Building a Better Business without TikTok Tactics

Article and photos by Grace Hensley, Fashion Plants

Why are we so worried about learning the two-step just to show up on TikTok? It seems like we've barely mastered Instagram, or long-form videos on YouTube, when that hyped-up-on-sugar-kid TikTok took over. We throw fistfuls of dollars at online courses trying to learn the intricacies of each. However, if you don't have absolute clarity about your business, spending your time on a dance distraction wastes time. Instead, build your foundation first, then learn the nuances of social media that keep viewers watching and sharing. Let your smartphone-savvy customers market for you.

Nuances of Navel Gazing.

1. Determine what problems people have. People hire help because they want their life to be better, and they don't have the time or knowledge how to fix it. Seth Godin, the perspicacious branding and marketing expert writes, "People don't want what you make, they want what it will do for them." (This is Marketing, 2018). If you can recognize how they will feel when you solve their problem, they'll share a photo of them enjoying their new garden and rave about your business that built it.

2. Decide on what you can offer. There is no point advertising beautiful patios if you really hate laying stone, but if you're good at designing them and connecting that homeowner with a great contractor, you are providing an exceptional service. Get clear on what you love to do. And get help for what you can't do.

3. Identify your ideal client. You should look beyond the classic "Just like me, but rich" and find out what problems you are uniquely positioned to solve … Is it people like my 93-year-old father who just need help keeping the lawn mowed, or those who want to build a new patio in their garden? Maybe it's the homeowner who is frustrated with seeing their neighbors' RV, or the new gardener who wants a coach to guide them to grow their own groceries. I am, and have been, all of those people at different stages of my life.

Understanding how these three concepts interact will help you position your business; you should tweak these regularly as you gain more practical experience.

Firm up your Foundation.

4. Create your digital business card and build a website. It truly doesn't have to be more complicated than your business name and how to contact you. If you're just starting out, chose a memorable and easily spellable URL and company name. Then add basic details like About Me (or Us) and Services (What we do). As you build your portfolio, add photos as visual proof of what you can deliver. A well-developed website delivers reliability and reassurance.

5. To reach more potential clients, make sure you have a fully fleshed out Google Business account. I always do an internet search for a business and want to find your phone number (how quaint!), your open business hours, and your email (for whenever I am feeling socially awkward.) If you don't want to share your personal home address, set up your profile as a Service Area business. Ron McCabe of Everbearing Services supports digital marketing for landscape and nursery businesses. He notes that "Up to 40% of a small companys visibility is driven by their Google Business Profile, so this is vital to getting local leads." Clearly define your business categories so that you only list the services you want to offer and complete all other fields using local and relevant keywords using a natural voice, so it doesn't sound like keyword stuffing.

6. Leverage your existing clients. Simple things like a magnetic business name on your (well washed) company vehicle makes it easy for the neighbors to make note of who is working in the area. Christina Salwitz, The Personal Garden Coach, recommends putting your email on that sign instead of your phone number, or get a Google VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) for a layer of privacy. A simple Instagram or Facebook sticker next to your business name reminds drivers at a glance that they can find you on their favorite platform.

A stylish van wrap with an eye-catching logo and clear contact information is easy for the neighbors to grab a photo. Credit: Christina Salwitz

Don't be an Information Miser.

7. Provide those clients with ongoing support. Start an email list with timely and useful tips that your existing clients need to know. Sharing about spring cleanup tips, local weather conditions that affect how much watering they should be doing, or a local foodbank that would appreciate that extra row of lettuce will keep your business name foremost in their mind, so when that neighbor asks... do you know someone who can...? Why yes, they do! Katie Elzer-Peters of The Garden of Words does this beautifully with her wide ranging and humorous monthly newsletters filled with tidbits targeted for horticultural businesses. Keeping your existing clients happy is one way to get them to market for you!

Katie Elzer-Peters' Instagram feed gives practical email tips Credit: @thegardenofwordsagency

8. Establish yourself as an expert. Whether it's high quality blog posts (that you can link to in your email newsletter) or talks you can give to your community at the library, people crave authentic, reliable information. If you're the person consistently sharing information, you're the person they will remember, recommend, and hire. When you move to a social media platform, this is the same content that people want, just packaged into tiny 15 second nuggets.

9. Build each skill slowly before adding the next. Lisa Nunamaker, of the Paper Garden Workshop, teaches new landscape designers how to communicate with their clients. She has been consistent and strategic about growing, adding one social media platform at a time. Website and Blog? Yes! New people can find her. Wow, monthly email tips? Sign me up! Ready for a deep dive? Yes, she has presentations and an online course. But Lisa didn't do it all at once; she methodically added them as she mastered each one. Because our industry is so visual, it's easy to create short, digestible content for social media. She has brilliantly grown her Instagram with simple, over-the-shoulder videos of her drawing landscape graphics. I'm captivated and watch them repeatedly. You can spin your wheels by rushing to try each shiny new platform, doing all and mastering none; be like Lisa, decide where you want to spend your effort, and stay awhile.

Lisa Nunamaker speaks at a recent APLDWA workshop, demonstrating her drawing techniques. Credit: Lisa Port @banyontree

10. Lather, Rinse, Repeat. Once you are comfortable with your website, and blog or newsletter, choose a single Social Media channel where your clients are. The three social media platforms dominating today are TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. Go back to your roots and figure out how to share the story of your business, and how it makes people's lives better. It's "no longer about the stuff that you make, but the stories you tell." – Seth Godin (This is Marketing, 2018). Weave short stories with a combination of snapshots, short video clips, and well crafted images. Repurpose tidbits from your blog posts and newsletters into content for each platform you use. Retell your stories frequently; I promise you that new person who just discovered you will not have seen what you shared last month.

Repurpose your content on multiple platforms, using the built-in tools. Here Katie Elzer-Peters asks a simple question and invites viewers to click to get the whole story. Image can be cropped and reused on different platforms. Credit @thegardenofwordsagency

Embrace Video to Tell your Story.

TikTok's algorithm is designed for discovery and entertainment, not connection. If you can be amusing in 15 seconds, more people will find you for the snack. However, if you can deliver edutainment, information in an engaging way, people will stay for the meal and save, share, and return. Kim Roman shows over 100,000 new gardeners how to grow vegetables in small spaces on her channel Square Foot Gardening for You. It's not hard to find tutorials in the TikTok app itself about how to use the platform.

Instagram, noticing the appeal of Snapchat with 15 second posts that disappear after viewing, integrated this format as 'Stories'. This is a great place to practice your face-to-camera narration because you know that embarrassing angle will be gone in a day. Seeing the rapid adoption of TikTok, Instagram developed longer-form videos as 'Reels'. The ideal length here is less than 1 minute, and simple tools on your phone can clip and stitch those short 15 second moments you capture throughout your day into a brief narrative. Of course, you can also post these video reels to your Instagram grid, and now Instagram is three apps in one. Follow Instagram's @creators account for tutorials and trending information.

Videos that are at least 3 to 8 minutes long perform best on YouTube as a channel. Here, your videos have consistent staying power and you can make real money on your content, earning 55% of every advertising dollar spent by subscribers. Erin Schanen of The Impatient Gardener, is a master of integrating all her channels, referring to her YouTube videos when she talks to her Instagram audience.

Recognize Content Opportunities

1. Establish yourself as the expert with 'Explainer Content'. Talk directly to the camera and show someone how it's done, or why you made certain decisions; if you're camera shy, use a voiceover.
2. Build a bond by showing your audience short clips of 'Behind the Scenes', or 'A Day in the life of'. Bring your audience along to those site visits, share where you find materials, or what reference books you use. Even slowly drawing, or methodically weeding, with a camera over your shoulder is mesmerizing. Less visual posts, tweets (or Instagram Threads), and simple snapshots still show us the magic of what you do.
3. Interviews, tutorials, and product reviews are all strong content to provide, because it shares your authentic opinion in a noisy world. We all enjoy being in the in-club about hot new plants, like that bioluminescent petunia, which I now totally want to put in my window-box, just because.

Use platform tools to make connections by suggesting that viewers "Save this for Later", "Share with a Friend", and "Details in the comments" to retain a viewer's attention and help train the algorithm that your content is valuable. Find trending music (usually less than other 50,000 reels) and edit your post to raise or lower that background music to enhance attention.

Bust a commonly held myth sharing details in the caption. Katie Elzer-Peters reminds viewers to share their announcements in newsletters, multiple social media posts (even on the same platform), and even text messages. Credit @thegardenofwordsagency

Give it all away.

The ideal strategy for social media is to give it away. Give it all away. If you can deliver content consistently in small packages, then someone will be willing to Buy My eBook where all that content is packaged neatly, or Buy My Time where I will come and build the garden of your dreams, or speak to your group.

Seth Godin continues, "The best marketers are farmers, not hunters. Plant, tend, plow, fertilize, weed, repeat. Let someone else race around after shiny objects." If you are consistently sharing your observations and advice on one platform, it's remarkably easy for your viewers to share worthwhile content anywhere. And when you can effectively make a connection with others, they will become your evangelists and market for you.

The author getting inspirations in her mobile office at Swanson's Café. Credit: Caiti Bornicke @dottedblue