Tell us about your business. How long you have been in business? What is your business about?
My business, vintagefayre.co.uk is an online boutique selling vintage clothing and up-cycled furniture and textiles. I started April 2011 and have been selling online, at markets and in Red Ape.
How have you been using social media to benefit your business and which areas of business has social media been most useful?
I have mainly been using Facebook to help advertise my business, adding local people helps spread the word plus I can keep them up to date with what I am up to, special offers and advertising markets I’m attending. It is also useful with networking and finding people who can help out with your business.
How much business can you attribute to social media marketing in comparison to other forms of marketing you are using?
My customers from my website are mainly through social networking, although I have to do a bit of research on that as I have only recently started using other forms of marketing like magazine articles and vintage and handmade directories.
What problems have you come across using social media?
Using social media is always worrying as people can voice there opinions so easily. But so far I have been lucky and haven’t had any problems.
Which platform have you found the most success with for your business?
Facebook has been my immediate success as it’s quick and easy to get friends and spread the word but i’m slowly building up my Twitter and hoping that will bring me a different type of audience.
Have you found that opening your business up to social media has got you more success locally or from a wider audience?
Facebook has got me success locally and Twitter more of a wider audience. But blogging on Tumblr is getting me a lot of hits on my website from America and other countries.
How has social media changed the relationship you have with your clients?
Its getting them on a more personal level, being able to talk to them like I’m a friend rather than a big business, and that’s important to me as I’m a one man band and like people to know that.
Have you come across any misconceptions that you would like for those getting into social media marketing to understand?
You have to spend a lot of time social networking it is not just as simple as setting up an account and expecting friends/followers, you have to be constantly working at it and keeping it up to date or people will get bored.