Have you gotten emails from influencers
asking for free products from your shop?
Could it be a scam?
Sending influencers your products that took you
hours to make
for the promise of “exposure”?
It's not always a scam, and the right opportunities
could take your business to the next level.
Let's find out how to tell if an opportunity
is worth pursuing or not.
So keep watching.
Hi, my name is Mei, and I help makers, artists,
and designers make a living
from selling their handmade products online.
If you’re new to my channel, welcome.
If you didn't know,
I run a handmade jewelry shop called Tiny Hands Jewelry
that I started in 2006,
and I've done a lot of outreach and
pitching my products to major publications,
and I have gotten into some major ones like
In-Touch magazine,
Everyday With Rachael Ray,
Girls’ Life magazine,
and a whole lot more.
These have totally transformed my business
and got me to making multiple
six figures in sales every year.
I wouldn't be where I am today without those mentions.
So yes, it is possible that exposure
can help your shop like it did for mine.
I say this because I see a lot of
skeptical shop owners
who are too quick to turn away any
and all opportunities for exposure.
I get it.
It's a risk.
You're sending your products away for free
with no promise or guarantee
anything’s going to come out of it,
But it's also not always a scam,
and I hate for you to miss out on
a really amazing opportunity
that could change your business.
So we'll talk more about how to decide
if something's worth pursuing or not.
But I also don't want you to think that
you should just jump on any opportunity.
Let me tell you a story.
A few years ago,
I was contacted by a major online retailer
saying they were interested in my products.
I was so excited because
it would be huge
for me to sell under their brand
that I was already a fan of
before they even ever reached out to me.
I not only be making a lot of money
from the wholesale order,
but also getting introduced to a whole new customer base.
But there was a catch:
they would only purchase my products at a price
far below my normal wholesale price.
Of course, I was really anxious about it
because accepting it would mean
putting in long hours
to make a huge bulk order
where they wanted
hundreds of my necklaces for basically
no profit.
And the retailer tried to convince me
that the exposure would be worth it
and that they'd be placing more orders
if my products sold well,
but they wanted to buy my products at a cheaper price
because they didn't think they could charge.
my regular prices to their customers.
So, while it broke my heart, I
turned the offer down,
and let me tell you why.
First fulfilling the order
while basically earning nothing would
take time away from my normal business,
which is important to note.
Because the time I spent there is
actually a lot more profitable.
Second, I thought about the customer path.
Would their readers, or their audience that came to this retailer
and looked at my product listing
really say,
"Oh, let me see who makes this necklace,
and google them to see if
they make anything else cool?"
No, they probably wouldn't.
It was probably very unlikely,
because they weren't my ideal customers.
So it wasn't worth it.
Now, this situation is totally different from say,
a magazine
requesting a free sample to feature
in an editorial.
Sure, it costs a bit of money
to make and send the product,
but it is a manageable expense,
and the product is featured in a way that
does drive customers to your own shop.
So what are some things you should consider
when deciding whether the exposure is worth going for?
First ask yourself if the opportunity will reach your ideal customers.
Getting eyeballs on your products
can seem appealing,
but if it's not the right people
who are good for your products,
there's no point how large
their audience is.
It's just not going to translate into much of anything.
And if you're not sure,
just head on over to any of their
social media platforms they own
and check out who they're getting comments from.
Then look at those people's profiles
to get a sense for who they are.
This research is key in your decision,
so don't skip this step.
Second, does the opportunity
cost you a lot to fulfill?
If satisfying the request
puts you in a lot of debt
or cripples you in some other way,
it's maybe not worth the risk.
Having said that
I've definitely been in positions where I've accepted
Net 30 Terms for wholesale orders
to large reputable companies,
Net 30 Terms means that
you don't get paid
until 30 days from when they receive their invoice.
Now, I was able to do this because
the cost to make my jewelry
isn't really that much,
so it wasn't a huge risk for me,
plus knowing they’re a large brand
that I was dealing with,
was a risk I was willing to take
for the potential benefits.
Now while I've definitely had to chase down
some of these retailers for their payment,
I've never actually had anyone NOT pay me.
But again, I wouldn't do Net 30 Terms
for a smaller lesser known retailer,
and definitely not
for anyone who's just starting out,
which I've definitely gotten
those requests from.
Next, does the request seem legit?
Does it look like the person runs
a successful blog with great content
and a strong, engaged following?
Or is it someone with very few followers
just looking to score some free product?
You know, use your judgment.
A good tell if it's not a good fit
is if the blogger or influencer
doesn't have a clear niche of their own
and they're just posting
about food recipes one day
and then sports on another day
and then teeth whitening products on another.
Also. if you see that they always post
about deals and discounts,
it's probably not a good fit either
because they've got an audience
that's only attracted to products on sale,
and we don't necessarily want to
cheapen your brand
by associating with that.
And if the email request is
completely unpersonalized
and looks like it could have been
sent to a hundred other shop owners,
I would probably just delete it.
The majority of the time
when someone reaches out to you
to feature you,
it's not likely they're a good fit,
but we've seen that the
influencers worth working with
are the ones that you
have to reach out to.
Now obviously that's not always the case,
but just the pattern that I've seen.
And if you're interested in learning how
to initiate and do the outreach yourself,
I've got a free workshop in the description that will show you how.
Another thing to look out for
is does the customer base or following
seem engaged?
It's important to not rule
out an opportunity just because
the requester only has a
small number of followers, okay?
So read through their previous posts,
look at their comments,
because someone with 500
highly engaged followers
who buys everything they recommend,
can be far more valuable than someone
with tens of thousands of followers
who are only looking at pretty photos,
but then never buying anything.
And does the opportunity help build a relationship?
Maybe you get a request for a magazine
that doesn't feel like a perfect fit.
Keep in mind that if you
turn down the request,
the editor may make a mental note
that you're not an easy person to go to
and may not come to you again for future requests.
So it may be worth fulfilling the request
just to keep that relationship open
because many editors are freelancers
and work for different magazines.
So they may be someone who can help you later down the road.
For example, I
had a customer the other day
who wanted her order expedited,
and we were kind of in a spot
where it wasn't easy to fulfill that.
However, when I saw the address
for where the order was going to,
which was a film set,
and upon further research.
I find out this customer is a
wardrobe stylist for TV shows.
I was like, all right,
all hands on deck.
We're going to do whatever it takes
to get this jewelry over to her ASAP,
even if the show wasn't necessarily one, that would attract my ideal customers.
Have you received an exposure opportunity that you weren't sure was worth it?
I want you to tell me about it.
Tell me in the comments.