Page 17 - HC B2B Spring21

Eureka!
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By McKinley Winkle
SOCIAL MEDIA TIPS & TRICKS
If you have walked downtown on the walking mall, you have most likely seen Eureka!, previously known as Wildflower. M’Liss Bordelon, store owner, took over in November 2019, but has recently rebranded as Eurkea!. When asked, how did you choose the name of the store, M’Liss said she “wanted a name that was unique, memorable and would stick. Your name is your forefront and if it’s not inspired, that will be reflected.” Eureka! is
a fun, and exciting name as it stands out, relates to all the unique finds in the shop and even shares ties to Helena’s gold mining history.
M’Liss credits her success to great customers and the store’s presence on social media.
At first, trying to navigate social media and what type of image she wanted to portray was tricky. To start, M’Liss was wanting to be strictly professional and serious but once she started to be herself and let her personality shine through in her posts is when her engagement started to pick up. “People want
to know who you are and will gravitate towards your natural personality,” says M’Liss.
When talking about social media and digital presence it’s important not to get discouraged and remember that just because you may not be getting high engagement on posts, does not mean that people aren’t seeing them. Often times it may feel like you are yelling into the void, but people see and hear you. When it comes to owning and promoting your business, one of the most important factors
is sweat equity. This means having skin in the game and staying educated by keeping up on trends, social media, staying current and understanding what your customers want and content they like to see. It’s also good
to recognize that if you don’t enjoy it or don’t feel like you are doing a good job being active on social media and creating content to post, there is nothing wrong with outsourcing.
M’Liss handles her social media accounts but has recently outsourced to create their
website, and in turn, has increased activity. When she first took over there wasn’t a web- site at all, but M’Liss recognized the need and created one herself in the meantime, which ended up being her lifeline through the pandemic. During lockdown, M’Liss was personally doing 10-20 drop-offs per day, managed through her website, and has continued to provide this service as people are still weary of shopping in person, although her delivery load has lessened to 1-2 drop-offs per week.
Be on the lookout for Eureka! on social media and be sure to stop in next time you are downtown and discover your own “unique finds in the heart of Helena.”
Evolve Nutrition, located in the Lion’s Building Downtown is a fast-growing nutrition business. Not only do they serve delicious protein shakes, they make specialty teas, protein balls and sell other nutritional supplements. Evolve has been open for a lit- tle over a year, with July being their one-year anniversary in their current location. Evolve started off as a side business for Jamie Snyder, owner of Evolve, but quickly grew into a full-time operation.
When Evolve first started out, they were right next door to their current location in a much smaller space, serving around 30 people a day, but quickly grew into their newest space serving close to 300 people a day. In addition to growing Evolve’s customer pool, there are three new stores in the works in Helena, as well as new locations popping up in Butte and other cities across Montana. Jamie credits the success of her business 100% to their social media efforts.
When you go to a restaurant, often times you look at the pictures and what looks good rather than reading the menu in its entirety. This is the concept behind Evolve’s
social media posts. If you have ever scrolled through Evolve’s social media feed, all their posts are bright, visual, and often, include a picture of one of their shakes or teas. Having visuals and eye-catching posts is Evolve’s sole marketing strategy. “Everyone scrolls, no one really stops to read anymore,” says Jamie. To grab someone’s attention, your posts must stand out from the rest.
In addition to Evolve’s prevalent social media presence, they also use technology to track and take orders. Text in orders is 70% of their business, as it is convenient and efficient for all involved. Evolve will even respond back, thank you for your order and let you know they are working on it. They are still providing interaction with limited face to face contact which has been a plus throughout COVID. When you get to Evolve to either pick up or order, you are greeted by their friendly staff and then check-in with your phone number on their iPad, which helps them keep track of new and returning customers.
As far as managing social media and posts, it’s Jamie’s husband Shane who is the man
behind the “Gram” (Instagram that is). Jamie does all the live stream videos herself, but
as far as the graphics posted on their social media platforms, she sends the pictures to Shane, who then creates and posts to their pages. Evolve is highly active, posting three times a day every day to hit different groups and sectors of people. Only posting once a day hits such a small section of people, so they try to maximize their exposure as much as possible whether it be to new, returning,
or potential customers. When asked what posts generally do the best, Jamie was quick to answer Facebook check ins. By having customers post on their own social media and tag Evolve, they reach their customer’s circle and in turn, increase exposure.
Crediting Evolve’s success to an active social media presence, their customer base has continued to grow and thrive, averaging 5-10 new customers daily. “The customers and atmosphere are amazing. I can work 10 hours a day and it only feels like three,” says Jamie. It’s true that if you love what you do, you’ll never have to work a day in your life! If you haven’t yet, be sure to check out Evolve on Facebook and Instagram to see their specials for the day and treat yourself to a healthy shake and delicious tea.
Evolve Nutrition
SPRING 2021 B2B - A Publication of the Helena Area Chamber of Commerce 17