of going out with friends to have tea and light afternoon treats. We offer take-out as well, but our interior gives the impression of a ‘special’ expe- rience and not somewhere people can pop-in on the go as well. Navigating this change has been slower going than we’d expected. Q: How do you drum up the kind of excite- ment that lands your business to be featured in Chatelaine as one of the top 10 places you ‘must see’ on a tour of Nova Scotia? Branding and positioning our messaging in a mul- titude of ways. From the outset we knew that encouraging engagement with our loyal customers and poten- tial audience was key to gaining ground in a small community. We decided on the ‘personality’ —or brand voice—of our messages to inspire our fol- lowers to interact with us via comments, sharing recipes and tagging their friends. Our photography is high quality, the kind of standard you would expect from a lifestyle magazine and inspired by the heritage of After- noon Tea. We aim to evoke memories of long-past traditions and convey expertise in presentation. We’ve also been comfortable asking for coverage. From editorial coverage in large magazines to Tri- pAdvisor recommendations, we’ve been confident in our offerings and have no problem requesting the coverage needed to spread the word about our shop. Q. How does brand visibility help your business stand up against larger chains and a small pop- ulation? We started with the idea of an atypical eating experience serving quality food and backed it up with a professional logo. By investing in our branding up front, we were able to convey a high standard for quality and attention to detail in all of our messaging. Because professional photography is a part of our branding standards, we’ve been able to convey the excellence of our services and also expand our offerings without causing confusion for our
loyal customer base. We started including evening events, catering and a baked to order catalogue— and our customers accepted all of these with the understanding that they could expect the same level of quality they’ve always received under the Birkinshaw’s banner. You can find the examples of our branding in action on our Facebook page and our website.
STRATIGRO Next up is a very different rural business model. Stratigro, which readers of Spotlight on Business Magazine will know is a service-based business located in Saint-Alphonse, helping entrepre- neurs position themselves as experts, build rela- tionships and attract the right customers. Denise Alison, founder and CEO of the company, helps business owners decide on what valuable content to share on social media and live video to reach their audience building goals. Denise is also the creator and host of ‘The Art of Online Marketing Live Show,’ a weekly Live show and as you know an author of a monthly column ‘Grow your business with Social Media’ in Spot- light on Business Magazine, that shares tips and strategies to help entrepreneurs make an impact with their social media efforts. To be able to serve a larger audience, Denise shifted her skills into a training course called ‘The Live Video Formula,’ a training course devel- oped specifically for entrepreneurs to walk them
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SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE • APRIL 2019
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