Thread by @iriszio

Hey hey thanks for the follow! 😇

I got my baby @TavolozzaPH rolling in 2011 on pre-order, making 4-5 PHP figures in college. No FB ads, no Shopify, just sweat, internet tuts, an overdose of playing The Sims, MythWar, GTA + pure hard code & hard work.

How I did it? 👇[THREAD]

https://twitter.com/Larrey_17/status/1050604715824697345

Didn't know shit in business nor marketing. I don't even know what career I would have had but I had "alright" skills growing up:

I know how to:
1. Draw so I got a good eye for design
2. People-watch
3. Write (loved writing short stories, even pirated a Harry Potter spin-off!)

And another very crucial thing: I AM SO IN LOVE WITH LEARNING. If I liked something I'd learn it.

Liked to make good posters? Learned graphic design.
Liked a website? Learned how to code.
Liked Sims furniture? Learned how to custom made one.

Key was: I'd ALWAYS find a way.

How I built @TavolozzaPH then as a college teen was how I also built my famous (now defunct) first blog that raked in 4 PHP figures using my common sense:

I was building it from a customer standpoint (without knowing this was THE KEY to effective sales).

"Would I buy this?"

My common sense w/o textbook business admin degree fluff were:

1. Good design = eyecatchy = people would like it
2. Observed how brick & mortar stores sell, so figured I'd convert their strategy online + observed mall customers
3. Wrote my copy as if I'm their friend

And the biggest that @TavolozzaPH was known for was: Amazing customer service.

If you'll check my reviews on Facebook, out of 21 people, most are 5 stars: facebook.com/pg/Tavolozza.S…

Back in 2011, shops were very "business-y" so while they're doing X, I thought to do Y.

How?👇

PRODUCTS:
Followed my gut. That time Korean fashion, #HarryPotter & #HungerGames were all the rage. Didn't know that was niche so just went with logic. X Passionate Fans = X Passionate Buyers

SERVICE:
2011, most shops were "business-y", trying to be a mall. I talked as a friend.

AFTER-SALES:
I just did what'd convince me to buy all-in as a customer (cause I started the shop because I liked what I sold -- clothes, HP fan merch & Hunger Games trinkets):

- locked a 7-day moneyback guarantee
- free ship for x amount of order
- customer check-in & follow-up

The customer follow up went like this: "Hi NAME, how've you been? It's been X days since you bought us. Thank you sooo much btw! We appreciate you! How's the item & the service/delivery? Is there any issue?"

They'd give me feedback. Then I get so damn high I'd do more for them.

If the review was...

👍Good = link them to review the shop
👎Bad = link them to Google Form to fill in the details of their issue

My rule was to solve ALL issues whether customer, sales or brand-related within 12-24 hours

(Also cause I was just a clueless kid on time mgmt lol)

Another growth factor: I WAS VERY INTERACTIVE way before social media interaction was the norm for brands.

(Cause again, bored college student who was too available even at wee hours haha!)

I would:

- reply to my customers comments whenever they drop "cute" I'd say "I know right?!"
- thank them profusely even if they haven't bought yet just for dropping by the store (senpai notice me lol)
- make them feel good on the inside (this was the concept of my store)

💸PAYMENTS:
I made paying way too easy for them (even if it was inconvenient for me). I thought my customers deserve the best so I opened MULTIPLE PAYMENT CHANNELS, including remittance.

(So that's me doing the biz admin work, sales, photoshoot, marketing AND collecting too!)

ME AS A CUSTOMER SPENDING: If I wanted to buy something, I thought...

- shortened journey = less time for me to double-think/rationalise the purchase = less resistance
- easier payment channels win my heart
- fast payment meant I'm getting my order soon I think (excitement)

PROMOS: As my own customer, I thought promos are so boring. I'd need to be excited and the prizes have to be worth it for me to haul my lazy ass to join.

So:
- did a giveaway with prize (cost me <$20-30, yielded 514 shares)
- mid-promo, I show the entries
- after-promo: proof

SHIPPING: Made sure my customers were updated. Kept them on their toes.

Quick shipping
= less worry for me
= less worry for my customers
= everyone wins

This was 2011, mind you. So I had no fancy ass website than I do now: tavolozzaph.com

(No realtime sales widget too)

BRANDING: Before Instagram themed feeds were all the hype, I thought of curating my account, treating it as an art show (I went to art/design college, BS Interior Design).

I wanted to be pleased so just tried to be cute-sy & inspirational with the feed. I went with my culture.

CLOSED / MAINTENANCE STATUS: Whenever I close the shop for some internal issue, I'd use cute or beautiful photos to lessen my customer's sadness/pain. I mean... c'mon!

PUPPIES ARE FUCKING HARD TO BE UPSET ABOUT if it's saying an inconvenient news, amirite?

(No biz degree here)

2012: @TavolozzaPH hibernated. I fell into depression after my college fall-out and my 1st marriage gone wrong (lol yea I was married once at 20). Lost taste in life so sales/momentum? GONE.

I revived Tavo in 2014, thinking "Heck I could do it again!"

And I did. I went viral.

I did tested on beta stocks (12 pcs) of these cute armcandy bracelets. I found em on Ebay then for <$1. I bid on a lot and won and then posted the pic of the lot even before receiving it.

Got buzz, my loyal fans (who still love me after 2 years omg 😭❤️) got curious, they asked.

This was my first foray on FB ads. I boosted that collection for I think $20? Can't remember. Anyway! Got tons of waiting customers. It was fun!

Lesson here?

We don't need fancy stuff to start, just idea + gut + action to begin.

Hope this answered your question @Barsa79412843!

BONUS: more deets in case you want to replicate this.

- Pre-order stocks were in range of <$1-2 for accessories & $10-15 for apparel
- Flipped w/ profit margin of 100% to 300-400%
- Built a SOLID community, even right now I'm still raking in fans (see below) w/o doing anything.