Social Media for Local and Little Guy Retailers

A couple weeks ago during the superbowl Twitter was abuzz with the social media campaigns that big advertisers such as Pepsi opted towards rather than the traditional advertising media. And while we all know about the cool, fancy campaigns the big guys are putting on, perhaps how social media could work for the little independent retailers needs a bit of mention.

I'm pretty into biking as some of you know, and while right now I only have two bikes, I'm looking for a third as an urban commuter. No, I don't plan on becoming a too-tight jeaned, hipster who erroneously (or ignorantly) refers to my single speed bike as a "fixie", I just want an inexpensive, easy to maintain bike for urban commuting.

So a couple weeks ago when I walked by a new bike store called BikeBike just off 17th Ave and 14th street, I was pretty intrigued. If I'm not mistaken they'll be opening their doors for the first time tomorrow, but they've built quite a base for themselves already using social media such as Twitter, Facebook, and Blogspot. As a matter of fact they have 295 facebook fans, and 205 Twitter followers.

One of the greatest benefits of social media for small businesses like BikeBike is that it allows a constant flow of information between your business, and your target market. Any marketer will tell you that the dividends this pays in building customer loyalty is well worth the investment of time. More to the point, what is unique about social media is that it allows consumers to select what businesses communicate their messages to them, and that selectivity in turn enables them to be a bit more receptive to your message. When there are literally thousands of ads vying for their attention every day, them adding you to their Twitter feed is like you being invited to skip the line and to go round the side to the VIP door to the hottest club in town the night that Lady Gaga is headlining (or whatever band you like, Tegan and Sarah, The Killers, Rolling Stones, Kenny G, whatever, just not Nickelback because they shouldn't headline anywhere).

What I'm getting at is that social media can be your blockbuster ad campaign and if you're savvy with that stuff already, it won't cost you a dime. But be warned, it can be a bit tricky. My biggest piece of advice for businesses looking to use social media, can be summed in three words, consistency, consistency, consistency. If you have a blog- try to blog at least once a week, if you are on Facebook- put something up every couple days, if you're on Twitter- you should have tweeted when you started reading this, and tweeted again by this paragraph (kidding... but really). Not only do you have to be consistent in terms of quantity, but also quality. Just because you got in through the VIP entrance doesn't mean the bouncer won't kick you out of you start sending the wrong signals. Each of your posts should have some significance with regards to you or your business, they could consist of interesting articles, comments on how things are running today, local events/whats happening, etc. Even feel free to throw in the odd PG personal comment, but try to keep at least 4/5 relevant to your business somehow.

This consistency and the fluid level of two way communication between business and consumer is part of why BikeBike has done so well to garner fans and followers. They are always providing their audience with updates on their business and they've done well to ensure that their content has meaning and value, reinforcing to me why I chose to follow them in the first place.

So obviously for a good example of Social Media done right, check out their website at Bikebike.ca which has links to their Twitter feed, Facebook, and Blog. Even better yet, stop by their location when they open this week.

I'll talk a bit more about what sort of content is appropriate for social media in a subsequent post as this one's getting a little long. Social Media can be pretty daunting at first and depending on your business size could become a pretty high involvement thing. So for businesses interested in social media but that have competing priorities (you know, like running your business...), redlime marketing offers a full range of services from consulting, planning, and setting up a social media presence, to helping actively managing and monitoring that presence. If you'd like to learn more you can contact me at rafael(a)redlime.ca, Tweet me, or simply reply to this post.

Thanks for reading and I'll talk to you all next soon!

The Changing Fashion Retail Scene in Calgary

I remember a time in Calgary when girls/women went crazy about heading to West Edmonton Mall to visit the Forever XXI, when Abercrombie was a foreign retailer, and Coach was Holt Renfrew only. Well all that is changing now as more retailers are setting up shop in a city where big names were once scarce.

A lot of big US retailers are now popping up in Calgary's newly reno'd malls such as Southcentre, Chinook, and Market Mall. This of couse is in response to the opportunity offered by Calgary's young, dynamic population, and the level of disposable income the city's oil industry affords.

But with all the big names popping up in the usual destionations I'd like to bring a bit more attention to an awesome new locale that young fashionistas who don't come into the core often may be overlooking. I walk by Fashion Central every day and have been watching it progress into a very chic, very cool destination that should soon be an anchor in the Calgary fashion scene with a more unique and indepedent style than any of the traditional destinations have to offer. With seven street-front shops including Murale and Betsey Johnsony, and eighteen interior units fronting on an internal sky-lit atrium, its looking very promising. The project will include both recognized designer brand stores not typically found in shopping centres, and local and Canadian fashion designer boutiques.

Located on the corner of Stephen Avenue and First Street SW, Fashion Central replaces what used to be a corner with nothing but a dodgy Subway and a hole in the wall (literally) Bratwurst kiosk. It takes more than a little bit of vision and savvy to turn that into what it is today and you can now visit a Deville for a rich cafe just a few feet down from where the Subway used to be. That vision is to the credit of Encorp Inc, the company also responsible for another great concept, Art Central just a couple blocks away.

I've got to say, as a Calgarian I love developments like this because I really believe it inspires culture in the city and brings people into the core for reasons besides earning a paycheck from the man. Its great for the city and it creates a more vibrant community, especially as more people migrate to downtown living. I encourage everyone to check it out as more stores open over the next few months.