How to Help Your Business Shine Through Social Media
Social media marketing and content creation can be a challenge for many business owners. That’s why CEO and Instagram Strategist Natasha Samuel started her consulting business, Shine With Natasha. She shared with us some of her top tips for making your business’s social media really shine, and everything starts with custom gear.
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Wearing branded company gear can really make you and your team look like pros. “It helps my community and team feel even more connected with my brand,” says Natasha. “It’s also great for using in content and shoots to automatically add a branded element.”
She says it’s important to make sure that you look at your custom gear needs holistically. “Think of what your community, team, and yourself would LOVE to wear every single day. We all have that shirt or sweater we can’t wait to get out of the wash.” Both style and quality are important factors. “Focus on the comfort and versatility in your design so it becomes a staple,” says Natasha. This is why she chose Bella + Canvas to create her custom t-shirts. “I knew the Bella + Canvas brand would offer a high quality, soft, and comfortable piece of clothing that would be perfect for work from home or filming video content.”Natasha also knows how important it is to have a great custom design. That’s why she had her team’s designer, Fabiana, create the Keep Shining illustration by hand. The warmth of a hand-drawn font works well with Natasha’s brand as does the sunny yellow color which permeates her Instagram feed and the rest of her online presence. She chose black shirts because of the versatility and the fact that it would help make the colors pop.
Natasha in her custom Bella + Canvas Women’s Tri-Blend T-shirt. Photo courtesy: Natasha Samuel
If you don’t have a designer on staff, don’t worry! Custom Ink has artists ready to provide custom design services as well as an easy-to-use Design Lab where you can design it yourself.
It’s been three years since Natasha started her own business, and she’s just getting started. As she wrote on her Instagram, “I love to harp on the naive version of me that started my business in my college apartment, broke as can be right after my 21st birthday with the simple desire to live life on my own terms, help people, and truly have fun creating. I had no clue how hard it’d be—and wow has that vision evolved and grown bigger than I could’ve ever imagined.”
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Learning about how to successfully brand a business while studying Mass Communications at the University of South Florida, Natasha discovered that her true passion was helping others succeed. She told us, “In my last semester of college, I noticed that so many business owners struggle to feel confident showing up on social media, and others can’t find the time to consistently create content. It became my mission to help small business owners shine on Instagram through a video strategy that is fulfilling and fun without the overwhelm.” Around the same time, her long-term internship ended. Instead of looking for another job, Natasha decided that she would take advantage of the opportunity and start her own consulting business.
Thus, Shine With Natasha was born. She now has a staff of three, and her company has a podcast, offers training courses, digital resources, free downloads, and more all set to help businesses market themselves better. They also offer resources to their followers on Instagram.
Natasha in her custom Bella + Canvas Women’s Drop Shoulder Cropped Crewneck Sweatshirt. Photo courtesy: Natasha Samuel
One of our favorite posts, titled “4 IDEAS FOR A MEMORABLE BRAND EXPERIENCE,” gives followers tips on how to create a great Instagram account. Her first recommendation is to send gifts and goody bags to clients. Sending giveaways like notebooks and pens can leave a lasting impression, make customers feel special, and may even prompt them to share a photo on social media and tag you. Adding your logo can be a great way to get your brand out there in an authentic way. Her second suggestion is to create custom t-shirts or sweatshirts for your team and fans. Third, brand your digital events with a custom design or “story template.” Natasha writes, “Whether it’s for a live webinar or a course enrollment period, creating a fill-in template for your followers to share on Stories is an interactive experience.” And last, recognize your clients and customers. If you “shout them out” they’ll feel like you appreciate them and they will be more likely to return the favor. Check out Natasha’s Instagram account for more great ideas like these.
Having a strong social media presence takes work, but if you’re strategic and authentic about how you engage your current and potential customers, you can really boost your business. Custom gear is a great place to start.
Miellyn is the Director of Marketing Content at Custom Ink. Her work has spanned marketing for television networks like TLC and Travel, educational content for Smithsonian and National Geographic, marketing and story for indie video games, essays for publishers including Random House, The Telegraph, and Smart Pop Books, and stories for press outlets like VICE and VH1.
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