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    Business

    Baking it Down with Sugar Cookie Marketing ๐Ÿช

    ๐Ÿ‘‹ Hey – Heather and Corrie here with the Baking it Down Podcast with Sugar Cookie Marketing (a group on Facebook full of sugar cookiers turned business owners). 

    ๐Ÿช We’re here to help you rise with your reach, flood with new followers, bake up new ideas, and make that all-important dough (while makin’ that dough – see the pun there?) 

    ๐Ÿค‘. Whatโ€™s it about? Weโ€™re a Facebook Group turned Podcast, Membership, Book Club, and Baking 101 thatโ€™s dedicated to assisting bakers in effectively marketing online to generate more sales and better manage their businesses. 

    ๐Ÿง  With free Facebook Live classes, hundreds of resources, and thousands of like-minded bakers, thereโ€™s a lot to learn in “SCM” (aka Sugar Cookie Marketing). ๏ธ๐ŸŽง As an extension of our Facebook group, this podcast is here to let you learn by listening. ๐Ÿ“ˆ We’ll cover group topics, marketing trends, and more (leaving this wide open in case Corrie wants to start singing). 

    ๐Ÿ’ธ We take the sweet art of selling online to the cottage bakery world with marketing methods that move products (and pastries).๐Ÿ‘‚ So open up those glorious ear canals because we have a podcast! Just when youโ€™ve thought youโ€™ve โ€œheardโ€ it all with those marketing “miracle” twins (that’s our last name – not a proclamation), weโ€™ve got something just for you each week! 

    ๐Ÿฅฃ As a baker, you don’t always have the luxury of two hands needed to scroll in Sugar Cookie Marketing Group or crack open a book in Sugar Cookie Bookies, but what you can do is listen (unless you’re my kid asking โ€œwhatโ€™s for dinnerโ€ for the millionth time). 

    ๐Ÿ‘ Hands full of flour? No problem! ๐Ÿ‘ 18 dozen iced cookies due tomorrow? Letโ€™s do this. The Baking it Down Podcast by Sugar Cookie Marketing is a weekly podcast geared toward helping you grow your bakery business – dropping (almost) every Tuesday. 

    ๐Ÿ“… We choose a topic each week that’s either something new and emerging in the world of social media or something that we saw in “The Group” that was a hot topic and we bake it down… I mean, “break” it down for you. ๐Ÿ—ฏ๏ธ What you can expect in the podcast is about an hour of chit-chat with the meat and potatoes right at the beginning of the episode. 

    ๐Ÿฅ” Thatโ€™s when we dive into the marketing topic of the week! ๐Ÿ“ž Oh yeah, folks can call / text / email in with their questions too – a fun way to hear from other bakers out there. 

    Our promises to you: 
    1๏ธโƒฃ We always make it clean = no cursing. We understand that you are busy and could be around little ones while also trying to get your weekly dose of business growth so we make sure that each episode would make our grandma proud and keep it clean so you can listen while also living your life. 
    2๏ธโƒฃ We always make it fun. Thereโ€™s a lot of negativity in the world so we try and make the podcast an upbeat and fun learning experience for you. I mean, we try to make the Instagram updates and changes as happy as we can, but come on Instagram! Give it a rest! No more changes! 
    3๏ธโƒฃ Other than that, we take a positive approach to marketing We are also *not* professional podcasters. I feel like we need to say this because, hey, sometimes we get giggles! We do our best to extend our marketing knowledge to you all free of charge each week at the cost of listening to our higher-than-normal pitched voices and the occasional giggle spree. 
    4๏ธโƒฃ You can find the podcast on all the major platforms and you can typically expect a new episode each Tuesday afternoon (unless life happens). We invite everyone to listen. 

    Either start from the beginning or work backward! The episodes donโ€™t build off themselves so you wonโ€™t be confused hearing one before the other. You just might miss new Lives we mention but you can always catch the replay in the Sugar Cookie Marketing Group on Facebook!

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    Copyright: ยฉ 2022 Baking it Down with Sugar Cookie Marketing

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    129. Baking it Down - How You get Them is How You Keep Them Sep 19, 2023
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    ๐Ÿฟ How Ya Get 'em is How Ya Keep 'em


    Things we want when we market:

    • ๐Ÿคฉ High engagement!
    • ๐Ÿคฉ Exponential growth!
    • ๐Ÿคฉ Reach as wide as the Atlantic - heck the Pacific!
    • ๐Ÿคฉ Big Numbers!
    • ๐Ÿคฉ Lots of Likes!
    • ๐Ÿคฉ All the money in the WORLD!


    But what don't we want? All the above if you went about getting it the wrong way. Such is the topic of this week's Baking it Down Podcast - how you get them is how you keep them.

    ๐Ÿ›’ Let me break it down for ya with a marketing case study as big as your local mall: JC Penney and the discount disaster.

    JCPenney rose to fashion fame in the 70s when couponing was a common practice for 65% of US households. ๐ŸŽซ Coupons are not like sales - because a sale is the equivalent to "no promo code required" versus a glorious coupon - this hard-to-find code or cut-out paper that grants the holder something โœจno oneโœจ else gets - a discount.

    ๐Ÿง  Talk about hittin' the centers of the brain that casinos take advantage of.

    ๐Ÿ›‘ But in 2012, the JCP CEO Ron Johnson didn't follow the principle of "how you get them," and decided to move from couponing to a fair pricing model. No longer would customers have to hunt and peck through papers and internet deal sites to find the best discount - ๐Ÿ“ˆ now the entire store would be just priced fairly - low prices throughout - no promo code necessary.

    ๐Ÿ“‰ JCP's sales tanked 25% that year. Ron was fired after 17 months, and the coupons were added back to the store's business model. Ron was quoted saying, "coupons were a drug." And their customers were addicts.

    ๐Ÿ‘ How you get them is how you keep them.

    JCP built a business bankin' on budget busters discounted with coupons. So it had to keep them by sticking with the coupon cutters. ๐Ÿ”ฅ Same with your business. If you drum up business by doin' fire sales - guess what your audience will be built on expecting? You guessed it - last-minute discounts.

    Want to be a controversial baker? ๐Ÿฟ Go post controversial topics on your page. Guess what your audience will be expecting? Popcorn-poppable drama dripping in butter and bad words. Sure - you'll get engagement, reach, comments, and reactions - but what good are they if they don't convert into sales. ๐Ÿค‘ Money. ๐Ÿค‘ Dollars. ๐Ÿค‘ Income.

    ๐Ÿ‘ How you get them is how you keep them.

    ๐Ÿ You can't pay your bills with gossip (trust me, I'd have a private island if you could).

    ๐Ÿš‚๐Ÿšƒ๐Ÿšƒ๐Ÿšƒ Same with follow trains - what good is an international audience of 1,000 bakers when you can only ship locally to people who don't like baking so much they'll pay you to do it for them? Choo-choo, followers boarding, profits gettin' off at the next stop!

    Build the audience you want to keep - ๐Ÿ‘ because how you get them is how you keep them.


    128. Baking it Down - the Pricing Dance Sep 12, 2023
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    ๐Ÿ’ƒ The Pricing Dance


    When's the perfect time to introduce price into the "cookie conversation"? Is it message one, ๐Ÿ‘‹ "Hello, my name is $68 dollars a dozen?" Or is it after 50 messages when you've spent days (maybe even a week?) mocking up, designing, ordering cutters, and checking gel colors you've got, only for the client to turn "tire kicker" and say it's a bit out of their budget? ๐Ÿ‘Ÿ

    Yikes to both scenarios.

    That's the topic of today's podcast - the delicate pricing dance. You know, that perfect time when both value proposition meets budget, and the client has zero price objections as you two run off into the sunset to lead a happy, long, icing-filled life together as baker and buyer.

    The last thing we want is to scare the client away with sticker shock, but we also don't want the client to turn into a "convince me why I should" pen pal as you waste time trying to make a sale that was dead in the water before it even started.

    Imagine the sales funnel like dating - and the marriage is when the client makes a purchase. ๐Ÿ’ You'd call someone crazy if they were dating for 40 years hoping for a marriage proposal, right?

    ๐Ÿ‘ฐ "Maybe next year they'll propose." Or um - more likely they won't. They didn't for the last 40 years. In those 40 years, you could have been dating viable partners who did have marriage as their ultimate goal. Those were the ideal partners worth spending time on (just not 40 years).

    ๐Ÿ’’ It's the same concept when it comes to "dating" a potential client for too long. You could be woo-ing a client willing to give you their checkbook for the perfect set, but instead, you're trying to convince this commitment-shy Facebook lead that your half dozen, simple designs, waived rush-fee order is worth $25. ๐Ÿ˜‘

    ๐Ÿค” Okay bet, I'll go with "Hello, my name is 'out of your budget likely,' how are you?"

    Hilarious - but not the solution either. 1๏ธโƒฃ As my therapist says, the right answer usually lies between "on and off," "black and white," and "1 and 0." 0๏ธโƒฃ There's feeling out the client, understanding what their "okay I'll buy" trigger is, adding enough value, but also keeping the emergency parachute within arms reach for easy deployment to fly onto the next more likely sale. ๐Ÿช‚

    ๐Ÿ”‘ The key is adding value up-front. You can do this by:

    • ๐Ÿ”‘ Posting completed sets consistently on social media
    • ๐Ÿ”‘ Getting good reviews on review sites
    • ๐Ÿ”‘ Brushing up on better photography (we buy with our eyes)
    • ๐Ÿ”‘ Having your price per dozen easily viewable by potential clients
    • ๐Ÿ”‘ Exceeding in customer service, packaging, and product


    โ™Ÿ What you want to do is move every pricing chess piece before you budget on price. The key to making sales is NOT lowering your price. Yes - there is an argument for discount strategies - but not long-term (check out the JP Penney story if you doubt me).

    ๐Ÿ‘‚ Snag this podcast on any major podcast player (Spotify, Apple Music, Audible, Amazon Music, or your desktop) by clickin' here - Episode 128 - The Pricing Dance.


    127. Baking it Down - The Nuclear Option Sep 05, 2023
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    ๐Ÿ’ฃ The Nuclear Option ๐Ÿ’ต


    Put ya money where ya goals are.

    Here's all you need to know about this week's podcast:

    • PayPal: hello@sugarcookiemarketing.com


    ๐Ÿ’ฅ Okay - a lil' more context before you send me your life's savings.

    I really like David from the Raptitude Blog - and one of his more recent emails talked about "atomic accountability" in the form of the nuclear option. ๐Ÿคฏ It's putting your money where your goals are.

    Here's how he words it - basically, there are things you โœจneedโœจ to do and you don't โœจwantโœจ to do. So you, instead, do a bunch of other less important things but feel like you accomplished something. Sure - you did, kinda. But you didn't accomplish the one thing you knew you needed to do.

    ๐Ÿ’ฐ This we've all experienced. But how David goes about conquering this dilemma is either a financial risk or a productive reward.

    You see - he puts his money where his goals are by giving his best friend $300 on the caveat that she can keep the money should he not accomplish the goal within the designated timeframe. He set the goal and the time constraints, so it's not like it's unfair - but ๐Ÿ‘ฃ he's holding his financial feet to the ๐Ÿ”ฅ fire by putting his money where his goals are.

    His reasoning (per his website) is this:

    • ๐Ÿ’ฅ There is no way I would pay $300 just to avoid the thing a little longer
    • ๐Ÿ’ฅ There is no way she would give me the $300 if I donโ€™t do the task, despite my excuses
    • ๐Ÿ’ฅ There is no way I would pretend to have done the task just to get the $300 back


    ๐Ÿ’ต Let's up the financial ante - let's say you wanna teach a cookie class, but you've been putting it off all year. Knowing that the holidays are the proverbial "license to print class money," you think "I should teach classes." Okay - you know you should. You have all the tools to teach a class (ahem - shameless plug for the Cookie Class Kits), and you have the time now to plan it.

    Paypal hello@sugarcookiemarketing.com $500. Put the following information in your payment description:

    • ๐Ÿ’ธ Your Name
    • ๐Ÿ’ธ Your Goal
    • ๐Ÿ’ธ Your Time Constraint
    • ๐Ÿ’ธ Your Email


    ๐Ÿด If you don't meet your goal, I'll keep your money and think of you the entire time I order off the Olive Garden menu on your dime. ๐Ÿ‘จโ€๐Ÿณ And I will not refund you for any sob stories. Consider me your banking bestie. ๐Ÿ˜‚ If you do meet your goal, email me a photo of the goal completion proof, and I'll refund you your money (begrudgingly, but also proud of you).

    You see - we know we have to do the thing. But we also know how best to deceive ourselves in believing that putting it off is a good idea. So let's remove the "me" and replace it with "money" - because money tells no tails. But boy does it hurt to lose it.

    So Corrie and I will take our own challenge, but I'll add a lil' more fun to it:

    • ๐Ÿ’ฅ She gets me the Cookie Class Kits curriculum for both Thanksgiving and Christmas by October 1.
    • ๐Ÿ’ฅ Or I keep her $300.
    • ๐Ÿ’ฅ But if she does get her goal, I'll pay her an additional $100 and return her $300.


    I'll let ya'll know what I bought with her money as my Twinterest on the podcast. ๐Ÿคฃ

    ๐Ÿ‘‚ Snag this podcast and listen to Corrie's ideas on "nuclear options" for your goals on any major podcast player (Spotify, Apple Music, Audible, Amazon Music, or your des


    126. Baking it Down - Narcissistic Conversations Aug 22, 2023
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    ๐Ÿ—ฃ๏ธ Narcissistic Conversations - how chatty cathy is costing you cash


    Okay - this isn't exactly what you think - I mean, we're not talkin' about your Narc ex. That's between you and a therapist. BUT we are talking about narcissistic conversationalists - of which many of us at times have been guilty.

    ๐Ÿค‘ And it's costing you cash.

    The term, coined by Charles Deber, a sociologist, is called Conversational Narcissism and it sounds more innocent than you think. ๐Ÿ™Š Since we all are constantly involved in daily conversations - whether it be with the hubs or wife, the boss, clients, or the Starb barista - we have a tendency towards squandering potential connection (and thus potential sales) when we turn from car salesman to Chatty Cathy.

    Mr. Derber says there are two types of responses when it comes to any conversion:

    • โ†ฉ๏ธ A shift-response
    • โ†ช๏ธ A support-response


    ๐Ÿ—ฃ๏ธ You see - people want to be โœจlistened toโœจ. But both speakers can't be listened to at the same time, right? So when both people in a conversation attempt to speak about themselves instead of listening, we have a communication breakdown.

    And when you're trying to sell, you don't want a communication breakdown. That's the figurative opposite of selling. Unless you're selling them on why they shouldn't talk to you again anytime soon. In which case, you're sticking the "leave me alone" landing.

    • โ†ฉ๏ธ John: I'm feeling really starved.
    • โ†ฉ๏ธ Mary: Oh, I just ate. (shift-response)


    โ†ฉ๏ธ In a shift-response, we shift the conversation back to ourselves - our favorite topic. ๐Ÿ˜˜ And who doesn't love a lil' bit of a dish of muah? My bank account - that's who. The more we shift the conversation back to you-truly, the less we gain the trust (and wants and needs) of the person we're talking to.

    ๐Ÿ˜ฅ "But Heather - I'm trying to validate them by saying I have had a similar experience!"

    Cool - they don't want to talk about you - they wanted to talk about them. So let them - and then let them pay you. Because the more they talk about they - the more you'll know how to sell to them.

    Let's see a support-response in action:

    • โ†ฉ๏ธ John: I'm feeling really starved.
    • โ†ช๏ธ Mary: When was the last time you ate? (support-response)


    โ†ช๏ธ See how Mary redirected her question back to John? That's a support-response. ๐Ÿ™‰ It gets John to reveal more about himself while he also feels listened to. Mary is going to talk about herself less - that's for sure, but learning more about Mary isn't Mary's goal here - the goal is getting John to tell us more information about himself.

    The more you can introduce support-responses into your conversations, the more people will be drawn to talking to you. And if you're selling something - guess who will be more likely to buy from you? Yeah - it's โœจthatโœจ powerful.

    ๐Ÿ‘‚ Snag this podcast and hear the one book that made the biggest impact on our businesses on any major podcast player (Spotify, Apple Music, Audible, Amazon Music, or your desktop) by clickin' here - Episode 126 - Narcissistic Conversations.


    125. Baking it Down - Vendy Blendy Reggy Aug 15, 2023
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    ๐Ÿ›’ The Vendy de Blendy Is Open for Vendor Registration


    And we need your help - to bug the shops you wanna see Vendying the most!

    Okay - before I tell ya the who-what-where-when-why of the Vendy Blendy, lemme tell ya why we're talking about the un-talk-about-able. ๐Ÿง  We thought finally taking our own advice and working ahead this year would let us have a longer run-time promoting the vendors (๐Ÿ“† win) and let us not stay up so late at the last minute (๐Ÿ˜ด win) and let y'all bug the shops you wanna see for longer (๐Ÿ™€ win - for us, maybe not for the shops).

    So if you already know what the VB is about and wanna sign your shop up or wanna bug a shop you love, here's the link:

    โžก๏ธ https://sugarcookiemarketing.com/vendy/ โฌ…๏ธ

    The VB is first-shop-come-first-shop-promoted-for-the-next-3-months, ๐Ÿฆ so the early bird gets the promotional worm. ๐Ÿชฑ Now let's get into the dirty deets of the Vendy de Blendy!

    ๐Ÿ›’ The WHO of the Vendy Blendy

    The Vendy Blendy is for bakers who want to shop from bakery supply shops. The goal is a day of fun window shoppin' online (more on that later). ๐Ÿค‘ It costs nothing for you to shop the Vendy Blendy. Instead, Vendies pay into a Vendy pool and we use their registration money to giveaway TWO Bambu Babies (also known as Carbon X1C 3D printers)! No purchase necessary - just be in the group to win!

    Back to the vendies - we're lookin' for:

    • ๐Ÿ’ธ Cutter shops (and more cutter shops)
    • ๐Ÿ’ธ Recipe developers
    • ๐Ÿ’ธ Shirts and Apparel Shops
    • ๐Ÿ’ธ Digital Download Designers
    • ๐Ÿ’ธ Packaging People
    • ๐Ÿ’ธ Baking Ingredients
    • ๐Ÿ’ธ STL Shops (our overseas fam will love ya!)
    • ๐Ÿ’ธ Photography Gear and Supplies
    • ๐Ÿ’ธ Decorating Courses


    ๐Ÿ›’ The WHAT of the Vendy Blendy

    The Vendy Blendy is in its third year - and y'all LOVE it. It's a single-day digital event held on Black Friday each year in a Facebook Group that only exists for 24 hours. The epitome of FOMO, the Vendy Blendy connects buyers and sellers and disconnects said buyers from their holiday profits all in the name of a solid sale!


    ๐Ÿ›’ The WHERE of the Vendy Blendy

    It's on Facebook. In a group specifically - the group doesn't exist yet - I'll set it up around the beginning of October - but that doesn't matter either. You won't be able to join the group until November 24th at 12:00AM est. And then you'll be forcefully (lol kidding-ish) removed from the group 24 hours later at 12:00AM est the next day. Within the 24 hours, you'll get a list of ALL the Vendys and their discount codes, shop lists, best products, and - if they opt-in - a chance to snag their door prizes too!


    ๐Ÿ›’ The WHEN of the Vendy Blendy

    The Vendy blends every Black Friday. It's for 24 hours only. So - you'll be made aware of when the group opens for pending members (remember - you only get in for a 24-hour period).

    • ๐Ÿ›’ Date: November 24th, 2023
    • ๐Ÿ›’ Time: 12:00 AM - 12:00AM
    • ๐Ÿ›’ Time Zone: EST
    • ๐Ÿ›’ Location: a Facebook Group (that doesn't exist yet)


    Then you'd pendy until the vendy is ready to blendy in Novemby (yes - I plan to be obnoxious with this phrasing for the next 3 months - prepare thyselves).


    ๐Ÿ›’ The WHY of the Vendy Blendy

    For fun, really. I wish we had a deeper purpose, but who doesn't like shoppin' with friends - even if those friends are thousands of miles away joined by Zucky's website?!

    โžก๏ธ https://sugarcookiemarketing.com/vendy/ โฌ…๏ธ

    ๐Ÿ‘‚ Snag this podcast and hear the breakdown of the Vendy Blendy on any major podcast player (Spotify, Apple Music, Audible, Amazon Music, or your desktop) by clickin' here - Episode 125 - Ve


    124. Baking it Down - TOMA Aug 08, 2023
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    ๐Ÿง  T-O-M-A ๐Ÿง 


    ๐Ÿ… Thought I typoed "tomato" didn't ya? I wouldn't put it past me at this point. But alas - no. It's an acronym this time.

    "What other weird acronym are the twins talkin' about today?!" ๐Ÿ—ฃ๏ธ Yeah - agreed, but this marketing jargon may make you sales without selling!

    โฌ†๏ธ๐Ÿง  T-O-M-A: Top of Mind Awareness.

    Think of "TOMA" marketing as a way to stay in front of a client without directly saying "hey - yo, yeah you - don't forget to buy from me." If a client only needs to place an order with you once a year when it's Mother's Day or when their kid as a birthday, pummeling them will sales post does not for the ideal experience make.

    ๐Ÿค” "But how can I sell to people if they're annoyed by my selling to people?"

    Great question, Mr. Miagi. Let's brainstorm some of the best ways to sell without selling using the T-O-M-A method.

    • โฌ†๏ธ CRM Programs - man, hittin' ya with the double acronyms this week. CRM programs are "customer relationship management" applications that handle a lot of "TOMA" for you. ๐Ÿ‘ฅ Use these programs to remind you to email folks on their birthday, touch base with clients who order on specific holidays, or follow up with clients who place orders 4 months in advanced. CRMs, if utilized correctly, can single-handedly fill your pipeline by harnessing the power of T-O-M-A.
    • โฌ†๏ธ Newsletter / Email List - harness the power of newsletters by staying top of mind (using some of the tips below). ๐Ÿ“ฌ Email is awesome at keeping clients in the roster if you do it right. Finding a newsletter platform is key here. Mailchimp, Flodesk, Sendgrid, ConstantContact - all viable options (don't use your Gmail though - you'll get burned in deliverability).
    • โฌ†๏ธ Facebook Ads from Email Lists - "YIKES" is what many folks think when we drop the Ads Manager keyword. But the "dollar a day" adspend budget means you stay in front of clients by staying in their newsfeeds. ๏ธ๐ŸŽฏ Targeting "people who like your page" can mean you're keeping an eye on (well, they're keeping an eye on) your clients all year around for just $30/mo.
    • โฌ†๏ธ Charity Donations - "Strategic Giving" is a great way to build good karma while also staying in the minds (and hopefully hearts) of your target audience. ๐ŸŽ Donating cookies for a cause or a class ticket to a raffle can help market you while also giving you some feel-good content for your socials.
    • โฌ†๏ธ Content Cookies - flex without selling (and brush up on new skills) with content cookies! Content cookies are cookies made for content for your socials. ๐Ÿ“ธ Often I see Corrie make just one or two cookies for this. It makes for cute photos, shows off your capabilities, and it's not selling since you're likely not even baking these cookies for the marketplace.
    • โฌ†๏ธ Pop-Bys / Main Street Marketing
    • โฌ†๏ธ Resource / Informative Touch Point


    ๐Ÿ‘‚ Snag this podcast and hear the breakdown on the last two T-O-M-A ideas on any major podcast player (Spotify, Apple Music, Audible, Amazon Music, or your desktop) by clickin' here - Episode 124 - TOMA.


    123. Baking it Down - The Gold Ratio Aug 01, 2023
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    ๐Ÿช™ The Gold Ratio ๐Ÿช™

    I know some of you are screaming at your computer screen right now sayin' "IT'S GOLDEN RATIO!" But hold up, now ya hear! It's a play on words (but trust that 99.9% of other times it's a typo - but this time it isn't... surprisingly).

    In marketing, it's easy to fall prey to numbers. Numerical evaluations are THROWN at us daily. Just consider all the math problems we see as marketers turned business owners turned back into marketers.

    • ๐Ÿงฎ Followers on Instagram
    • ๐Ÿงฎ Reach on Facebook
    • ๐Ÿงฎ Comments on Group Threads
    • ๐Ÿงฎ Open Rates on Emails
    • ๐Ÿงฎ Class Tickets Sold on Eventbrite

    Hey - I thought we promised ourselves we'd never take a math class again, right?! ๐Ÿ˜ณ Well = welcome, class is in session, get your bottom in a seat like your bottom line depends on it, because it does. But not in the way you think it does.


    I'd be lying if I didn't say math wasn't important in business. It is. I live and die by my spreadsheets (which are essentially my digital children at this point). Math lets us predict, decide, and determine which direction we need to head towards. But addition and subtraction (outside of the business bank account) ain't the move. ๏ธ๐Ÿฅ We want... drum roll... ratios

    ๐Ÿ˜ฑ*screams in Algebra 2*

    Ratios are comparisons. One number, related to another number, knocked up against each other to give us a percentage. The numbers we're comparing? ๏ธ

    ๏ธUs today ๏ธ๐ŸฅŠ vs. ๐ŸฅŠ Us yesterday.

    You see - comparing how many followers a baker-influencer has to your hyper-local bakery in rural America ain't doin' your mental state any favors. And it's not a good barometer for effective marketing progress either. But you know what is? ๏ธ๐ŸŽฏ You today compared to how many accounts you were reaching in your target local audience this time last year.

    So - here are other "gold" ratios (still destroyin' some of ya with that play on words, huh?) ๐Ÿ˜‚

    • Engagement Ratio - how much engagement in relation to your total follower count are you getting per post? If you had 20 followers and got 20 comments, you'd have a 100% engagement rate (and 1:1 ratio).
    • Class Seating Ratio - we only can seat 10. If I sell 9 seats, my 9:10 ratio means my class is at 90% capacity. If someone is teaching a class to 20 seats and sells 9 tickets, their ratio is 45% even though we sold the same number of tickets ๐Ÿ˜ณ comparison truly is the thief of joy (except when we compare ourselves to ourselves).
    • Presale Ratio - presales work on made-up numbers (or how many Miss Cookie Packaging boxes you ordered). "I sold out!" can literally mean anything. In fact, folks be "selling out" and then selling 10 more FOMO orders. It's relative.
    • Booked Ratio - same with the "I'm BOOKED" posts. Booked in relation to...? See - it's relative. It's a ratio. If they were only going to take 5 orders this month, and took 5 orders - they have a 100% booked ratio. If you were going to take 30 orders and took 20, you'd only be 66% booked.
    • Click Through Rates - emails just like this one are relative too. The last week's Onesday Wednesday was sent to 3,834 emails and 1,971 of you opened it (for the free transfers, I know, but I can pretend otherwise). That's a 51% open rate.
    • Profit Ratio - probably the most important one to a business owner - let's knock up our profit % against last years'. Are we increasing our profits by decreasing costs, increasing efficiencies, and increasing price through added value? Yes? YOU'RE DOING GOOD THEN.



    122. Baking it Down - A$$et A$$umptions Jul 25, 2023
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    ๐Ÿ’ฒ Asset Assumption ๐Ÿ’ฒ


    "A$$uming makes a butt outta you and me" - words have been changed to protect the innocent, but the stance stands true. Assuming client expectations rather than communicating them steals your business a$$ets and leaves you with an empty bank account and an angry customer.


    But I get it - communication is hard, we're busy, the clients are vague, there's more dough than hours in a day. But assuming our clients โœจshould just knowโœจ is leaving a lot up to interpretation - and that includes our profit margin.


    ๐Ÿ‘ Rule of thumb - if you don't communicate effectively, you better have a well-funded "Oopsie" budget for refunds. ๐Ÿ‘Ž


    But why refund when you can just recall an email that spelled the entire client quote out - down to delivery date, set details, invoice total, and pick-up location? We're not sayin' over-communicate - but oftentimes, what we think is too much communication is actually probably the right amount of communication.


    Examples of places where we can firm up the vocabulary include:

    • ๐Ÿ—ฃ๏ธ Quoting - it's awkward to quote a price because we assume that our clients either don't know our worth or that we priced too high. That's over assumption and it's costing you cold hard cash.
    • ๐Ÿ—ฃ๏ธ Order Details - confirm, confirm, and reconfirm order details. I like to end each email with a summary of the quoted services - that way nothing is up in the air except the smell of sugar cookies in the oven. Use a "quote recap" as a templated part of your email signature to force the habit.
    • ๐Ÿ—ฃ๏ธ Refunds - I like this one. It was someone else's comment in the group that I really liked. If a client is upset, ask them what you can do to make this right. It directly acknowledges (ahem communicates) that something missed the mark, and you ask (ahem communicates) with them to find a mutual resolution.
    • ๐Ÿ—ฃ๏ธ Pretails - (made up word for pre-details) Communicate the details that may dissuade a client right off the bat. Location, minimum price, availability. Do this before you get into the quote nuances which will eat up time but won't equal money if you're out of their budget.
    • ๐Ÿ—ฃ๏ธ Threat of Viol๐Ÿ’€ence - we talked about this in another podcast, but add a communicated escape pod. "Hey - this invoice is due by Monday at 5PM, and if I don't see payment come through by then, no sweat at all! I'll assume you took your delicious desserts in another direction, and I'll release the date to another client. Consider me for future events - I'd love to work with you!"

    Communication makes the world go 'round and your bottom line go up. Snag more tips and tricks and learn which beige flags Heather and Corrie are waiving in this week's Podcast - Episode 122 - Asset Assumptions.


    121. Baking it Down - Good Fast Cheap Jul 17, 2023
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    โœŒ๏ธ Good. Fast. Cheap โœŒ๏ธ Choose Two.


    Heather - still carless - has been bumming rides, but "get a pre-purchase inspection" isn't the only lesson learned here. Her derelict car had the option to go to a shop up north or another shop down south - both highly recommended.

    • ๐Ÿ˜ Heather: "Hey [mechanic]! Was wondering if I could get my car shipped to ya! You come highly recommended, and frankly - your pricing does too."
    • ๐Ÿ˜ฌ Mechanic: "Yeah - you sure can. I'd be happy to work on your car โœจandโœจ for a fair price too! I'll be able to get started on it... uh... sometime in December."

    ๐Ÿ˜ณ๐Ÿ˜ณ๐Ÿ˜ณ Yiiiiikes. Obviously Corrie's "free rides" have a punch card limit, so the world-renown mechanic lost a sale because the man's good and cheap - but he ain't fast.

    โœŒ๏ธ Cheap and Fast (not Good)

    This is my "Panera" baker - they know that their clients are forgetful and ballin' on a budget - and they โœจthriveโœจ here. Hey, it may not win any design awards, but it'll be fast enough to make it to your party in two days and cheap enough so that you can still afford the bubbly. ๐Ÿฅ‚ These bakers work on economies of scale - they need many orders to operate at their below-market margins, but they can still produce a profit and invest less than other bakers to keep their pockets lined. ๐Ÿค‘


    โœŒ๏ธ Good and Cheap (not Fast)

    Like my macho mechanic from the intro story, good and cheap bakers are โœจbookedโœจ bakers. They'll never run out of work, but you'll likely never be able to book them either. I find that most of these bakers are true hobbyist spending time leisurely taking orders as they see fit. ๐Ÿ“† They're able to make a profit because they spend very little time and effort on marketing (an indirect cost factored into your price point).


    โœŒ๏ธ Good and Fast (not Cheap)

    This baker is likely listening to this week's podcast and reading this Onesday Wednesday newsletter. Bakers who want to make โœจmoneyโœจ need to be good and fast, but they'll not be cheap. They invest in tools to increase production - an Eddie, airbrushes, stencils, and 3D printers - and they're definitely going to pass those costs right along to the consumer. These bakers are aggressive in marketing and reinvest that in even more marketing - because each sale equals a paid-for Disney vacation.

    There are no wrong "pick twos" - but you cannot pick three without being burnt out faster than Panera sells out of those lemon-flavored flip-flops. ๐Ÿฉด Listen to this week's (rather giggly) Episode 121 - Good. Fast. Cheap.


    120. Baking it Down - Primed for Prime Day Jul 11, 2023
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    ๐Ÿ›’ Primed for Prime Day ๐Ÿ›’


    ๐Ÿ›๏ธ We may not be Bezos Billionaires, but we can learn a thing or two from the e-comm king. Jeffy has us in a headlock with his annual Prime Day Deals - and as we sit here refreshing the feed to lightning deals, ๐Ÿ•ฏ the twins wax old on both how to melt candle wax and how to implement some of the FOMO magic into our cookie businesses.


    ๐Ÿ’ณ Nine Ways to Prime Your Audience to Spend


    ๐Ÿค‘ 1. Prime Day is annual = you know it's coming!

    ๐Ÿ“ฆ Amazon Prime Day started in 2015 and has continued each year on dates in July since - it's consistent. ๐Ÿ“… And in marketing, consistency helps maintain your primed audience's expectations on how, where, and when to spend their money. In some cases, even if you're not as advanced as your competition, you can beat them simply by being consistent - it's โœจthatโœจ important.


    ๐Ÿค‘ 2. It rewards paid members with additional discounts.

    Amazon already has our money - Prime Day deals are for Prime members. So why water where the grass is already green? Because people who โœจalreadyโœจ trusted us with their money are likely to trust us with more of their money. By Prime giving Prime members exclusive deals, we feel like we're extra special - that we got something no one else did (*ahem* 300 million products were sold on Prime Day last year, but we can pretend we're super special).


    ๐Ÿค‘ 3. It incentivizes new people to join Amazon Prime.

    Speaking of exclusivity - peer pressure is real. And watching all the cookie groups post up their Prime packages makes you feel FOMO. FOMO = fear of missing out on some great (perceived) deals, so it means we're more likely to join Prime โœจduringโœจ Prime Day than any other day of the year. Prime Day is a great lead gen (generation) tool for Prime's program.


    ๐Ÿค‘ 4. It uses the seller network to advertise even more.

    Prime's use of third-party sellers means their entire network of online entrepreneurs can push this big Prime Day collection of deals. Just like Amazon, you can harness your network to cross-promote. ๐Ÿท Teaching a cookie class at a winery? Send the winery a graphic to post. ๐Ÿ‘• Use a local t-shirt printing company? Ask them to hand out your business cards.


    ๐Ÿค‘ 5. It's limited to two days.

    FOMO = back to the good ol' fear of missing out. Did you know humans are more loss averse than they are gain driven? It means we'd rather not lose what we have over getting more of what we don't. Hearing "Prime Day is ONLY July 11 - 12" keeps our fingies on the refresh button. โ˜๏ธ๐Ÿ–ฑ When you're hosting your next pre-sale, instead of thinking "more days to buy = more days to sell," think "fewer days to buy = more reason to buy more." ๐Ÿค

    Prime Day has us in a chokehold (and my credit cards aren't exempt). While we snag some lightning deals, don't forget to tune into this week's podcast Episode 120 - Primed for Prime to hear the four additional ways to Prime your Audience!


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