someone on Twitter and expect to have a conversation or that they will be so impressed they’ll make the first move in getting to know you.

If you’re not interacting with potential clients on Twitter regularly, then you are simply wasting your time and should consider abandoning social media altogether.

Beacuse if you’re not confident enough to approach a potential client, then chances are you aren’t ready to begin making a living for yourself through your passion for woodworking. Plain and simple.

Ask For the Sale

I would hope this one goes without saying. If you want to sell high end furniture then you have to make people aware that it’s available.

What this doesn’t mean: Spamming your followers by repeating the same message over and over again desperately trying to make a sale. People smell fear and desperation. That makes them run away. Don’t do it (P.S. I smelled of this too. It’s ok).

Chances are, your people won’t want to make a transaction with you from a random Tweet with a link in it.

In fact, all of the online furniture sales I made were from people having some form of conversation (either face to face or online), going to the site, taking time to get to know more about me, and then deciding that we were a good fit. And I’m gonna venture a guess and say that’s probably how it’s going to go for you.

It’s ok to Tweet links to your work and make people aware, but you need to be open to getting to know them and build a level of trust. Without that you’re just more noise trying to get their money.

Give them a chance to get to know you and to see if you are a good fit for them. Then, asking for the sale goes from being a gut wrenching thought to a natural flow in the process. Yes, it really can be that simple.

Especially when you consider that your high end transactions are going to happen off of Twitter. Email, phone, and face to face are where the magic happens. Twitter and other forms of social media are the lead-ins for you.

Like I said at the beginning, if you’re new to Twitter or you’ve been reluctantly dragging your feet out of uncertainty, then you’ve cost yourself some amazing opportunities to build your business rapidly.

But, since Twitter seems to be sticking around a while, now is the time to buckle down and formulate a deliberate strategy for finding, connecting, and growing your customer base. It’s more work than you thought at first, but it’s still easier than sitting your shop wondering what to do next, right?

Over to you, now. How’s your social media working for you? What fears or uncertainties are keeping you from making it happen? Let’s talk about it.

Are You The Seat-Filler No One Cares About?

by Adam

The Twitter PartyWhy did you sign up to use Twitter?

Like most people, I’m willing to bet you signed on because you heard the buzz about miracle marketing, instant connection to clients, and crazy sales coming from it.

So, there you are, Tweeting the day away and not a single cent for any of your time or efforts. What happened? Where’s the flood of fans swarming to check out your latest post and Re-Tweet all of your wisdom? Where are the hordes of customers? Where’s the magic?

Harsh Reality

A lot of people and businesses become disenchanted rather quickly with Twitter and other social media platforms. Why?

Simple. The don’t see the results they expected in the beginning. Participation in Twitter, simply having a presence, doesn’t grant you any privileges to people’s time and attention.

In other words, just because you’re there doesn’t mean anyone cares. In fact, no one cares if you’re there or not. Sounds harsh but it’s true.

And the reason they don’t give a rip about you or what you say is because you have failed to even attempt to give them the reasons they need to sit up and pay attention.

It’s not their fault, it’s yours.

Enter The Twitter Party

Imagine walking into a party where, instead of mingling, everyone’s sitting at a dining table that’s as long as a football field. Thousands of people are sitting at the table and they’re all engaged in conversation with other folks and all at the same time.

Welcome to Twitter.

You pull up a chair and start talking. Your conversation is exactly what you always talk about in your normal comfortable circles.

You’re waxing on and on about your favorite wood species, hand plane maker, and how you brilliantly solved a problem with a double haunched mortise and tenon.

That’s when it happens. The people around you grow quiet for a brief moment and stare at you with blank eyes. After which they turn their heads away and resume their meaningful discussions purposefully avoiding you.

“But…I make beautiful things! I have photos!” you shout. Too late, they don’t care.

So, you get on the phone and invite a few friends from the old neighborhood who you know will talk to you.

Pretty soon, you’re sitting at your own section of the table talking to the same people about the same topics from all the other places you hang out.

What’s worse is you’re still under the impression that just because you showed up to the party, you’re doing marvelous things for your business.

And you wonder why Twitter isn’t working for you?

“But no one else talks to me or clicks on my links,” you whine. Very true. Do you know why?

Rewind Your Grand Entrance

Let’s go back to the party. What went wrong?

Upon arrival you failed to do one simple task that would have saved you from being an irrelevant seat filler. You didn’t take the time to survey the room.

Who’s there? Who’s talking to whom? What’s the main topic of discussion that seems to be working around the table? Does anyone here match my ideal client profile? If so, what are they talking about and with whom are they spending time?

Without doing proper listening and looking, you have no chance of ever being someone worthy of your prospect’s attention. And that attention is a precious resource and asset.

I see this scenario played out over and over again on the far left side of my Tweetdeck interface. That’s the column I have all the woodworkers who I’ve connected with. I see a row of people playing it safe by not stepping out of their normal boundaries of contact. Even though the platform is changed, you’re still talking to the same people about the same things all day long.

Playing it safe will always get you predictable results – nothing. Nothing worth having is obtained without risk.

You want to make a living creating high end one-of-a-kind pieces for discerning clientele? Then you have to put yourself in the position to meet, engage, and be relevant to them. That can’t happen if you’re all comfy in your sawdust circles.

Has this been your mode of operation since joining Twitter? What have you done to change it? Let’s talk about it.

So what’s the secret to being relevant and even essential to your prospects online? We’ll have to save that for next time.

The Half-Blind Dovetail Marketing Method

by Adam

Post image for The Half-Blind Dovetail Marketing Method

Half blind dovetails.

Nothing evokes more Oohs, Ahs, and secret jealous looks than a perfectly executed set of these little wonders. Well, any type of dovetail in general, when done precisely, is a thing to behold.

No joint commands more respect or intimidates woodworkers the most then hand cut half-blind dovetails. Beginners dream of the day they can execute the joint with flawless precision while veterans enjoy the process so much, they look for excuses just to include it in their next piece.

When it comes to marketing, a lot of woodworkers approach it like a newbie looks at half blind dovetails.

They know they want and even need to learn how to do it to elevate their work and business, but the process seems too intimidating and risky. Despite all the material and how-to articles written on the subject, it still scares them to even try. Is any of this sounding familiar?

When you set out to attempt your first go at half-blind dovetails, you get a huge list of questions running though the brain. Do I have the right tools? If not, do I need to spend a lot of $$ for the best? How do I do this perfectly the first time? What if I screw up, a lot? How can I keep from wasting precious material and time? So on and so forth.

I bet the same questions run through your mind when you look at marketing your work, don’t they. Be honest. You’re confused, overwhelmed, and even a little intimidated when it comes to the idea of learning how to market you and your precious work. It’s natural.

What if you approached marketing like you do cutting half blind dovetails? Also, what if I told you that approaching it this way would make it ridiculously easy for you to not only understand marketing, but also to actually DO IT in a very effective way? Have I got your attention now? Excellent.

The Crucial Two Components

What actually makes up a half-blind dovetail joint?

There’s a board that the pins are cut from, and a board that the tails are cut into. Pretty simple. In drawer construction, the pin board is the drawer face while the tail board is the drawer side.

Think of one part of the joint as your ideal customer and the other part as your unique offer/product/service. It doesn’t matter if you’re a pins or tails first person (I’m both actually), but for the sake of this illustration I’m going to approach it as cutting the pins first.

Expose Your Pins

The pins are your ideal customer. They’re unique and individual because you’ve laid out each pin and cut it from the end of the board one at a time. Then the waste around them is carefully removed until the perfect pin is revealed. It’s delicate work that requires a steady hand and full attention. But the end result is something elegant and one of a kind.

Just as your marking gauge, dovetail saw, and chisel help carefeully create delicate pins from the first board, your online presence, furniture style, and even pricing help reveal the ideal client for you in the sea of possible clients.  As you pare away the excess material that leaves people unclear and confused about who you are and what your work is about, a unique and essential customer (pin) is exposed, ready to connect.

Create a Nice Home With Your Tails

The tail board is your unique offer or furniture. When you set out to make the other side of the joint, the tail board, you literally trace the pins to the tail stock. It’s a unique fit every time. Great care is taken to scribe an exact line that guides the rest of the process, so you end up creating a custom space for those pins to live. When you’re creating the tail board to fit only that one particular set of pins, it’s just like creating a very distinct product or offer for the ideal client.

What needs do they have? What fantasies are they looking to have fulfilled? What emotions are they desiring to experience? They’re turning to you and your high end work to deliver those things for them. Great care and attention to the right fit is crucial for this part of the process.

Crafting the right product and message/story around that product will produce the ideal snug fit for the customer. Just like that satisfying moment when each pin and tail slip together to form a very solid and elegant connection, the moment your ideal client connects with the ideal piece will be even more satisfying and just as elegant.

You’re NOT Going to Get It Every Time

How many times do you get a perfect fit the first time with dovetails? Not very often.

Even if you’ve been at it for decades, there’s still little mistakes or overlooked steps that need corrected in order to refine the fit. That’s why you test the fit, find the area that’s holding you up, and correct it. Over and over.

Even the process of making each part of half blind dovetails is an exercise in trial and error. It takes time in the beginning to find your rhythm and process that fits you naturally and allows you to repeat great results.

The same is true of marketing. Creating a message that your ideal clients identify with takes practice. You’re not going to get it right the first time every time. But it’s important that you actually DO create one.

Create a marketing message and put it out there. Chances are that it won’t work the way you thought it should. Great. Pull it back, take a look, and see what’s getting in the way. Keep slowly paring away the waste that’s preventing a perfet fit between your ideal client and the pieces you offer. Then, test the fit again, and again, and again…until you make that connection. It’s trial and error, but the important thing is that you actually attempt it.

The half-blind dovetail method of marketing is just a simple combination of using the essentials to pare away waste that impedes a perfect fit.

The waste is the confused marketing messages you send out because you’re not clear on what your simple core message is. The essentials are the simple tools you use to communicate that message (website, social media, networking).

Combine those two elements into a perfect space for the ideal customer to connect in, and you have yourself a formula to repeat over and over for success. Not to mention an elegant joint that will keep people talking about you repeatedly.

Does the half-blind dovetail marketing method make it easier for you or do you just feel like the blindfold is still on? Let me know in the comments.

If so, then maybe it’s time to get the blueprint for a solid woodworking business.

From Woodworking Sketchbook to Marketing Plan? (Video Post)

by Adam

What type of ecosystem are you developing around your products? As woodworkers and woodworking entrepreneurs sketching is the base activity for all your designs so this activity comes very natural to you. It’s easy to understand the environment that your design came from because you’re actively pulling in all the influential elements that inspired it. [...]

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