Part I : The Step-by-Step Behind My FIRST Networking Plan

I’ve been in love with marketing for a long time- doing it behind the scenes for my former business through analytics, newsletters, sales + product launches, social media & more.  But here’s the thing: now that I’m transitioning from running an art workshop company to a marketing company… no one knows that.

So, how do I create awareness?  I'm going to get super vulnerable here (because this is untested on my end) & share the first strategy I'm putting into action this week.  Then I’ll post the results, what I learned & what I’ll do differently next time in Part II, going live on December 5th.

The Plan: I'm going to give away 10 FREE PHOTOSHOOTS to a combination of businesses I know through my art workshop companies, favorite local spaces that I believe in or enjoy with friends/family or spots that have a solid social media following but could benefit from fresh polished Fall photos.  Here’s why I'm doing this for FREE:

• I need to build a relationship with more people in my target market & community.
• I have to showcase my work + create word-of-mouth potential.
• This will help me create portfolio content & social proof.
• It will open the door for referrals or paid work later.

Though the shoot is free, this is what I'm going to ask for from each participant:

• Accept 1–2 collaboration post invites on Instagram, with copy done in a casual, non-salesy way like “Had an awesome time shooting…” or “Loved the vibe at…”
• Tag or credit @curateandco_marketing on Instagram, or Curate & Co. on Facebook when sharing any photos from our session.
• Allow me to leave a few postcards or business cards in their space.

My ultimate goals from doing this:

• Expand my social media following through collaboration posts & consistent tagging.
• Network in a marketing capacity,  & clearly separate how my work is perceived from my former art workshop business.
• Gain hands-on experience- from engagement to shooting to post-production- by working with multiple local small businesses.
• Build a strong content library & marketing portfolio for my business.
• Grow my client base by FOUR through demonstrating my abilities with these 10 companies, & resulting word-of-mouth referrals.

The Step-by-Step Process:

1. Do the research.  I know many of these businesses, either through collaboration, being a customer or a local fan of their work, BUT I need to step out of that for a minute to analyze their feed so, even though this is a FREE offer, it feels personalized & exciting, like it will BENEFIT them to give me an hour of time.
   
   
2. Craft the pitch.  Write a crystal clear email that includes who you are (& how you know them), what you're offering & what you need to do it.  This shouldn't be long, maybe 3 paragraphs that are a couple sentences each with an invite to text/respond at the end. 
   *TRY THIS* Something I like to do with sales emails is preschedule them to be top of the pile when people clock in for work.  Regardless of when I write messages inviting someone to utilize my service, they're scheduled for Monday through Thursday at 8am.
   
   
3. Craft the follow-up.  Going into this, I don't expect to hear back from everyone.  Small business owners are BUSY, some that I don't know well might think this is a freemium type scam, others might just plain forget.  It's MY JOB to follow up & do so in a genuine thoughtful way, ideally two to seven days after the first message.
   
   
4. Once responses start coming in, I’ll create a specific shoot list & content plan tailored to each business that agrees.  This means thinking through what types of photos will highlight their brand, what stories or experiences would be most beneficial to showcase & how to make the content feel authentic to their audience.  By planning in advance, I'll be able to ensure each session delivers amazing content.  PLUS, on the flip side, I can use all of the aforementioned planning, process, shoots & edited images in my own marketing.

Want to try a similar approach with your small business?  Share what you’re offering, your plan/idea, or just drop your Instagram handle below - I can’t wait to see how you put the above process to work!