🧠 T-O-M-A 🧠🍅 Thought I typoed "tomato" didn't ya? I wouldn't put it past me at this point. But alas - no. It's an acronym this time."What other weird acronym are the twins talkin' about today?!" 🗣️ Yeah - agreed, but this marketing jargon may make you sales without selling! ⬆️🧠 T-O-M-A: Top of Mind Awareness. Think of "TOMA" marketing as a way to stay in front of a client without directly saying "hey - yo, yeah you - don't forget to buy from me." If a client only needs to place an order with you once a year when it's Mother's Day or when their kid as a birthday, pummeling them will sales post does not for the ideal experience make. 🤔 "But how can I sell to people if they're annoyed by my selling to people?" Great question, Mr. Miagi. Let's brainstorm some of the best ways to sell without selling using the T-O-M-A method. ⬆️ CRM Programs - man, hittin' ya with the double acronyms this week. CRM programs are "customer relationship management" applications that handle a lot of "TOMA" for you. 👥 Use these programs to remind you to email folks on their birthday, touch base with clients who order on specific holidays, or follow up with clients who place orders 4 months in advanced. CRMs, if utilized correctly, can single-handedly fill your pipeline by harnessing the power of T-O-M-A.⬆️ Newsletter / Email List - harness the power of newsletters by staying top of mind (using some of the tips below). 📬 Email is awesome at keeping clients in the roster if you do it right. Finding a newsletter platform is key here. Mailchimp, Flodesk, Sendgrid, ConstantContact - all viable options (don't use your Gmail though - you'll get burned in deliverability). ⬆️ Facebook Ads from Email Lists - "YIKES" is what many folks think when we drop the Ads Manager keyword. But the "dollar a day" adspend budget means you stay in front of clients by staying in their newsfeeds. ️🎯 Targeting "people who like your page" can mean you're keeping an eye on (well, they're keeping an eye on) your clients all year around for just $30/mo. ⬆️ Charity Donations - "Strategic Giving" is a great way to build good karma while also staying in the minds (and hopefully hearts) of your target audience. 🎁 Donating cookies for a cause or a class ticket to a raffle can help market you while also giving you some feel-good content for your socials. ⬆️ Content Cookies - flex without selling (and brush up on new skills) with content cookies! Content cookies are cookies made for content for your socials. 📸 Often I see Corrie make just one or two cookies for this. It makes for cute photos, shows off your capabilities, and it's not selling since you're likely not even baking these cookies for the marketplace. ⬆️ Pop-Bys / Main Street Marketing⬆️ Resource / Informative Touch Point👂 Snag this podcast and hear the breakdown on the last two T-O-M-A ideas on any major podcast player (Spotify, Apple Music, Audible, Amazon Music, or your desktop) by clickin' here - Episode 124 - TOMA.

<h1>🧠 T-O-M-A 🧠</h1> 🍅 Thought I typoed "tomato" didn't ya? I wouldn't put it past me at this point. But alas - no. It's an acronym this time."What other weird acronym are the twins talkin' about today?!" 🗣️ Yeah - agreed, but this marketing jargon may make you sales without selling! ⬆️🧠 T-O-M-A: Top of Mind Awareness. Think of "TOMA" marketing as a way to stay in front of a client without directly saying "hey - yo, yeah you - don't forget to buy from me." If a client only needs to place an order with you once a year when it's Mother's Day or when their kid as a birthday, pummeling them will sales post does not for the ideal experience make. 🤔 "But how can I sell to people if they're annoyed by my selling to people?" Great question, Mr. Miagi. Let's brainstorm some of the best ways to sell without selling using the T-O-M-A method. <ul><li>⬆️ CRM Programs - man, hittin' ya with the double acronyms this week. CRM programs are "customer relationship management" applications that handle a lot of "TOMA" for you. 👥 Use these programs to remind you to email folks on their birthday, touch base with clients who order on specific holidays, or follow up with clients who place orders 4 months in advanced. CRMs, if utilized correctly, can single-handedly fill your pipeline by harnessing the power of T-O-M-A.</li><li>⬆️ Newsletter / Email List - harness the power of newsletters by staying top of mind (using some of the tips below). 📬 Email is awesome at keeping clients in the roster if you do it right. Finding a newsletter platform is key here. Mailchimp, Flodesk, Sendgrid, ConstantContact - all viable options (don't use your Gmail though - you'll get burned in deliverability). </li><li>⬆️ Facebook Ads from Email Lists - "YIKES" is what many folks think when we drop the Ads Manager keyword. But the "dollar a day" adspend budget means you stay in front of clients by staying in their newsfeeds. ️🎯 Targeting "people who like your page" can mean you're keeping an eye on (well, they're keeping an eye on) your clients all year around for just $30/mo. </li><li>⬆️ Charity Donations - "Strategic Giving" is a great way to build good karma while also staying in the minds (and hopefully hearts) of your target audience. 🎁 Donating cookies for a cause or a class ticket to a raffle can help market you while also giving you some feel-good content for your socials. </li><li>⬆️ Content Cookies - flex without selling (and brush up on new skills) with content cookies! Content cookies are cookies made for content for your socials. 📸 Often I see Corrie make just one or two cookies for this. It makes for cute photos, shows off your capabilities, and it's not selling since you're likely not even baking these cookies for the marketplace. </li><li>⬆️ Pop-Bys / Main Street Marketing</li><li>⬆️ Resource / Informative Touch Point</li></ul> 👂 Snag this podcast and hear the breakdown on the last two T-O-M-A ideas on any major podcast player (Spotify, Apple Music, Audible, Amazon Music, or your desktop) by clickin' here - Episode 124 - TOMA.

124. Baking it Down - TOMA

🪙 The Gold Ratio 🪙I know some of you are screaming at your computer screen right now sayin' "IT'S GOLDEN RATIO!" But hold up, now ya hear! It's a play on words (but trust that 99.9% of other times it's a typo - but this time it isn't... surprisingly). In marketing, it's easy to fall prey to numbers. Numerical evaluations are THROWN at us daily. Just consider all the math problems we see as marketers turned business owners turned back into marketers. 🧮 Followers on Instagram🧮 Reach on Facebook🧮 Comments on Group Threads🧮 Open Rates on Emails🧮 Class Tickets Sold on Eventbrite Hey - I thought we promised ourselves we'd never take a math class again, right?! 😳 Well = welcome, class is in session, get your bottom in a seat like your bottom line depends on it, because it does. But not in the way you think it does. I'd be lying if I didn't say math wasn't important in business. It is. I live and die by my spreadsheets (which are essentially my digital children at this point). Math lets us predict, decide, and determine which direction we need to head towards. But addition and subtraction (outside of the business bank account) ain't the move. ️🥁 We want... drum roll... ratios 😱*screams in Algebra 2*Ratios are comparisons. One number, related to another number, knocked up against each other to give us a percentage. The numbers we're comparing? ️️Us today ️🥊 vs. 🥊 Us yesterday. You see - comparing how many followers a baker-influencer has to your hyper-local bakery in rural America ain't doin' your mental state any favors. And it's not a good barometer for effective marketing progress either. But you know what is?  ️🎯 You today compared to how many accounts you were reaching in your target local audience this time last year. So - here are other "gold" ratios (still destroyin' some of ya with that play on words, huh?) 😂Engagement Ratio - how much engagement in relation to your total follower count are you getting per post? If you had 20 followers and got 20 comments, you'd have a 100% engagement rate (and 1:1 ratio). Class Seating Ratio - we only can seat 10. If I sell 9 seats, my 9:10 ratio means my class is at 90% capacity. If someone is teaching a class to 20 seats and sells 9 tickets, their ratio is 45% even though we sold the same number of tickets 😳 comparison truly is the thief of joy (except when we compare ourselves to ourselves).Presale Ratio - presales work on made-up numbers (or how many Miss Cookie Packaging boxes you ordered). "I sold out!" can literally mean anything. In fact, folks be "selling out" and then selling 10 more FOMO orders. It's relative.  Booked Ratio - same with the "I'm BOOKED" posts. Booked in relation to...? See - it's relative. It's a ratio. If they were only going to take 5 orders this month, and took 5 orders - they have a 100% booked ratio. If you were going to take 30 orders and took 20, you'd only be 66% booked.Click Through Rates - emails just like this one are relative too. The last week's Onesday Wednesday was sent to 3,834 emails and 1,971 of you opened it (for the free transfers, I know, but I can pretend otherwise). That's a 51% open rate. Profit Ratio - probably the most important one to a business owner - let's knock up our profit % against last years'. Are we increasing our profits by decreasing costs, increasing efficiencies, and increasing price through added value? Yes? YOU'RE DOING GOOD THEN. 

<h1>🪙 The Gold Ratio 🪙</h1>I know some of you are screaming at your computer screen right now sayin' "IT'S GOLDEN RATIO!" But hold up, now ya hear! It's a play on words (but trust that 99.9% of other times it's a typo - but this time it isn't... surprisingly). In marketing, it's easy to fall prey to numbers. Numerical evaluations are THROWN at us daily. Just consider all the math problems we see as marketers turned business owners turned back into marketers. <ul><li>🧮 Followers on Instagram</li><li>🧮 Reach on Facebook</li><li>🧮 Comments on Group Threads</li><li>🧮 Open Rates on Emails</li><li>🧮 Class Tickets Sold on Eventbrite </li></ul>Hey - I thought we promised ourselves we'd never take a math class again, right?! 😳 Well = welcome, class is in session, get your bottom in a seat like your bottom line depends on it, because it does. But not in the way you think it does.  I'd be lying if I didn't say math wasn't important in business. It is. I live and die by my spreadsheets (which are essentially my digital children at this point). Math lets us predict, decide, and determine which direction we need to head towards. But addition and subtraction (outside of the business bank account) ain't the move. ️🥁 We want... drum roll... ratios 😱*screams in Algebra 2*Ratios are comparisons. One number, related to another number, knocked up against each other to give us a percentage. The numbers we're comparing? ️️Us today ️🥊 vs. 🥊 Us yesterday. You see - comparing how many followers a baker-influencer has to your hyper-local bakery in rural America ain't doin' your mental state any favors. And it's not a good barometer for effective marketing progress either. But you know what is?  ️🎯 You today compared to how many accounts you were reaching in your target local audience this time last year. So - here are other "gold" ratios (still destroyin' some of ya with that play on words, huh?) 😂<ul><li>Engagement Ratio - how much engagement in relation to your total follower count are you getting per post? If you had 20 followers and got 20 comments, you'd have a 100% engagement rate (and 1:1 ratio). </li><li>Class Seating Ratio - we only can seat 10. If I sell 9 seats, my 9:10 ratio means my class is at 90% capacity. If someone is teaching a class to 20 seats and sells 9 tickets, their ratio is 45% even though we sold the same number of tickets 😳 comparison truly is the thief of joy (except when we compare ourselves to ourselves).</li><li>Presale Ratio - presales work on made-up numbers (or how many Miss Cookie Packaging boxes you ordered). "I sold out!" can literally mean anything. In fact, folks be "selling out" and then selling 10 more FOMO orders. It's relative.  </li><li>Booked Ratio - same with the "I'm BOOKED" posts. Booked in relation to...? See - it's relative. It's a ratio. If they were only going to take 5 orders this month, and took 5 orders - they have a 100% booked ratio. If you were going to take 30 orders and took 20, you'd only be 66% booked.</li><li>Click Through Rates - emails just like this one are relative too. The last week's Onesday Wednesday was sent to 3,834 emails and 1,971 of you opened it (for the free transfers, I know, but I can pretend otherwise). That's a 51% open rate. </li><li>Profit Ratio - probably the most important one to a business owner - let's knock up our profit % against last years'. Are we increasing our profits by decreasing costs, increasing efficiencies, and increasing price through added value? Yes? YOU'RE DOING GOOD THEN. </li></ul>

123. Baking it Down - The Gold Ratio

💲 Asset Assumption 💲"A$$uming makes a butt outta you and me" - words have been changed to protect the innocent, but the stance stands true. Assuming client expectations rather than communicating them steals your business a$$ets and leaves you with an empty bank account and an angry customer. But I get it - communication is hard, we're busy, the clients are vague, there's more dough than hours in a day. But assuming our clients ✨should just know✨ is leaving a lot up to interpretation - and that includes our profit margin. 👍 Rule of thumb - if you don't communicate effectively, you better have a well-funded "Oopsie" budget for refunds. 👎But why refund when you can just recall an email that spelled the entire client quote out - down to delivery date, set details, invoice total, and pick-up location? We're not sayin' over-communicate - but oftentimes, what we think is too much communication is actually probably the right amount of communication. Examples of places where we can firm up the vocabulary include:🗣️ Quoting - it's awkward to quote a price because we assume that our clients either don't know our worth or that we priced too high. That's over assumption and it's costing you cold hard cash.🗣️ Order Details - confirm, confirm, and reconfirm order details. I like to end each email with a summary of the quoted services - that way nothing is up in the air except the smell of sugar cookies in the oven. Use a "quote recap" as a templated part of your email signature to force the habit. 🗣️ Refunds - I like this one. It was someone else's comment in the group that I really liked. If a client is upset, ask them what you can do to make this right. It directly acknowledges (ahem communicates) that something missed the mark, and you ask (ahem communicates) with them to find a mutual resolution. 🗣️ Pretails - (made up word for pre-details) Communicate the details that may dissuade a client right off the bat. Location, minimum price, availability. Do this before you get into the quote nuances which will eat up time but won't equal money if you're out of their budget. 🗣️ Threat of Viol💀ence - we talked about this in another podcast, but add a communicated escape pod. "Hey - this invoice is due by Monday at 5PM, and if I don't see payment come through by then, no sweat at all! I'll assume you took your delicious desserts in another direction, and I'll release the date to another client. Consider me for future events - I'd love to work with you!"Communication makes the world go 'round and your bottom line go up. Snag more tips and tricks and learn which beige flags Heather and Corrie are waiving in this week's Podcast - Episode 122 - Asset Assumptions. 

<h1>💲 Asset Assumption 💲</h1> "A$$uming makes a butt outta you and me" - words have been changed to protect the innocent, but the stance stands true. Assuming client expectations rather than communicating them steals your business a$$ets and leaves you with an empty bank account and an angry customer.  But I get it - communication is hard, we're busy, the clients are vague, there's more dough than hours in a day. But assuming our clients ✨should just know✨ is leaving a lot up to interpretation - and that includes our profit margin.  👍 Rule of thumb - if you don't communicate effectively, you better have a well-funded "Oopsie" budget for refunds. 👎 But why refund when you can just recall an email that spelled the entire client quote out - down to delivery date, set details, invoice total, and pick-up location? We're not sayin' over-communicate - but oftentimes, what we think is too much communication is actually probably the right amount of communication.  Examples of places where we can firm up the vocabulary include:<ul><li>🗣️ Quoting - it's awkward to quote a price because we assume that our clients either don't know our worth or that we priced too high. That's over assumption and it's costing you cold hard cash.</li><li>🗣️ Order Details - confirm, confirm, and reconfirm order details. I like to end each email with a summary of the quoted services - that way nothing is up in the air except the smell of sugar cookies in the oven. Use a "quote recap" as a templated part of your email signature to force the habit. </li><li>🗣️ Refunds - I like this one. It was someone else's comment in the group that I really liked. If a client is upset, ask them what you can do to make this right. It directly acknowledges (ahem communicates) that something missed the mark, and you ask (ahem communicates) with them to find a mutual resolution. </li><li>🗣️ Pretails - (made up word for pre-details) Communicate the details that may dissuade a client right off the bat. Location, minimum price, availability. Do this before you get into the quote nuances which will eat up time but won't equal money if you're out of their budget. </li><li>🗣️ Threat of Viol💀ence - we talked about this in another podcast, but add a communicated escape pod. "Hey - this invoice is due by Monday at 5PM, and if I don't see payment come through by then, no sweat at all! I'll assume you took your delicious desserts in another direction, and I'll release the date to another client. Consider me for future events - I'd love to work with you!"</li></ul>Communication makes the world go 'round and your bottom line go up. Snag more tips and tricks and learn which beige flags Heather and Corrie are waiving in this week's Podcast - Episode 122 - Asset Assumptions.

122. Baking it Down - A$$et A$$umptions

✌️ Good. Fast. Cheap ✌️ Choose Two.Heather - still carless - has been bumming rides, but "get a pre-purchase inspection" isn't the only lesson learned here. Her derelict car had the option to go to a shop up north or another shop down south - both highly recommended.😍 Heather: "Hey [mechanic]! Was wondering if I could get my car shipped to ya! You come highly recommended, and frankly - your pricing does too."😬 Mechanic: "Yeah - you sure can. I'd be happy to work on your car ✨and✨ for a fair price too! I'll be able to get started on it... uh... sometime in December." 😳😳😳 Yiiiiikes. Obviously Corrie's "free rides" have a punch card limit, so the world-renown mechanic lost a sale because the man's good and cheap - but he ain't fast. ✌️ Cheap and Fast (not Good) This is my "Panera" baker - they know that their clients are forgetful and ballin' on a budget - and they ✨thrive✨ here. Hey, it may not win any design awards, but it'll be fast enough to make it to your party in two days and cheap enough so that you can still afford the bubbly. 🥂 These bakers work on economies of scale - they need many orders to operate at their below-market margins, but they can still produce a profit and invest less than other bakers to keep their pockets lined. 🤑✌️ Good and Cheap (not Fast)Like my macho mechanic from the intro story, good and cheap bakers are ✨booked✨ bakers. They'll never run out of work, but you'll likely never be able to book them either. I find that most of these bakers are true hobbyist spending time leisurely taking orders as they see fit. 📆 They're able to make a profit because they spend very little time and effort on marketing (an indirect cost factored into your price point). ✌️ Good and Fast (not Cheap) This baker is likely listening to this week's podcast and reading this Onesday Wednesday newsletter. Bakers who want to make ✨money✨ need to be good and fast, but they'll not be cheap. They invest in tools to increase production - an Eddie, airbrushes, stencils, and 3D printers - and they're definitely going to pass those costs right along to the consumer. These bakers are aggressive in marketing and reinvest that in even more marketing - because each sale equals a paid-for Disney vacation.There are no wrong "pick twos" - but you cannot pick three without being burnt out faster than Panera sells out of those lemon-flavored flip-flops. 🩴 Listen to this week's (rather giggly) Episode 121 - Good. Fast. Cheap.

<h1>✌️ Good. Fast. Cheap ✌️ Choose Two.</h1> Heather - still carless - has been bumming rides, but "get a pre-purchase inspection" isn't the only lesson learned here. Her derelict car had the option to go to a shop up north or another shop down south - both highly recommended.<ul><li>😍 Heather: "Hey [mechanic]! Was wondering if I could get my car shipped to ya! You come highly recommended, and frankly - your pricing does too."</li><li>😬 Mechanic: "Yeah - you sure can. I'd be happy to work on your car ✨and✨ for a fair price too! I'll be able to get started on it... uh... sometime in December." </li></ul>😳😳😳 Yiiiiikes. Obviously Corrie's "free rides" have a punch card limit, so the world-renown mechanic lost a sale because the man's good and cheap - but he ain't fast.  ✌️ Cheap and Fast (not Good) This is my "Panera" baker - they know that their clients are forgetful and ballin' on a budget - and they ✨thrive✨ here. Hey, it may not win any design awards, but it'll be fast enough to make it to your party in two days and cheap enough so that you can still afford the bubbly. 🥂 These bakers work on economies of scale - they need many orders to operate at their below-market margins, but they can still produce a profit and invest less than other bakers to keep their pockets lined. 🤑 ✌️ Good and Cheap (not Fast)Like my macho mechanic from the intro story, good and cheap bakers are ✨booked✨ bakers. They'll never run out of work, but you'll likely never be able to book them either. I find that most of these bakers are true hobbyist spending time leisurely taking orders as they see fit. 📆 They're able to make a profit because they spend very little time and effort on marketing (an indirect cost factored into your price point).  ✌️ Good and Fast (not Cheap) This baker is likely listening to this week's podcast and reading this Onesday Wednesday newsletter. Bakers who want to make ✨money✨ need to be good and fast, but they'll not be cheap. They invest in tools to increase production - an Eddie, airbrushes, stencils, and 3D printers - and they're definitely going to pass those costs right along to the consumer. These bakers are aggressive in marketing and reinvest that in even more marketing - because each sale equals a paid-for Disney vacation.There are no wrong "pick twos" - but you cannot pick three without being burnt out faster than Panera sells out of those lemon-flavored flip-flops. 🩴 Listen to this week's (rather giggly) Episode 121 - Good. Fast. Cheap.

121. Baking it Down - Good Fast Cheap

🛒 Primed for Prime Day 🛒🛍️ We may not be Bezos Billionaires, but we can learn a thing or two from the e-comm king. Jeffy has us in a headlock with his annual Prime Day Deals - and as we sit here refreshing the feed to lightning deals, 🕯 the twins wax old on both how to melt candle wax and how to implement some of the FOMO magic into our cookie businesses.💳 Nine Ways to Prime Your Audience to Spend🤑 1. Prime Day is annual = you know it's coming! 📦 Amazon Prime Day started in 2015 and has continued each year on dates in July since - it's consistent. 📅 And in marketing, consistency helps maintain your primed audience's expectations on how, where, and when to spend their money. In some cases, even if you're not as advanced as your competition, you can beat them simply by being consistent - it's ✨that✨ important. 🤑 2. It rewards paid members with additional discounts.Amazon already has our money - Prime Day deals are for Prime members. So why water where the grass is already green? Because people who ✨already✨ trusted us with their money are likely to trust us with more of their money. By Prime giving Prime members exclusive deals, we feel like we're extra special - that we got something no one else did (*ahem* 300 million products were sold on Prime Day last year, but we can pretend we're super special). 🤑 3. It incentivizes new people to join Amazon Prime.Speaking of exclusivity - peer pressure is real. And watching all the cookie groups post up their Prime packages makes you feel FOMO. FOMO = fear of missing out on some great (perceived) deals, so it means we're more likely to join Prime ✨during✨ Prime Day than any other day of the year. Prime Day is a great lead gen (generation) tool for Prime's program. 🤑 4. It uses the seller network to advertise even more.Prime's use of third-party sellers means their entire network of online entrepreneurs can push this big Prime Day collection of deals. Just like Amazon, you can harness your network to cross-promote. 🍷 Teaching a cookie class at a winery? Send the winery a graphic to post. 👕 Use a local t-shirt printing company? Ask them to hand out your business cards. 🤑 5. It's limited to two days.FOMO = back to the good ol' fear of missing out. Did you know humans are more loss averse than they are gain driven? It means we'd rather not lose what we have over getting more of what we don't. Hearing "Prime Day is ONLY July 11 - 12" keeps our fingies on the refresh button. ☝️🖱 When you're hosting your next pre-sale, instead of thinking "more days to buy = more days to sell," think "fewer days to buy = more reason to buy more." 🤏Prime Day has us in a chokehold (and my credit cards aren't exempt). While we snag some lightning deals, don't forget to tune into this week's podcast Episode 120 - Primed for Prime to hear the four additional ways to Prime your Audience!

<h1>🛒 Primed for Prime Day 🛒</h1> 🛍️ We may not be Bezos Billionaires, but we can learn a thing or two from the e-comm king. Jeffy has us in a headlock with his annual Prime Day Deals - and as we sit here refreshing the feed to lightning deals, 🕯 the twins wax old on both how to melt candle wax and how to implement some of the FOMO magic into our cookie businesses. 💳 Nine Ways to Prime Your Audience to Spend 🤑 1. Prime Day is annual = you know it's coming! 📦 Amazon Prime Day started in 2015 and has continued each year on dates in July since - it's consistent. 📅 And in marketing, consistency helps maintain your primed audience's expectations on how, where, and when to spend their money. In some cases, even if you're not as advanced as your competition, you can beat them simply by being consistent - it's ✨that✨ important.  🤑 2. It rewards paid members with additional discounts.Amazon already has our money - Prime Day deals are for Prime members. So why water where the grass is already green? Because people who ✨already✨ trusted us with their money are likely to trust us with more of their money. By Prime giving Prime members exclusive deals, we feel like we're extra special - that we got something no one else did (*ahem* 300 million products were sold on Prime Day last year, but we can pretend we're super special).  🤑 3. It incentivizes new people to join Amazon Prime.Speaking of exclusivity - peer pressure is real. And watching all the cookie groups post up their Prime packages makes you feel FOMO. FOMO = fear of missing out on some great (perceived) deals, so it means we're more likely to join Prime ✨during✨ Prime Day than any other day of the year. Prime Day is a great lead gen (generation) tool for Prime's program.  🤑 4. It uses the seller network to advertise even more.Prime's use of third-party sellers means their entire network of online entrepreneurs can push this big Prime Day collection of deals. Just like Amazon, you can harness your network to cross-promote. 🍷 Teaching a cookie class at a winery? Send the winery a graphic to post. 👕 Use a local t-shirt printing company? Ask them to hand out your business cards.  🤑 5. It's limited to two days.FOMO = back to the good ol' fear of missing out. Did you know humans are more loss averse than they are gain driven? It means we'd rather not lose what we have over getting more of what we don't. Hearing "Prime Day is ONLY July 11 - 12" keeps our fingies on the refresh button. ☝️🖱 When you're hosting your next pre-sale, instead of thinking "more days to buy = more days to sell," think "fewer days to buy = more reason to buy more." 🤏 Prime Day has us in a chokehold (and my credit cards aren't exempt). While we snag some lightning deals, don't forget to tune into this week's podcast Episode 120 - Primed for Prime to hear the four additional ways to Prime your Audience!

120. Baking it Down - Primed for Prime Day

119. Baking it Down - A-B-C

🗑 Tomorrow Me 🗑My dad used to make us stay after church and help clean up the nursery rooms, classrooms - whatever needed cleaning. When he'd change out the wastebins, he'd throw in an extra liner. I asked him why. "Because today I know I have enough liners, but next week, I might not." This is the concept behind "Tomorrow Me" - taking very small actions today when you know you have the time that'll save you potential future stress. Tomorrow Me isn't a big concept - in fact, "tomorrow me-ing" is a culmination very small things that don't make a huge difference, but over time lead to lower stress and a better overall experience - for both you and your clients. Examples of "Tomorrow Me-ing" your Life:🗓️ Having your cutters set out at the beginning of the week.Likely, you know what orders you gotta tackle this week. Take an hour to set them aside. Bonus if it's in the bins where you'll store the baked cookies - that'll make for easy access come fulfillment time.🗓️ Scheduling 2 more posts than usual."Tomorrow Me-ing" doesn't have to batch schedule 2 months of post. You can just sprinkle an extra one or two at the end of your weekly posting schedule - lookin' out juuust in case somethin' pops up and Tomorrow You can't make it to a keyboard.🗓️ Batch making and freezing dough when you're bored.Got some time to slay? Throw some dough into the Kitchen-Aid (or batch in a Bosch) and mix up some future time space for Tomorrow Me. Batch-making dough means future you may be pressed for time, but doesn't have to worry about turnin' on a thing! 🗓️ Creating email templates whenever you write a good generic response. You can create email templates in Google Workspace - I mean you already had to write that generic email - why not save it for a quick click reuse for Tomorrow You? One very small action can mean hundreds of saved minutes over the course of the year.🗓️ Ordering supplies in twos.Like those piping bags you're about to run out of? Order then add one. Ordering supplies in doubles means future you ain't gotta sweat a thang. Know you really like those boxes on Amazon? Snag them now - who knows if they'll be outta stock when you need 'em most.🗓️ Scheduling a reminder email.In both paid and free Gmail, you can schedule emails - I love to do this when an order is finalized - send the confirmation and right after, use your scheduling abilities to write up the reminder and have it ready to send - so Tomorrow you can completely absolve themselves of having to remember to remind.You see - "Tomorrow Me" is a chill approach to "Today Me" doin' just a little summin' summin' extra to relieve the pressure tomorrow. It's a simply delicious concept and easy to implement. Listen to the rest of our list (and I'm so sorry - there's WAY too much giggling on this podcast episode) on Episode 118 - Tomorrow Me.

<h1>🗑 Tomorrow Me 🗑</h1> My dad used to make us stay after church and help clean up the nursery rooms, classrooms - whatever needed cleaning. When he'd change out the wastebins, he'd throw in an extra liner. I asked him why. "Because today I know I have enough liners, but next week, I might not."  This is the concept behind "Tomorrow Me" - taking very small actions today when you know you have the time that'll save you potential future stress.  Tomorrow Me isn't a big concept - in fact, "tomorrow me-ing" is a culmination very small things that don't make a huge difference, but over time lead to lower stress and a better overall experience - for both you and your clients.  Examples of "Tomorrow Me-ing" your Life: 🗓️ Having your cutters set out at the beginning of the week.Likely, you know what orders you gotta tackle this week. Take an hour to set them aside. Bonus if it's in the bins where you'll store the baked cookies - that'll make for easy access come fulfillment time. 🗓️ Scheduling 2 more posts than usual."Tomorrow Me-ing" doesn't have to batch schedule 2 months of post. You can just sprinkle an extra one or two at the end of your weekly posting schedule - lookin' out juuust in case somethin' pops up and Tomorrow You can't make it to a keyboard. 🗓️ Batch making and freezing dough when you're bored.Got some time to slay? Throw some dough into the Kitchen-Aid (or batch in a Bosch) and mix up some future time space for Tomorrow Me. Batch-making dough means future you may be pressed for time, but doesn't have to worry about turnin' on a thing!  🗓️ Creating email templates whenever you write a good generic response. You can create email templates in Google Workspace - I mean you already had to write that generic email - why not save it for a quick click reuse for Tomorrow You? One very small action can mean hundreds of saved minutes over the course of the year. 🗓️ Ordering supplies in twos.Like those piping bags you're about to run out of? Order then add one. Ordering supplies in doubles means future you ain't gotta sweat a thang. Know you really like those boxes on Amazon? Snag them now - who knows if they'll be outta stock when you need 'em most. 🗓️ Scheduling a reminder email.In both paid and free Gmail, you can schedule emails - I love to do this when an order is finalized - send the confirmation and right after, use your scheduling abilities to write up the reminder and have it ready to send - so Tomorrow you can completely absolve themselves of having to remember to remind. You see - "Tomorrow Me" is a chill approach to "Today Me" doin' just a little summin' summin' extra to relieve the pressure tomorrow. It's a simply delicious concept and easy to implement. Listen to the rest of our list (and I'm so sorry - there's WAY too much giggling on this podcast episode) on Episode 118 - Tomorrow Me.

118. Baking it Down - Tomorrow Me

🫒 Olive Garden No Mo' ❌We're NEVER going back to the Olive Garden! Kidding - I am absolutely going back - every Tuesday before the podcast actually. BUT... we noticed something crazy at the "OG" that we don't often witness at other restaurants - the sheer entitlement. But what causes the OG crowd to feel like they're owed more than bottomless bread baskets and endless salads? Here's our theory: pricing, freebies, and exclusivity. Weird parallel incoming: Hermes bags are the opposite of Olive Garden. The lowest prices Hermes bag is $10,000. Yeah - no, that wasn't a typo surprisingly. And when Hermes calls you to buy a bag you hate? You say "absolutely - let me just take an entire day off of work and a second mortgage." So why does Olive Garden get crazy clients and screaming kids when they don't charge an arm, leg, and left kidney in exchange for leather? Well - let's dive into the endless breadsticks and talk about it.🤑 Highest End of a Low Budget vs Lowest End of a Higher BudgetDarden Restaurant Group owns both Olive Garden and Seasons 52 (think: OG's cooler, older cousin who doesn't visit often because they're living in Europe building an art studio). Seasons 52 is on average $15 higher per plate than Olive Garden. For those with more well-rounded wallets, Seasons 52 is on the cheaper side compared to the likes of Ruth Chris Steakhouse, Mortons, and Fogo de Chao (shoe? chow?).But the Garden Olives appeals to a more budget-conscious buyer (ahem - the twins) and thus likely falls at the top of that person's budget. Meaning - they have high expectations for our bread basket bastion. And why wouldn't they - these folks want the royal treatment for this budget buster and only endless bread, buckets of salad, free butter, and bottomless diet cokes will suffice!🆓 Those Freebies Will Cost Ya🎁 "If I give my client more for free they'll likely love me forever!" Helloooo recipe for codependency! Listen - giving something for free once may build good vibes. But giving something free three times builds expectations. Giving something for free 5 times? Builds dependence. And then charging the sixth time? Recipe for resentment. 😡 Because the OG gives so much for free, folks would suddenly be APPALLED if we were charged for the breadsticks. Why? We don't think "Wow Olive Garden, you're so nice for giving us so much for nothing" but rather, 😠 "How rude - you're charging for something that you have for FREE before!? I'M MAD!"  🧺 Endless is the EndYou can't sustain free unless you work off of scale ⚖ - something a global chain of 893 Olive Gardens can accomplish - one baker in their home kitchen? Not so much. Giving things for free or competing on price = the quick end to any cottage home business. We only have 24 hours in the day. Might as well spend those hours getting the highest ticket sales rather than budget-busting tire kickers. 👟🛞 Cookies are a luxury - they're the Hermes of the boutique food world. Folks aren't trying to give people food to live on - no, they want to impress their friends with a fancy edible gift that embodies how much they love and cherish that person. 🦖 Why else would you get a purple dinosaur iris flower set?! 🌷

<h1>🫒 Olive Garden No Mo' ❌</h1> We're NEVER going back to the Olive Garden! Kidding - I am absolutely going back - every Tuesday before the podcast actually. BUT... we noticed something crazy at the "OG" that we don't often witness at other restaurants - the sheer entitlement. But what causes the OG crowd to feel like they're owed more than bottomless bread baskets and endless salads? Here's our theory: pricing, freebies, and exclusivity. Weird parallel incoming: Hermes bags are the opposite of Olive Garden. The lowest prices Hermes bag is $10,000. Yeah - no, that wasn't a typo surprisingly. And when Hermes calls you to buy a bag you hate? You say "absolutely - let me just take an entire day off of work and a second mortgage." So why does Olive Garden get crazy clients and screaming kids when they don't charge an arm, leg, and left kidney in exchange for leather? Well - let's dive into the endless breadsticks and talk about it. 🤑 Highest End of a Low Budget vs Lowest End of a Higher BudgetDarden Restaurant Group owns both Olive Garden and Seasons 52 (think: OG's cooler, older cousin who doesn't visit often because they're living in Europe building an art studio). Seasons 52 is on average $15 higher per plate than Olive Garden. For those with more well-rounded wallets, Seasons 52 is on the cheaper side compared to the likes of Ruth Chris Steakhouse, Mortons, and Fogo de Chao (shoe? chow?).But the Garden Olives appeals to a more budget-conscious buyer (ahem - the twins) and thus likely falls at the top of that person's budget. Meaning - they have high expectations for our bread basket bastion. And why wouldn't they - these folks want the royal treatment for this budget buster and only endless bread, buckets of salad, free butter, and bottomless diet cokes will suffice! 🆓 Those Freebies Will Cost Ya🎁 "If I give my client more for free they'll likely love me forever!" Helloooo recipe for codependency! Listen - giving something for free once may build good vibes. But giving something free three times builds expectations. Giving something for free 5 times? Builds dependence. And then charging the sixth time? Recipe for resentment. 😡 Because the OG gives so much for free, folks would suddenly be APPALLED if we were charged for the breadsticks. Why? We don't think "Wow Olive Garden, you're so nice for giving us so much for nothing" but rather, 😠 "How rude - you're charging for something that you have for FREE before!? I'M MAD!"   🧺 Endless is the EndYou can't sustain free unless you work off of scale ⚖ - something a global chain of 893 Olive Gardens can accomplish - one baker in their home kitchen? Not so much. Giving things for free or competing on price = the quick end to any cottage home business. We only have 24 hours in the day. Might as well spend those hours getting the highest ticket sales rather than budget-busting tire kickers. 👟🛞 Cookies are a luxury - they're the Hermes of the boutique food world. Folks aren't trying to give people food to live on - no, they want to impress their friends with a fancy edible gift that embodies how much they love and cherish that person. 🦖 Why else would you get a purple dinosaur iris flower set?! 🌷

117. Baking it Down - Olive Garden No More

📋 Checking the Checklist🤔 Heather: "I feel like we're forgetting something."🙃 Corrie: "Yeah - I'm getting that vibe too."🤔 Heather: "Whatever it is, it's big." 😬 Corrie: "Oh most definitely."So - full confession: Corrie and I completely forgot the icing (and one tub of PME sprinkle eyeballs) at this weekend's 🐠 Under the Sea 🐠 sugar cookie decorating class. 😨 Imagine my horror as we enter the venue, 30+ minutes from the "icing fridge" only to realize my frosting aphasia.🚙🚓 With the power of Acura, Corrie managed to snag the icing and valiantly return right before class started (and to fix the "eye" issue, we turned the seahorse into the not-so-seeing-horse to source some PME sprinkles). Needless to say, this weekend was not our A-Game. So what gives? How could we have taught this many cookie classes and forgotten the most important thing (next to my award-winning one-liners)?! We technically had a process in place, but blame laziness (or Heather's unreliable car), we didn't follow protocol, and we paid the price. 👀 So - we figure we'd review our Cookie Class Kits checklist now so we don't have a repeat of Saturday (my Botox bill can't handle that stress level again anytime soon).Every good class starts with a promotional schedule. People can't buy what they don't know is for sale - so we want to start with a promo checklist. I'd likely recommend repeating this entire list three times total depending on how registration and run-times look (we shoot for a 6-week promotional schedule for classes).Class Promo Checklist✅ Create Event Listing✅ Schedule Social Posts – Instagram 1✅ Schedule Social Posts – Facebook 1✅ Post to Nextdoor 1✅ Post to Community Group X 1✅ Post to Community Group X 1✅ Post to Community Group X 1✅ Send out Newsletter 1✅ Post to VIP Group / Email Best ClientsNext up - the Class Prep list - this is the list you'll likely want to start around the same time you start promotions - so for us (when we check our checklists), that'd be again around the 6-week-out mark. Think: class supplies.Class Prep Checklist✅ Order Cookie Cutters / Print STLs✅ Order Piping Bags / Bag Ties✅ Dough Prep and Freeze✅ Icing Prep – Order Meringue Powder✅ Order Storage Containers ✅ Plan Gift Cookie (sample cookie – optional)✅ Order Sprinkles – Black Peals

<h1>📋 Checking the Checklist</h1> 🤔 Heather: "I feel like we're forgetting something."🙃 Corrie: "Yeah - I'm getting that vibe too."🤔 Heather: "Whatever it is, it's big." 😬 Corrie: "Oh most definitely." So - full confession: Corrie and I completely forgot the icing (and one tub of PME sprinkle eyeballs) at this weekend's 🐠 Under the Sea 🐠 sugar cookie decorating class. 😨 Imagine my horror as we enter the venue, 30+ minutes from the "icing fridge" only to realize my frosting aphasia. 🚙🚓 With the power of Acura, Corrie managed to snag the icing and valiantly return right before class started (and to fix the "eye" issue, we turned the seahorse into the not-so-seeing-horse to source some PME sprinkles).  Needless to say, this weekend was not our A-Game.  So what gives? How could we have taught this many cookie classes and forgotten the most important thing (next to my award-winning one-liners)?!  We technically had a process in place, but blame laziness (or Heather's unreliable car), we didn't follow protocol, and we paid the price. 👀 So - we figure we'd review our Cookie Class Kits checklist now so we don't have a repeat of Saturday (my Botox bill can't handle that stress level again anytime soon). Every good class starts with a promotional schedule. People can't buy what they don't know is for sale - so we want to start with a promo checklist. I'd likely recommend repeating this entire list three times total depending on how registration and run-times look (we shoot for a 6-week promotional schedule for classes). Class Promo Checklist<ul><li>✅ Create Event Listing</li><li>✅ Schedule Social Posts – Instagram 1</li><li>✅ Schedule Social Posts – Facebook 1</li><li>✅ Post to Nextdoor 1</li><li>✅ Post to Community Group X 1</li><li>✅ Post to Community Group X 1</li><li>✅ Post to Community Group X 1</li><li>✅ Send out Newsletter 1</li><li>✅ Post to VIP Group / Email Best Clients</li></ul> Next up - the Class Prep list - this is the list you'll likely want to start around the same time you start promotions - so for us (when we check our checklists), that'd be again around the 6-week-out mark. Think: class supplies. Class Prep Checklist<ul><li>✅ Order Cookie Cutters / Print STLs</li><li>✅ Order Piping Bags / Bag Ties</li><li>✅ Dough Prep and Freeze</li><li>✅ Icing Prep – Order Meringue Powder</li><li>✅ Order Storage Containers </li><li>✅ Plan Gift Cookie (sample cookie – optional)</li><li>✅ Order Sprinkles – Black Peals</li></ul>

116. Baking it Down - Check the Check Lists

🌎 Sugar my State Collab 101It's the upcoming Sugar My State Cookie Collab and we want YOU to participate (and get the most out of your participation). So here's a brief breakdown of what Cookie Collabs are and how to get the most bang for your bakin' buck from them! Listen to this episode on your favorite podcast player! 🍪 What is a CollabBefore we jump into the why, let's cover the what. Cookie Collabs aren't unique to Sugar Cookie Marketing Group - but they've likely only been around as long as Instagram has been due to how they work using hashtags. The concept is pretty simple:📸 A group of bakers get together and decided on a theme, date, time, and hashtag.📸 The bakers prep their bakes, photograph them, and write up a compelling caption.📸 On the designated date and time, the bakers upload their themed bakes using the designated collab hashtag.📸 The other participants in the collab will engage with the posts made by bakers in their collab through likes, comments, and even store reshares. That's the gist of it! Pretty simple right? It's mostly management that's time-consuming - and then, depending on the size of the collab (some can be as small as 5 participants or as large as hundreds of participants), the engagement with posts can take some time.🍪 How do they Work?They work on forced engagement - by requiring that all participants pay back into the collab by engaging with other participants' posts, the posts then get more engagement which, if we understand how the algorithms work, breeds more engagement and reach - and most of the time that reach is to our target, local audience - the ones who can actually pay us. 🤑When Meta (ahem - Instagram in this case) sees that people on its platform are engaging with a piece of content, Meta (er - Instagram) then turns around and shows that content to more people = thus is the engagement increased through collab participation. 

<h1>🌎 Sugar my State Collab 101</h1> It's the upcoming Sugar My State Cookie Collab and we want YOU to participate (and get the most out of your participation). So here's a brief breakdown of what Cookie Collabs are and how to get the most bang for your bakin' buck from them! Listen to this episode on your favorite podcast player!  🍪 What is a CollabBefore we jump into the why, let's cover the what. Cookie Collabs aren't unique to Sugar Cookie Marketing Group - but they've likely only been around as long as Instagram has been due to how they work using hashtags. The concept is pretty simple:<ul><li>📸 A group of bakers get together and decided on a theme, date, time, and hashtag.</li><li>📸 The bakers prep their bakes, photograph them, and write up a compelling caption.</li><li>📸 On the designated date and time, the bakers upload their themed bakes using the designated collab hashtag.</li><li>📸 The other participants in the collab will engage with the posts made by bakers in their collab through likes, comments, and even store reshares. </li></ul>That's the gist of it! Pretty simple right? It's mostly management that's time-consuming - and then, depending on the size of the collab (some can be as small as 5 participants or as large as hundreds of participants), the engagement with posts can take some time. 🍪 How do they Work?They work on forced engagement - by requiring that all participants pay back into the collab by engaging with other participants' posts, the posts then get more engagement which, if we understand how the algorithms work, breeds more engagement and reach - and most of the time that reach is to our target, local audience - the ones who can actually pay us. 🤑When Meta (ahem - Instagram in this case) sees that people on its platform are engaging with a piece of content, Meta (er - Instagram) then turns around and shows that content to more people = thus is the engagement increased through collab participation.

115. Baking it Down - Sugar my State Collab 101

👋 Hey - Heather and Corrie here with the Baking it Down Podcast with Sugar Cookie Marketing (a group on Facebook full of sugar cookiers turned business owners). 🍪 We're here to help you rise with your reach, flood with new followers, bake up new ideas, and make that all-important dough (while makin' that dough - see the pun there?) 🤑. What’s it about? We’re a Facebook Group turned Podcast, Membership, Book Club, and Baking 101 that’s dedicated to assisting bakers in effectively marketing online to generate more sales and better manage their businesses. 🧠 With free Facebook Live classes, hundreds of resources, and thousands of like-minded bakers, there’s a lot to learn in "SCM" (aka Sugar Cookie Marketing). ️🎧 As an extension of our Facebook group, this podcast is here to let you learn by listening. 📈 We'll cover group topics, marketing trends, and more (leaving this wide open in case Corrie wants to start singing). 💸 We take the sweet art of selling online to the cottage bakery world with marketing methods that move products (and pastries).👂 So open up those glorious ear canals because we have a podcast! Just when you’ve thought you’ve “heard” it all with those marketing "miracle" twins (that's our last name - not a proclamation), we’ve got something just for you each week! 🥣 As a baker, you don't always have the luxury of two hands needed to scroll in Sugar Cookie Marketing Group or crack open a book in Sugar Cookie Bookies, but what you can do is listen (unless you're my kid asking “what’s for dinner” for the millionth time). 👐 Hands full of flour? No problem! 👍 18 dozen iced cookies due tomorrow? Let’s do this. The Baking it Down Podcast by Sugar Cookie Marketing is a weekly podcast geared toward helping you grow your bakery business - dropping (almost) every Tuesday. 📅 We choose a topic each week that's either something new and emerging in the world of social media or something that we saw in "The Group" that was a hot topic and we bake it down... I mean, "break" it down for you. 🗯️ What you can expect in the podcast is about an hour of chit-chat with the meat and potatoes right at the beginning of the episode. 🥔 That’s when we dive into the marketing topic of the week! 📞 Oh yeah, folks can call / text / email in with their questions too - a fun way to hear from other bakers out there. Our promises to you: 1️⃣ We always make it clean = no cursing. We understand that you are busy and could be around little ones while also trying to get your weekly dose of business growth so we make sure that each episode would make our grandma proud and keep it clean so you can listen while also living your life. 2️⃣ We always make it fun. There’s a lot of negativity in the world so we try and make the podcast an upbeat and fun learning experience for you. I mean, we try to make the Instagram updates and changes as happy as we can, but come on Instagram! Give it a rest! No more changes! 3️⃣ Other than that, we take a positive approach to marketing We are also *not* professional podcasters. I feel like we need to say this because, hey, sometimes we get giggles! We do our best to extend our marketing knowledge to you all free of charge each week at the cost of listening to our higher-than-normal pitched voices and the occasional giggle spree. 4️⃣ You can find the podcast on all the major platforms and you can typically expect a new episode each Tuesday afternoon (unless life happens). We invite everyone to listen. Either start from the beginning or work backward! The episodes don’t build off themselves so you won’t be confused hearing one before the other. You just might miss new Lives we mention but you can always catch the replay in the Sugar Cookie Marketing Group on Facebook!

🙏 We're SorryOkay - I'm not really sorry - but I'm sorry you think you can't be sorry, and I'm here to help you learn how to be sorry as a business owner - sorry if you were hoping for a sorry. We see it posted often in the groups: NEVER APOLOGIZE - it shows WEAKNESS. It also makes you 100% RESPONSIBLE and AT FAULT. And those comments are not wrong. There are types of apologies that do more harm than good for the apologizer - and that's what I think they're talking about. Apologies that break down your own boundaries and signal to folks that you're a doormat waiting to be walked on are the types of apologies we do want to irradicate from our vocabularies. Examples of "poor apology form" in business look like this:😓 "I'm sorry you're mad at me."😓 "I'm sorry I forgot - please don't be angry."😓 "I'm sorry that I didn't understand what you were saying." 😓 "I'm sorry - what do you want me to do to make you happy?" Now - these are general, so put ya pitchforks down - there are times and places where these apologies may be a valid response - but we're talkin' broad strokes for this podcast. But never apologizing? Imagine being in a relationship with a spouse who never apologized. Yeah - that'd be... tough. Every time they felt wronged or offended, they never got the emotional release that an apology gives. 👉 Here's what a therapist told me once: "Every emotion is valid even if you don't agree with it." So - when our clients have an experience we don't necessarily agree with - that emotion they're feeling is valid. We're not apologizing for "messing up," but rather we are apologizing for their unfortunate experience. It's the intention of the apology that makes all the difference. Are you apologizing because it's a trauma response from a childhood wound? Or are you apologizing to empathize with the client and work towards a resolution? We want to get to the latter and work on abandoning the prior.Examples of "poor apology form" in business look like this:😊 "I'm sorry that you weren't happy with the moisture content in those cupcakes, what can I do to make this right?" 😊 "I'm sorry you didn't make the pick-up window - can I leave it out for a porch pickup for you?"😊 "I'm sorry that there's a bit of confusion with the ordering process - I do require pre-payment to ensure I have the funds to get supplies for your order. Would you still like to move forward?"😊 "I'm sorry that your experience wasn't what you'd hoped, and I'll take the feedback back to the kitchen with me. I appreciate you letting me know." 🧠 This week's podcast is a little more cognitive than usual - but understanding the art of apologizing is one of the sharpest tools in the business owner's toolbelt, and we thought it'd make for a good conversation. I'm sorry if you don't agree 😂.

<h1>🙏 We're Sorry</h1> Okay - I'm not really sorry - but I'm sorry you think you can't be sorry, and I'm here to help you learn how to be sorry as a business owner - sorry if you were hoping for a sorry.  We see it posted often in the groups: NEVER APOLOGIZE - it shows WEAKNESS. It also makes you 100% RESPONSIBLE and AT FAULT. And those comments are not wrong. There are types of apologies that do more harm than good for the apologizer - and that's what I think they're talking about. Apologies that break down your own boundaries and signal to folks that you're a doormat waiting to be walked on are the types of apologies we do want to irradicate from our vocabularies.  Examples of "poor apology form" in business look like this:<ul><li>😓 "I'm sorry you're mad at me."</li><li>😓 "I'm sorry I forgot - please don't be angry."</li><li>😓 "I'm sorry that I didn't understand what you were saying." </li><li>😓 "I'm sorry - what do you want me to do to make you happy?" </li></ul> Now - these are general, so put ya pitchforks down - there are times and places where these apologies may be a valid response - but we're talkin' broad strokes for this podcast.  But never apologizing? Imagine being in a relationship with a spouse who never apologized. Yeah - that'd be... tough. Every time they felt wronged or offended, they never got the emotional release that an apology gives.  👉 Here's what a therapist told me once: "Every emotion is valid even if you don't agree with it."  So - when our clients have an experience we don't necessarily agree with - that emotion they're feeling is valid. We're not apologizing for "messing up," but rather we are apologizing for their unfortunate experience.  It's the intention of the apology that makes all the difference. Are you apologizing because it's a trauma response from a childhood wound? Or are you apologizing to empathize with the client and work towards a resolution? We want to get to the latter and work on abandoning the prior. Examples of "poor apology form" in business look like this:<ul><li>😊 "I'm sorry that you weren't happy with the moisture content in those cupcakes, what can I do to make this right?" </li><li>😊 "I'm sorry you didn't make the pick-up window - can I leave it out for a porch pickup for you?"</li><li>😊 "I'm sorry that there's a bit of confusion with the ordering process - I do require pre-payment to ensure I have the funds to get supplies for your order. Would you still like to move forward?"</li><li>😊 "I'm sorry that your experience wasn't what you'd hoped, and I'll take the feedback back to the kitchen with me. I appreciate you letting me know." </li></ul> 🧠 This week's podcast is a little more cognitive than usual - but understanding the art of apologizing is one of the sharpest tools in the business owner's toolbelt, and we thought it'd make for a good conversation. I'm sorry if you don't agree 😂.

114. Baking it Down - We Would Like to Formally Apologize

🕵️ S-E-Oh MyWe've talked "SEO" on previous podcasts, but it's always great to revisit the cold audience maker by touching on four points we think will help you reach more search engine traffic. (Search engines = placed where you can look up words and find results. Google is currently the biggest search engine in the world.)This is SEO in a Google Search Engine Results Page (also known as a S-E-R-P) - see those white arrows? Those are all places where SEO can drive you more leads. But SEO is more than just Google - and in this week's podcast, we cover this topic to better explain this business branding buzzword.What is SEO?🍕 Definition: let's say you want pizza but you're out of town. What do you do? Search "Pizza Places Near Me." The results that your phone shows you? Yeah - that's SEO. Ever wonder how Google chooses which business shows up first? 🍕 How it Works: You optimize your website so that the "robot" (called crawlers) can better understand the content and, when someone googles something that your website has the answer to, Google will pull up your website first! 🍕 How it can Benefit You: keywords are the phrases you type into Google. The intent behind those keywords determines if people are planning to spend their money. If someone searched "how to bake sugar cookies," they probably aren't looking to pay you to bake them. But if someone searches for "sugar cookie bakery near me," often this results in an online lead - these are called money keywords because people who search for this word will likely spend that cold, hard casheesh.Places to Consider SEO 🕸 Website: while you can't own the internet, having your own website is about as close as you can get. And search engines love personal websites! If you ever consider hiring an SEO (they are kind of expensive - heads up), they'll likely start by asking you if you have a website - yes, it's that important. 🕸  TikTok: TikTok (as long as it isn't banned) is one of the fastest-growing search engines because of its recent addition of SEO-optimized captions that are searchable. With a quick search, you can find hundreds of videos walking you through how to check your oil, change a tire, or install an under-sink p-trap. You can also find a baker offering local fun things to do (hint hint).🕸  Reviews: Did you know that Google now crawls user reviews in Google Maps? Yep - reviews and websites can now help your GBP (Google Business Profile) show up in maps - just because it contains the right keyword (even if you're a service-area and not a brick-and-mortar).🕸  Google My Business: Google Business Profiles (or GMBs) can also be search engine optimized - often by filling out the many options for text, adding photos, and posting regular updates. More content = king when it comes to GBPs.🕸  Eventbrite (Directories):Rebranding SEO Considerations👍 Google Search: ranking in Google takes a multi-faceted approach. Ranking a website, getting a Google Business Profile, securing social profiles, and writing quality content (more on that in a second).👍 Social Media: Social can be optimized too (remember - if you can search on it you can optimize for it). Filling out your Facebook page's about section, connecting social media accounts, and writing content that contains keywords are all ways to SEO your social profiles.👍 Caching / Browser History: Do a dirty check on your SEO efforts by either clearing your browsing history and cache or by searching in an Incognito Bro

<h1>🕵️ S-E-Oh My</h1> We've talked "SEO" on previous podcasts, but it's always great to revisit the cold audience maker by touching on four points we think will help you reach more search engine traffic.  (Search engines = placed where you can look up words and find results. Google is currently the biggest search engine in the world.) This is SEO in a Google Search Engine Results Page (also known as a S-E-R-P) - see those white arrows? Those are all places where SEO can drive you more leads. But SEO is more than just Google - and in this week's podcast, we cover this topic to better explain this business branding buzzword. What is SEO?<ul><li>🍕 Definition: let's say you want pizza but you're out of town. What do you do? Search "Pizza Places Near Me." The results that your phone shows you? Yeah - that's SEO. Ever wonder how Google chooses which business shows up first? </li><li>🍕 How it Works: You optimize your website so that the "robot" (called crawlers) can better understand the content and, when someone googles something that your website has the answer to, Google will pull up your website first! </li><li>🍕 How it can Benefit You: keywords are the phrases you type into Google. The intent behind those keywords determines if people are planning to spend their money. If someone searched "how to bake sugar cookies," they probably aren't looking to pay you to bake them. But if someone searches for "sugar cookie bakery near me," often this results in an online lead - these are called money keywords because people who search for this word will likely spend that cold, hard casheesh.</li></ul> Places to Consider SEO <ul><li>🕸 Website: while you can't own the internet, having your own website is about as close as you can get. And search engines love personal websites! If you ever consider hiring an SEO (they are kind of expensive - heads up), they'll likely start by asking you if you have a website - yes, it's that important. </li><li>🕸  TikTok: TikTok (as long as it isn't banned) is one of the fastest-growing search engines because of its recent addition of SEO-optimized captions that are searchable. With a quick search, you can find hundreds of videos walking you through how to check your oil, change a tire, or install an under-sink p-trap. You can also find a baker offering local fun things to do (hint hint).</li><li>🕸  Reviews: Did you know that Google now crawls user reviews in Google Maps? Yep - reviews and websites can now help your GBP (Google Business Profile) show up in maps - just because it contains the right keyword (even if you're a service-area and not a brick-and-mortar).</li><li>🕸  Google My Business: Google Business Profiles (or GMBs) can also be search engine optimized - often by filling out the many options for text, adding photos, and posting regular updates. More content = king when it comes to GBPs.</li><li>🕸  Eventbrite (Directories):</li></ul> Rebranding SEO Considerations<ul><li>👍 Google Search: ranking in Google takes a multi-faceted approach. Ranking a website, getting a Google Business Profile, securing social profiles, and writing quality content (more on that in a second).</li><li>👍 Social Media: Social can be optimized too (remember - if you can search on it you can optimize for it). Filling out your Facebook page's about section, connecting social media accounts, and writing content that contains keywords are all ways to SEO your social profiles.</li><li>👍 Caching / Browser History: Do a dirty check on your SEO efforts by either clearing your browsing history and cache or by searching in an Incognito Bro</li></ul>

113. Baking it Down - S-E-Oh My

Okay fam - here's what separates the marketers from the panic-ers. (is that a word??). We're entering a period Corrie Mira and I like to refer to as 🏜 "Dry July" ☀️ - but it encompasses the entire summer months from June - August. It's in these months (as reflected by this Google search report for "sugar cookies" - image below) that your orders will likely slow. 📉 This is expected for our industry. Things you can do during this time:🚫 Do not panic. Readjust your expectations in terms of ROI (returns on marketing) for this period. Slow = normal.✅ Optimize your admin. Need to schedule posts? Do it now. Website time? Let's get it set up. Want to hire a VA? Let's get interviews scheduled. 🚫 Do not overcorrect. When the market slows, we always see people knee-jerk change course. This is the wrong bandaid for this wound. Stay the course - optimize what's worked last year. ✅ Invest in Yourself. Use slow periods to invest in yourself - you won't have that chance come the holidays - so now is the time (ahem - www.TheCookieCollege.com 👀). Hey - I'm learning a new 3D printer. It'll pay back in dividends.🚫 Do not pout. It may feel like your audience is abandoning you - and your bank account. They're not - they are focused on their family vacations. Good marketing = assisting them in finding fun family things to do. It'll build trust and they'll be back come Halloween. ✅ Cut Costs. There's two ways to make money = make more or spend less. I love slow periods to assess where my money is going and where I can cut costs. If you haven't used it in the last 4 months, cancel it + sell it + downgrade it. 🚫 Do not stop. Marketing return is delayed. 🌱 What you plant in these months will grow in the holidays. 🌿 Don't stop marketing just because your engagement seems too low to make it worth it. It'll pay you back - trust me.✅ Build out your Holiday Campaigns. It seems weird to talk Halloween / Turkey Day / Christmas in the beginning of summer - but this is how you build a campaign. You build it out now, have it dialed in, pick a launch date, and wait. You do not want to wait until the week before 🎃 October to start thinking about this.🚫 Do not quit. Slow periods feel like failure - especially when you've done everything right. Do not quit - this is a season of business. Just like landscapers don't expect to have their highest earning months in winter - baker's big days are comin' - but not right now.✅ Inventory. Perfect time to see what you got, what you need, and where you can put it. As we clear out the old, we can make room for the new. Cutters + packaging + class supplies + tools + that Cricut that's still in the box you know who you are (it's me). Figure out, organize, and optimize. 🤔 So lemme throw it back to your side of the court: What do you plan to use the next three "dry" months doing? 

Okay fam - here's what separates the marketers from the panic-ers. (is that a word??).  We're entering a period Corrie Mira and I like to refer to as 🏜 "Dry July" ☀️ - but it encompasses the entire summer months from June - August.  It's in these months (as reflected by this Google search report for "sugar cookies" - image below) that your orders will likely slow. 📉 This is expected for our industry.  Things you can do during this time:<ul><li>🚫 Do not panic. Readjust your expectations in terms of ROI (returns on marketing) for this period. Slow = normal.</li><li>✅ Optimize your admin. Need to schedule posts? Do it now. Website time? Let's get it set up. Want to hire a VA? Let's get interviews scheduled. </li><li>🚫 Do not overcorrect. When the market slows, we always see people knee-jerk change course. This is the wrong bandaid for this wound. Stay the course - optimize what's worked last year. </li><li>✅ Invest in Yourself. Use slow periods to invest in yourself - you won't have that chance come the holidays - so now is the time (ahem - <a href="http://www.TheCookieCollege.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.TheCookieCollege.com</a> 👀). Hey - I'm learning a new 3D printer. It'll pay back in dividends.</li><li>🚫 Do not pout. It may feel like your audience is abandoning you - and your bank account. They're not - they are focused on their family vacations. Good marketing = assisting them in finding fun family things to do. It'll build trust and they'll be back come Halloween. </li><li>✅ Cut Costs. There's two ways to make money = make more or spend less. I love slow periods to assess where my money is going and where I can cut costs. If you haven't used it in the last 4 months, cancel it + sell it + downgrade it. </li><li>🚫 Do not stop. Marketing return is delayed. 🌱 What you plant in these months will grow in the holidays. 🌿 Don't stop marketing just because your engagement seems too low to make it worth it. It'll pay you back - trust me.</li><li>✅ Build out your Holiday Campaigns. It seems weird to talk Halloween / Turkey Day / Christmas in the beginning of summer - but this is how you build a campaign. You build it out now, have it dialed in, pick a launch date, and wait. You do not want to wait until the week before 🎃 October to start thinking about this.</li><li>🚫 Do not quit. Slow periods feel like failure - especially when you've done everything right. Do not quit - this is a season of business. Just like landscapers don't expect to have their highest earning months in winter - baker's big days are comin' - but not right now.</li><li>✅ Inventory. Perfect time to see what you got, what you need, and where you can put it. As we clear out the old, we can make room for the new. Cutters + packaging + class supplies + tools + that Cricut that's still in the box you know who you are (it's me). Figure out, organize, and optimize. </li></ul> 🤔 So lemme throw it back to your side of the court: What do you plan to use the next three "dry" months doing?

112. Baking it Down - Dry July

111. Baking it Down - Refund Recap

🚗 Pricing the Cookie Car Lot 🚙Wanna buy a... car? Today's podcast topic (which is a day late due to CookieCon - no, it's not Wednesday, sorry about that) is about the "cookie car lot" - comparing how automotive brands use pricing tiers to sell more cars... and we'll use it to sell more cookies. 🏎 Showing off the Flagship Every major auto manufacturer has a flagship vehicle - that one car so fast, so cool, and so very, very expensive. 😬 Audi has the R8 ($158,000)😯 Acura has the NSX ($171,000)😲 Mercedes has the AMG GT R ($179,00)😱 Lexus had the LFA ($818,000)  Why sell a vehicle way too expensive for most of your target market? 💪 It's a flex for the brand. Essentially, the automotive company is sayin', 👀 "Yo - look at what we can do - and all this skill and talent you can't afford? It's incorporated into the vehicle you can afford." In your cookie sales - you can flex with your best set. But just like the auto-manufacturers, don't make it your 100% marketing focus. Your "flex set" is a signal to your capabilities incorporated into your work-horse sets - your big sellers. And while your flex-set may be a net loss, 🎠 it'll help prop you up to sell those forever-favorites like unicorns and mermaids. 🧜‍♀🚙 Have an Economy OfferingMany automakers know that if they can just get you to try the brand, they'll have a car client for life. This is where manufacturers have their economy lines - these aren't the cars in the commercials, but they are cars they keep on the lot. 🚗 Audi has its A Line🚗 Mercedes has its A Class🚗 Toyota has its Corolla🚗 Kia has its RioThese are the budget-friendly options for folks who want to enter a brand but can't afford the top-of-the-line or even the mid-range. 💸 But these auto companies don't want you walkin' away without a key in hand, so they keep the budget-friendly vehicles ready to package up for the price-conscious.  Same with your cookies. While you have your flex set ($$$), and your workhorse sets ($$), keeping an economically friendly option in your back pocket can get people "into your brand" while also making the sale. 🤑 Just like car companies, drop out the "extras" until you find a price point that is a win-win for both you and your potential client. Fewer colors? Fewer designs? Smaller sizes? All of these are ways to keep people on your "cookie car lot."  Market your Work Horse Mid-Range LineUpYou know each car company's mid-range big sellers - why? You see them marketed the most often, and thus likely most seen on the road. 🚖 Kia has its Telluride🚖 Honda has its Accord🚖 Ford has its F150🚖 Acura has its TLX These are the cars that sell the most and make the most - while also wow-ing the consumer. The cookie-equivalents? Mermaids, unicorns, kids' birthday sets - the cookies you know how to pump out for a low-cost higher-price profit. This is where your marketing is focused. Sure - flex once in a blue moon - but keep the limelight on these sets. They're guaranteed to pad your pocket without packin' a mental punch.

<h1>🚗 Pricing the Cookie Car Lot 🚙</h1> Wanna buy a... car? Today's podcast topic (which is a day late due to CookieCon - no, it's not Wednesday, sorry about that) is about the "cookie car lot" - comparing how automotive brands use pricing tiers to sell more cars... and we'll use it to sell more cookies.  🏎 Showing off the Flagship Every major auto manufacturer has a flagship vehicle - that one car so fast, so cool, and so very, very expensive. <ul><li>😬 Audi has the R8 ($158,000)</li><li>😯 Acura has the NSX ($171,000)</li><li>😲 Mercedes has the AMG GT R ($179,00)</li><li>😱 Lexus had the LFA ($818,000)  </li></ul> Why sell a vehicle way too expensive for most of your target market? 💪 It's a flex for the brand. Essentially, the automotive company is sayin', 👀 "Yo - look at what we can do - and all this skill and talent you can't afford? It's incorporated into the vehicle you can afford."  In your cookie sales - you can flex with your best set. But just like the auto-manufacturers, don't make it your 100% marketing focus. Your "flex set" is a signal to your capabilities incorporated into your work-horse sets - your big sellers. And while your flex-set may be a net loss, 🎠 it'll help prop you up to sell those forever-favorites like unicorns and mermaids. 🧜‍♀ 🚙 Have an Economy OfferingMany automakers know that if they can just get you to try the brand, they'll have a car client for life. This is where manufacturers have their economy lines - these aren't the cars in the commercials, but they are cars they keep on the lot. <ul><li>🚗 Audi has its A Line</li><li>🚗 Mercedes has its A Class</li><li>🚗 Toyota has its Corolla</li><li>🚗 Kia has its Rio</li></ul> These are the budget-friendly options for folks who want to enter a brand but can't afford the top-of-the-line or even the mid-range. 💸 But these auto companies don't want you walkin' away without a key in hand, so they keep the budget-friendly vehicles ready to package up for the price-conscious.  Same with your cookies. While you have your flex set ($$$), and your workhorse sets ($$), keeping an economically friendly option in your back pocket can get people "into your brand" while also making the sale. 🤑 Just like car companies, drop out the "extras" until you find a price point that is a win-win for both you and your potential client. Fewer colors? Fewer designs? Smaller sizes? All of these are ways to keep people on your "cookie car lot."  Market your Work Horse Mid-Range LineUpYou know each car company's mid-range big sellers - why? You see them marketed the most often, and thus likely most seen on the road. <ul><li>🚖 Kia has its Telluride</li><li>🚖 Honda has its Accord</li><li>🚖 Ford has its F150</li><li>🚖 Acura has its TLX </li></ul> These are the cars that sell the most and make the most - while also wow-ing the consumer. The cookie-equivalents? Mermaids, unicorns, kids' birthday sets - the cookies you know how to pump out for a low-cost higher-price profit. This is where your marketing is focused. Sure - flex once in a blue moon - but keep the limelight on these sets. They're guaranteed to pad your pocket without packin' a mental punch.

110. Baking it Down - The Cookie Car Lot

109. Baking it Down - Watch Your Receipts

⚖ Economies of ScaleBuzzword incoming: scalability. The ability of your business to increase output to lower costs of production and increase profits. Sounds enviable, right? But how do you go about it as an often one-man (or woman)-band? Here are 5 tips we've thought of that may help you scale to higher margins and less work:🥶 1. Freezing Cookies / IcingsBrrrr - coolin' down your cookies can heat up production. Freezing dough and cookies can allow you to produce when orders are low and when incoming orders pick up, you're teed up for the big thaw. You can thaw cookies with no risk of loss of freshness for up to 4 months - including already iced cookies. 🧊 Cool-down pro-tip: store them in sealed cello bags in an air-tight container. When ready to thaw, allow the entire unopened container to completely thaw before opening - this will let the condensation form on the outside of the container and not the cellophane wrapping. This means that you can increase production for Christmas cookies in September and allow the economics of scale to pad your fleece-lined pockets come the holidays.  2. Get the GearWhen it comes to scalability, increasing production by decreasing production times = more money. A great way to do that? Don't fight your gear. Find tools that help you increase output and decrease time investment. This will let you make more money while making more cookies = a win-win, and you may even be able to binge a Netflix show without being hunched over the countertop decorating late at night (ayo - posture correctors!). Examples of tools that increase scale are:🔧 A projector An airbrush machine🔨 An Eddie food printer🔩 A dehydrator ⛏ A 3D printer⬆️ If it can increase production or ⬇️ decrease time spent producing, it'll support the economies of cookie scalability. 🤖 3. Let the Robots Take Over I don't know if you're worried about the robot overlord takeover, but for now - letting the internet handle mundane tasks will allow you to increase production while the "always on" internet handles data input, task management, and client outreach. Zapier is one of our favorite "scalability" tools because it lets two apps that can't shake hands, now shake hands. 🤝 Ways we use webhooks to streamline time costs are:🦾 Auto-response messages sent to new signups 🦾 Turning an email into an Asana task🦾 Adding a cookie event to GCal from Eventbrite 🦾 Adding new Cookie College signups to Google Sheets👨‍💻 4. All Praise the VA!VAs or "virtual assistants" are like contracted employees without the employee costs because they work on a task basis and not an hourly basis (depending on your contract). Finding a VA who can handle data input, client reminders, email marketing or social media is a great way to scale your business because you're behind the computer less but more is getting done. So start your VA-dating now so you're ready to hire come the hurried holidays.👀 5. Ads aren't all Bad. I love the 24-7-365 salesman that Facebook ads can be - optimized for views, link clicks, or messages, dialing in a solid ad campaign can help you move product without having to make community group posts = you increase production and decrease time (a recipe for a double-dollar win). Using Ads Manager, you can create ad campaign parameters that stretch your ad dollar to the furthest. 

<h1>⚖ Economies of Scale</h1>Buzzword incoming: scalability. The ability of your business to increase output to lower costs of production and increase profits. Sounds enviable, right? But how do you go about it as an often one-man (or woman)-band? Here are 5 tips we've thought of that may help you scale to higher margins and less work: 🥶 1. Freezing Cookies / IcingsBrrrr - coolin' down your cookies can heat up production. Freezing dough and cookies can allow you to produce when orders are low and when incoming orders pick up, you're teed up for the big thaw. You can thaw cookies with no risk of loss of freshness for up to 4 months - including already iced cookies. 🧊 Cool-down pro-tip: store them in sealed cello bags in an air-tight container. When ready to thaw, allow the entire unopened container to completely thaw before opening - this will let the condensation form on the outside of the container and not the cellophane wrapping. This means that you can increase production for Christmas cookies in September and allow the economics of scale to pad your fleece-lined pockets come the holidays.   2. Get the GearWhen it comes to scalability, increasing production by decreasing production times = more money. A great way to do that? Don't fight your gear. Find tools that help you increase output and decrease time investment. This will let you make more money while making more cookies = a win-win, and you may even be able to binge a Netflix show without being hunched over the countertop decorating late at night (ayo - posture correctors!). Examples of tools that increase scale are:<ul><li>🔧 A projector</li><li> An airbrush machine</li><li>🔨 An Eddie food printer</li><li>🔩 A dehydrator </li><li>⛏ A 3D printer</li></ul>⬆️ If it can increase production or ⬇️ decrease time spent producing, it'll support the economies of cookie scalability.  🤖 3. Let the Robots Take Over I don't know if you're worried about the robot overlord takeover, but for now - letting the internet handle mundane tasks will allow you to increase production while the "always on" internet handles data input, task management, and client outreach. Zapier is one of our favorite "scalability" tools because it lets two apps that can't shake hands, now shake hands. 🤝 Ways we use webhooks to streamline time costs are:<ul><li>🦾 Auto-response messages sent to new signups </li><li>🦾 Turning an email into an Asana task</li><li>🦾 Adding a cookie event to GCal from Eventbrite </li><li>🦾 Adding new Cookie College signups to Google Sheets</li></ul> 👨‍💻 4. All Praise the VA!VAs or "virtual assistants" are like contracted employees without the employee costs because they work on a task basis and not an hourly basis (depending on your contract). Finding a VA who can handle data input, client reminders, email marketing or social media is a great way to scale your business because you're behind the computer less but more is getting done. So start your VA-dating now so you're ready to hire come the hurried holidays. 👀 5. Ads aren't all Bad. I love the 24-7-365 salesman that Facebook ads can be - optimized for views, link clicks, or messages, dialing in a solid ad campaign can help you move product without having to make community group posts = you increase production and decrease time (a recipe for a double-dollar win). Using Ads Manager, you can create ad campaign parameters that stretch your ad dollar to the furthest.

108. Baking it Down - Economies of Scale

[This description is auto-generated by AI]The importance of marketing with the customer in mind. 0:00Welcome to the podcast.The average chick-fil-a revenue is 8 million for the standalone.How to work with business partners. 2:33Three questions to ask when working with partners.The first question, split up tasks.The four horsemen of a dead relationship. 5:07The foundational thing is having a common goal.The john gottman series.The four horsemen of the dead relationship.The four things to avoid in a business partnership.What’s underneath the ego is ego. 8:19Respect the delegation and let the other person think freely.The common goal is growth.Heather and Cory split up tasks for retention and acquisition.Heather is the primary point of contactIf you’re in a business partnership and you feel like you are carrying the majority of the load, there’s two things that 13:00Two things that could be going on in a business partnership.Stonewalling is dangerous.Communication patterns need to be coddled.The importance of self-work to improve communication.What part of this business do you want to be the point of contact for? 16:13How Heather and Corrie work together to get things done.The importance of respect.Passion is key in a community group.Give yourself and your business partner an assignment.How to deal with conflict in business. 19:53Going back to the roots of the damaged partnership.Be prepared for the business relationship.How to deal with conflict now.The importance of communication.Stress management, space and stress management.The benefits of being a self-employed entrepreneur.If you see that conflict is introduced because of time together, separate the time apart. 27:05Finding the root cause of conflict.Keeping a list of what is being worked on.The monday morning meeting framework.The importance of having a game plan.How do you make business decisions if you both like different ideas? 30:36How to make business decisions in Korea.The difference between crunchy and smooth people.The goal of most businesses is to grow efficiently and profitably.Branding with heavy emotion creates weird logos.If you can go in that the person you’re working with is not you, it’s not you. 33:56Compromise with Heather on landing pages.Learning how to work with different people.Being the lead point of vendee bundy.The monday morning meeting in Korea.The importance of mutual respect in communication.How to deal with bad moods.Corrie's neighbor’s dining room table splits into two. 

[This description is auto-generated by AI] The importance of marketing with the customer in mind. <a href="https://otter.ai/u/xkLJSbBhBivfeek6Nw4EJ2lQTz0?tab=summary&amp;t=0s" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">0:00</a><ul><li>Welcome to the podcast.</li><li>The average chick-fil-a revenue is 8 million for the standalone.</li></ul>How to work with business partners. <a href="https://otter.ai/u/xkLJSbBhBivfeek6Nw4EJ2lQTz0?tab=summary&amp;t=154s" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">2:33</a><ul><li>Three questions to ask when working with partners.</li><li>The first question, split up tasks.</li></ul>The four horsemen of a dead relationship. <a href="https://otter.ai/u/xkLJSbBhBivfeek6Nw4EJ2lQTz0?tab=summary&amp;t=308s" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">5:07</a><ul><li>The foundational thing is having a common goal.</li><li>The john gottman series.</li><li>The four horsemen of the dead relationship.</li><li>The four things to avoid in a business partnership.</li></ul>What’s underneath the ego is ego. <a href="https://otter.ai/u/xkLJSbBhBivfeek6Nw4EJ2lQTz0?tab=summary&amp;t=500s" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">8:19</a><ul><li>Respect the delegation and let the other person think freely.</li><li>The common goal is growth.</li><li>Heather and Cory split up tasks for retention and acquisition.</li><li>Heather is the primary point of contact</li></ul>If you’re in a business partnership and you feel like you are carrying the majority of the load, there’s two things that <a href="https://otter.ai/u/xkLJSbBhBivfeek6Nw4EJ2lQTz0?tab=summary&amp;t=781s" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">13:00</a><ul><li>Two things that could be going on in a business partnership.</li><li>Stonewalling is dangerous.</li><li>Communication patterns need to be coddled.</li><li>The importance of self-work to improve communication.</li></ul>What part of this business do you want to be the point of contact for? <a href="https://otter.ai/u/xkLJSbBhBivfeek6Nw4EJ2lQTz0?tab=summary&amp;t=973s" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">16:13</a><ul><li>How Heather and Corrie work together to get things done.</li><li>The importance of respect.</li><li>Passion is key in a community group.</li><li>Give yourself and your business partner an assignment.</li></ul>How to deal with conflict in business. <a href="https://otter.ai/u/xkLJSbBhBivfeek6Nw4EJ2lQTz0?tab=summary&amp;t=1193s" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">19:53</a><ul><li>Going back to the roots of the damaged partnership.</li><li>Be prepared for the business relationship.</li><li>How to deal with conflict now.</li><li>The importance of communication.</li><li>Stress management, space and stress management.</li><li>The benefits of being a self-employed entrepreneur.</li></ul>If you see that conflict is introduced because of time together, separate the time apart. <a href="https://otter.ai/u/xkLJSbBhBivfeek6Nw4EJ2lQTz0?tab=summary&amp;t=1626s" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">27:05</a><ul><li>Finding the root cause of conflict.</li><li>Keeping a list of what is being worked on.</li><li>The monday morning meeting framework.</li><li>The importance of having a game plan.</li></ul>How do you make business decisions if you both like different ideas? <a href="https://otter.ai/u/xkLJSbBhBivfeek6Nw4EJ2lQTz0?tab=summary&amp;t=1837s" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">30:36</a><ul><li>How to make business decisions in Korea.</li><li>The difference between crunchy and smooth people.</li><li>The goal of most businesses is to grow efficiently and profitably.</li><li>Branding with heavy emotion creates weird logos.</li></ul>If you can go in that the person you’re working with is not you, it’s not you. <a href="https://otter.ai/u/xkLJSbBhBivfeek6Nw4EJ2lQTz0?tab=summary&amp;t=2036s" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">33:56</a><ul><li>Compromise with Heather on landing pages.</li><li>Learning how to work with different people.</li><li>Being the lead point of vendee bundy.</li><li>The monday morning meeting in Korea.</li><li>The importance of mutual respect in communication.</li><li>How to deal with bad moods.</li></ul>Corrie's neighbor’s dining room table splits into two. <a href="https://otter.ai/u/xkLJSbBhBivfeek6Nw4EJ2lQ&lt;/truncato-artificial-root&gt;" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"></a>

107. Baking it Down -  Battle of the Business Partners

👋A Refreshing RebrandWhen you likely got started in your cookie biz, "this will be something I'm still doin' in 2 years" wasn't probably top of mind. If you're like us, this was a random idea &gt; turned hobby &gt; turned money pit &gt; turned "I need to make money or my SO will have my head" - fast forward to today, it's a business - but it wasn't an intentional business. So likely - again, if you're like us - "branding" wasn't as much the focus as "juggling 17 hats while baking" was 👒🎩🎓⛑️. Which lands us two years later with a poorly chosen brand identity and business name. So what do? 👀 *rebranding enters stage right*Ideally, no business would have to rebrand - but, like in the case of Corrie, there are times when it makes long-term sense for short-term growing pains. Such was Corrie's plight - and here are 4 tips and 4 rebranding snafus we've seen while marketing (and rebranding ourselves). ❤️ Tip 1 - Check What's Available Rule of thumb - don't fall in love with someone that's unavailable. Rule of thumb in branding - don't fall in love with a name that's unavailable. So - before you start planning your billion-dollar baking biz, check what's free - social media handles, domains, etc. Here are two websites I like to use that help with the research:✅ Social Media: https://namechk.com/✅ Domains: https://instantdomainsearch.com/🚫 Snafu 1 - Overcomplicating ItI love the thought and care some y'all put into your brand name - but I don't always love how that reflects your user's experience when typing your name, searching for you, etc. Overcomplicated branding will mean uphill marketing for you. Examples of overcomplication can look like:Brand names that include articles like "a" "an" and "the" Brand names that include misspellings like "Cookiez"Brand names that include punctuation like dashes "Cookie-z Company" Brand names that are too long "The Best Cookies in America Cookie Company" ❤️ Tip 2 - Including Brand + KeywordIn "SEO" best practices, including a brand name (who you are) + keyword (what you're selling) can help you get ahead in search results (Google). This is because you're not keyword stuffing (Cookies Cookies by Cookie Lady Cary - too many keywords in this one), but you're also not too vague (Art for your Plate by Cary - no keyword at all in this one). Examples of brand + keyword can be:Mixing Bowl Cookie Company (Mixing Bowl = brand, Cookie = keyword)Heather's Best Cookies (Heather's Best = brand, Cookies = keyword)Cool Cow Cookies and Cakes (Cool Cow = brand, Cookies and Cakes = keyword)

<h1>👋A Refreshing Rebrand</h1> When you likely got started in your cookie biz, "this will be something I'm still doin' in 2 years" wasn't probably top of mind. If you're like us, this was a random idea &gt; turned hobby &gt; turned money pit &gt; turned "I need to make money or my SO will have my head" - fast forward to today, it's a business - but it wasn't an intentional business.  So likely - again, if you're like us - "branding" wasn't as much the focus as "juggling 17 hats while baking" was 👒🎩🎓⛑️. Which lands us two years later with a poorly chosen brand identity and business name.  So what do? 👀 *rebranding enters stage right* Ideally, no business would have to rebrand - but, like in the case of Corrie, there are times when it makes long-term sense for short-term growing pains. Such was Corrie's plight - and here are 4 tips and 4 rebranding snafus we've seen while marketing (and rebranding ourselves).  ❤️ Tip 1 - Check What's Available Rule of thumb - don't fall in love with someone that's unavailable. Rule of thumb in branding - don't fall in love with a name that's unavailable. So - before you start planning your billion-dollar baking biz, check what's free - social media handles, domains, etc. Here are two websites I like to use that help with the research:<ul><li>✅ Social Media: <a href="https://namechk.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://namechk.com/</a></li><li>✅ Domains: <a href="https://instantdomainsearch.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://instantdomainsearch.com/</a></li></ul> 🚫 Snafu 1 - Overcomplicating ItI love the thought and care some y'all put into your brand name - but I don't always love how that reflects your user's experience when typing your name, searching for you, etc. Overcomplicated branding will mean uphill marketing for you. Examples of overcomplication can look like:<ul><li>Brand names that include articles like "a" "an" and "the" </li><li>Brand names that include misspellings like "Cookiez"</li><li>Brand names that include punctuation like dashes "Cookie-z Company" </li><li>Brand names that are too long "The Best Cookies in America Cookie Company" </li></ul> ❤️ Tip 2 - Including Brand + KeywordIn "SEO" best practices, including a brand name (who you are) + keyword (what you're selling) can help you get ahead in search results (Google). This is because you're not keyword stuffing (Cookies Cookies by Cookie Lady Cary - too many keywords in this one), but you're also not too vague (Art for your Plate by Cary - no keyword at all in this one). Examples of brand + keyword can be:<ul><li>Mixing Bowl Cookie Company (Mixing Bowl = brand, Cookie = keyword)</li><li>Heather's Best Cookies (Heather's Best = brand, Cookies = keyword)</li><li>Cool Cow Cookies and Cakes (Cool Cow = brand, Cookies and Cakes = keyword)</li></ul>

106. Baking it Down - A Refreshing Rebrand

105. Baking it Down - Farmer's Markets Marketing

Baking it Down with Sugar Cookie Marketing 🍪

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