We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Amanda Haywood a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Amanda, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Do you manage your own social media?

Since the start of my business, I have chosen to manage my own social media. I must admit, when I first started I thought that this would be easy to navigate, being that I have utilized social media in my personal life. However, I found that I had so much to learn because social media is a landscape that is constantly evolving! One of the things that has helped me in navigating this space is collaborating with other young entrepreneurs who, like me, use Instagram as their primary form of marketing. Surrounding myself with individuals who are also learning how to grow a business on social media has allowed us to swap ideas, share mistakes and overall grow at a faster pace.

Another thing that has been helpful while managing my social media, is that there are so many other balloon decor businesses that I follow, take notes from, or even reach out to for advice. Paying attention to what others are putting out helps me to stay up to date on what is trending and what will drive more traffic to my page.

Lastly, I have found that consistency is key! Posting daily whether it be pictures, stories, or reels is so important! When I am putting out relevant content on a consistent basis, I have the most growth in followers and traction to my website. While it can be tricky, I can say first hand that, social media is an excellent and affordable way for new entrepreneurs to get their businesses off the ground.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Wood’s Party Shop LLC is a balloon decor company that installs unique balloon garlands, and sells creative DIY balloon garlands on Etsy! We pride ourselves in creating unique and detailed experiences for each client as they celebrate their special moments. As the owner of Wood’s Party Shop I absolutely love that our clients trust us with their most precious moments! My favorite part about having both an events service and a store is that, we have the opportunity to impact events beyond our community

Wood’s Party Shop LLC is actually something that I started during the Pandemic. Before the pandemic hit, I was pursuing my passion, which was working full time in the events industry. However, during March of 2020, like many others, I lost my job due to Covid 19. During the quarantine, I found myself trying to make things a bit lighter in my house by having fun birthday celebrations (with just my household of course). One of the ways I would decorate was creating balloon garlands. To create these garlands, I would order different parts from various Amazon sellers, or even find supplies around the house. It was during this time that I thought to myself “I should be able to buy this all in one place, as a kit”. From there, my entrepreneurial wheels began turning. I started doing research, sourcing materials, and just a couple of months later I opened my Etsy store, Wood’s Party Shop LLC. The slow but consistent success of my Etsy store definitely proved to me that there was a demand for my type of product and room for my shop in the market.

As the pandemic began to let up, people were becoming more comfortable with having small gatherings again. This lead to many request for balloon garlands however, more and more clients did not want a DIY Kit, they wanted me to put a balloon garland together for them. This is what lead Wood’s Party Shop LLC to expand to both a retail and service business. The demand for balloon installations really began to snowball. This was an unexpected but welcome pivot for my business. I had a lot to learn, from figuring out a formal client intake process, to learning all of the logistics that come with balloon garland installations. However I have come to love doing balloon installs, as it allows me and my team to tap further into our creativity. Even though this was not an easy adjustment, it showed me that I am right where I am supposed to be in this industry.

Overall adapting to being a new business owner in a constantly changing industry has proven to be both challenging and very rewarding. Running my business has allowed me to continue to do what I love, which is making my client’s events extra special, whether it be through a balloon installation or a DIY Kit.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

The most effective strategy for growing my clientele has been to consistently posting on both my personal and business Instagram pages. When it comes to marketing, repetition is key and I want my business to be a first thought to anyone who knows me, when they are planning an event. That means, my work needs to be showing up on their feed multiple times a week, whether it be a reel, a picture, a video or a funny quote. I have had my personal Instagram since I was probably 13 years old, I say that to say, my personal page has quite a bit more followers than my business page. So, I utilize both followings to make sure that I am top of mind to both audiences. I have had clients reach out to me that I have not seen since middle school! But they see me constantly posting what I do so they reach out to me first. Social Media has given my business an amazing amount of exposure so I always tell myself, “you never know who is watching (or who they may know), just keep posting!”

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

The best source of new Clients as it pertains to my events services, has been word of mouth. The area that I run my business is also the area I have lived in for 26 years. Needless to say I know a lot of people, who do a great job of spreading the word to their friends and loved ones.

For my Etsy store, my best source of new clients is Etsy advertisement. Etsy allows sellers to market on their website for a fee. They will boost your products in their searches, as well as suggest your items to buyers who may be looking at similar products. This has proven to work well in driving sales for my shop.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.etsy.com/shop/WoodsPartyShop
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/woodspartyshopllc?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
• Other: Event Inquiry Form: https://form.jotform.com/220383790826158