Hey friends! We all know that follow up is a key part of the sales process. But what about after you’ve received and shipped the order? Should you follow up then? What should you say? These are the questions that commonly pop up within our Paper Camp community so I wanted to share with you on this episode. I’ve had conversations with hundreds of buyers about their follow up preferences and the large majority of them don’t like follow-ups after orders. Take a listen to hear what you should do ins...
Jan 19, 2021•8 min•Ep 187•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! Have you ever considered how the products you use on a day-to-day basis are made? In this episode, I was joined by Christy Asper of Paper Baristas to talk about her journey of finding ethical manufacturing partners. Paper Baristas is a paper goods company run by Christy and her husband Jon. They started their business to create ethically sourced products by beautiful people for a beautiful cause. They are on a mission to help fight modern-day slavery in the supply chain industry. Ch...
Jan 12, 2021•32 min•Transcript available on Metacast Hi Friends, Happy New Year! This week on the podcast we're rerunning three of my top podcast episodes focused on sales & marketing for wholesale. If wholesale is a revenue stream that you’re working to grow, I invite you to join me for Paper Camp. Head to prooftoproduct.com/papercamp to get all the details and join our waitlist so you're the first to hear when doors open. --------------- Hey friends! As more and more of you are dipping your toes into the world of virtual tradeshows I’ve been rec...
Jan 07, 2021•22 min•Transcript available on Metacast Hi Friends, Happy New Year! This week on the podcast we're rerunning three of my top podcast episodes focused on sales & marketing for wholesale. If wholesale is a revenue stream that you’re working to grow, I invite you to join me for Paper Camp. Head to prooftoproduct.com/papercamp to get all the details and join our waitlist so you're the first to hear when doors open. --------------- Big thanks to Kelly and Caroline for having me on their show. If you’re not already familiar with Creative Bi...
Jan 06, 2021•51 min•Transcript available on Metacast Hi Friends, Happy New Year! This week on the podcast we're rerunning three of my top podcast episodes focused on sales & marketing for wholesale. If wholesale is a revenue stream that you’re working to grow, I invite you to join me for Paper Camp. Head to prooftoproduct.com/papercamp to get all the details and join our waitlist so you're the first to hear when doors open. --------------- Hey friends! We’re going to be switching things up a little for today’s episode. I’ve decided that once a mon...
Jan 05, 2021•21 min•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! Have you started your 2021 strategy planning yet? This was a question that I asked my Proof to Product LABS community and 55% of people who responded said yes while 45% answered no. I know this year has been very different and the thought of planning for next week or even next month can lead to total overwhelm but yearly business planning is essential for your business’ livelihood. That’s why I walked you through 4 steps to getting started with a simple business audit including 3 qu...
Dec 22, 2020•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! You’re in for a fun episode today. I have Juliana and Ryan Kissick on the show to chat about their business, Good Juju Ink. Juliana founded Good Juju Ink in 2014 and the company is now run by herself, husband Ryan and their dear friend Marina Lieban. The trio attended Paper Camp Conference in 2018 and it has been so much fun to watch their business blossom since. I was thrilled to talk to them in this episode about an amazing campaign they’ve been working on since the start of the p...
Dec 15, 2020•42 min•Ep 184•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! Today’s episode was actually recorded in March of 2020 and given the topic, we didn’t feel it was appropriate to air it when it was originally scheduled to be released. However, the story is really powerful and important so I wanted to share it with you and hope you gain the inspiration for how you can grow your business any way you want! Thinking about selling your business? Even if you’re still in the early stages of entrepreneurship or if you’ve been at it for quite some time, it...
Dec 08, 2020•34 min•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! I am really excited to be sharing the conversation I had with Rachel Ngom who is a business and lead generation expert. Rachel has a super interesting backstory where she went from being on food stamps with negative $400 in her checking account to running a multiple six-figure online business. Rachel shared her entrepreneurial journey and what led her to where she is today. She talks about how she increased her web traffic by 34,000 views per month using Pinterest! She also shares h...
Dec 01, 2020•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! Last week I got an email asking, “Do people really make money selling paper products and gift items?” I was floored! Based on the latest stats that I saw, the consumer products industry accounts for more than $635 billion with stationery alone raking in $8 billion. The answer is an astounding yes. There are so many opportunities in this industry to make a good living and build a profitable and sustainable business. Many independent brands are pulling in over six and seven figures an...
Nov 24, 2020•17 min•Ep 181•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! I’m really excited for you to listen in on today’s episode with Jean Marie Sanchez of Little Feet’s Opus. The story behind Jean’s products is truly remarkable - each of them stems from personal stories of the strong women in her life and spreads joy, empowerment and relatable life moments. Jean made an intentional goal to create products that are both inclusive and diverse. In our conversation, she talked about the ah-ha moment she had where she realized there was space in the marke...
Nov 17, 2020•31 min•Ep 180•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! If you’ve considered joining the Proof to Product LABS community then you’ll enjoy today’s episode. It’s a really fun sneak peek of what we’re doing inside the LABS community as I shared a snippet of a live Coffee Chat we had with our members on the things that they’re trying within their business. Our Coffee Chat conversations cover a wide range of topics but in this episode, you’ll hear a small segment from our most recent session focused on Instagram Giveaways. I spoke with two b...
Nov 10, 2020•26 min•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! Today’s episode is focused on 7 ways you can enhance your customer journey. Oftentimes we’re so focused on capturing the sale and everything leading up to it. In reality, your customers’ journey begins the moment that they learn about you. This means the customer journey could start weeks or months before they ever step foot into your store or open your website to look through your shop. That’s why it’s critical to nail down the customer journey so you can create a tribe of raving f...
Nov 03, 2020•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! Today’s guest is a familiar voice on the podcast. This conversation was with none other than Biff Ulm of MN Nice Enough and retail shop Zaiser’s. I had a conversation with Biff earlier this year, pre-COVID ( episode 146 if you want to take a listen) and it seems like it was an eternity ago! I was so happy that Biff agreed to come back on to discuss his personal journey of being a store owner during the time of COVID. In this episode, Biff shares how his store sales have fluctuated t...
Oct 27, 2020•48 min•Ep 177•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! I am super excited for you to listen in on today’s conversation with Mei Pak, founder of Creative Hive Co. and Tiny Hands. She’s been running her creative, handmade business since 2006 and coaching makers since 2014. She even taught her husband how to start selling personalized art and now makes over $55,000 per month in sales! Mei is all about creating a consistent income without relying too much on social media. In this episode, you’ll hear the 4 steps for pitching your products t...
Oct 20, 2020•38 min•Transcript available on Metacast I know 2020 hasn’t been an easy year for any of us so I wanted to share a quick episode with you today about feeling fragmented. This was a vulnerable episode for me to record, because I’m sharing my personal experience of feeling depleted and unfocused. But, having talked with close friends, colleagues, clients and members of my communities -- I know I’m not alone in this. People are tapped out. We’re exhausted. We’re mentally, emotionally and physically drained. Take a listen to hear my experi...
Oct 13, 2020•11 min•Transcript available on Metacast Fulfillment has been a hot topic in our Proof to Product communities lately so I wanted to bring on a special guest to chat about how fulfillment works from the 3PL side of things. I was joined by Allen Befort of Givington’s, a fulfillment company that pays attention to the small details so you can focus on the bigger picture of your business. Allen jokes that he kind of fell into starting this business with a friend. Seven years later they’ve seen great success and pride themselves on the relat...
Oct 06, 2020•37 min•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! I am really excited for you to listen in to today’s episode with Betsy Garcia of Bloomwolf Studio. Betsy was on her way to medical school when she decided she wanted to pursue the small business life and sell her art. Bloomwolf Studio is a Latina owned & operated illustration and design studio based in Orlando that strives to create change through art and messaging. In this powerful and transparent episode, Betsy and I talk about the mission behind Bloomwolf and how Betsy and her hu...
Sep 29, 2020•36 min•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! Today I want to chat with you about the recent Faire Summer market and share both insights and concerns after leading hundreds of people through what is likely our first of many online trade shows. I’m happy to report that our Paper Camp alumni community and LABS members had some strong sales during the show. Some received a handful of orders, while others secured more than 40 orders in a two day span. In addition to the cash influx, I was pleased to hear that many in our community ...
Sep 22, 2020•12 min•Ep 172•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! With the world being such a visual place, more and more of our customers are relying on product photography to tell them a story. We only have a few seconds to quickly grab our customers’ attention and get them engaged in what we’re selling. That’s why in this episode I’m talking with Chaitra Radhakrishna. Chaitra is the founder of PinkPot Studio, a Shopify design and photography studio specifically for product-based business owners. Chaitra shared so much valuable information in th...
Sep 15, 2020•37 min•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! Ever considered what it might be like to run a business remotely? Or even in a completely different country? That’s exactly what today’s guest, Christine Herrin did when she moved to the Philippines for a year while continuing to run her business in the United States. Christine has such a cool story and was actually chosen to participate in the Adobe Creative Residency Program in 2016 which is where she initially began building her product-based business, Everyday Explorers Co. Chri...
Sep 08, 2020•37 min•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! Have you ever considered what it might be like to marry your interests and passions within your business? In this episode, I brought on Jordan Kentris of A Good Day, a bespoke experience studio specializing in custom stationery, events, branding and user experience. Jordan has taken his love for physical products and his background in User Experience (UX) to create a better customer journey for his clients. We talk about what he’s done to create this process for his customers and th...
Sep 01, 2020•41 min•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! It’s no secret that putting yourself out there can be a huge hurdle for many entrepreneurs. In today’s episode, I was joined by Paper Camp Alum and LABS member, Tiffany McGraw of Paper Rehab. Tiffany gives us insight into her own experience of overcoming the vulnerability of pitching herself as an entrepreneur by reframing the word “no” to “not right now” in her mind. Tiffany has a wonderful mission behind her brand which was designed to normalize and focus on mental health care, es...
Aug 25, 2020•32 min•Ep 168•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! As more and more of you are dipping your toes into the world of virtual tradeshows I’ve been receiving questions on how to build out strategic marketing plans for these events. That’s why today I am exploring the tactics you can implement to help reach more of your wholesale customers at a virtual tradeshow event. You’ll learn how you can determine if a virtual tradeshow is the right fit for you and your budget. I discuss using a tiered outreach system and all of the different avenu...
Aug 18, 2020•19 min•Ep 167•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! As we all continue to navigate through this pandemic it’s important that you continue to connect with your customers and build strong relationships with them. Something as simple as checking in with your wholesale clients or retail customers can go a long way in making them feel cared for. That’s exactly what today’s guest, Kate Murray of Quick Brown Fox Letterpress has done to make sure she’s supporting her customers. In this episode, Kate shares her story of how she got started in...
Aug 11, 2020•30 min•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! Does being an entrepreneur ever make you feel overwhelmed? Maybe you’re having tons of business success and checking things off of your to-do list but you still don’t feel satisfied at the end of the day. I’m a firm believer in creating strategic plans and taking action in business. Sometimes, however, our mindset, boundaries, personal beliefs and the stories we tell ourselves can make executing those plans harder than necessary. In this episode, I was joined by Jessica Eley, a mind...
Aug 04, 2020•45 min•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! Have you ever wondered what it might be like to turn your hobby into a business? That’s exactly what today’s guest, Amber Kemp-Gerstel did and today she came on to talk about her journey in the crafting industry. Amber is a powerhouse. Not only does she have a blog called Damask Love but she also runs YayDay Paper Co., selling digital products and leveraging a subscription model. You might recognize her from NBC’s TV show, Making It (she was a finalist in 2018) or from being the hos...
Jul 28, 2020•45 min•Ep 164•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! I know right now has been a very confusing time for so many of us... I actually brought on Meg Sutton today for a hot seat episode to really dive deep into where she should be focusing in her business. You might be familiar with Meg as she has been on the podcast a few times before and is a long time client of mine. Meg Sutton is the boss lady and doodler behind Belle and Union and As her company has evolved and COVID has changed the economy, she’s felt unsure of where she should be...
Jul 21, 2020•30 min•Ep 163•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! Does Pinterest sometimes feel like just another social media platform you have to keep up with? I’m here to tell you this: it’s so much more than that. Pinterest is a powerful search engine, much like Google and by leveraging your Pinterest strategy, you could potentially be bringing tons of traffic to your website. That’s why I wanted to bring on Diana Keeler. Diana has worked for and contributed to some of the biggest editorial outlets in the world and now works with retailers and...
Jul 14, 2020•36 min•Transcript available on Metacast Hey friends! Did you know that when someone lands on your website you only have 5 seconds to capture their attention? That’s not a lot of time, so I wanted to bring on an expert to help you better understand how you can maximize those 5 seconds and get people to stick around longer. Whether you’ve been in business for many years or are just getting started you’re in for a treat with this guest, Jessica Freeman. Jessica Freeman is the founder of Jess Creatives. She is a web designer, tech strateg...
Jul 07, 2020•38 min•Transcript available on Metacast