We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Damion And Charlinda Santiago. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Damion and Charlinda below.

Damion and Charlinda, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

We have enjoyed rockhounding as a hobby since 2010 and have always enjoyed hitting the trail to search for and collect natural gemstone specimens. Once our son was old enough to join us, we realized even as a child, he enjoyed the thrill of the hunt for crystals just as much as we did. We started off selling at-home dig kits but wanted to create a more interactive and immersive experience.

We soon developed our special dig tables and came up with a list of themes that would work well a hands-on mining experience. Not long after, we started selling tickets online and hosting themed gemstone mining experiences in our driveway. We had a tremendous amount of interest and would sell out every event.

From there we were ready to take our gems mining experiences to the public and spent the next year doing private events and birthday parties as well as setting up at local famer’s markets and vendor fares. The number one question we were asked was, “Where is your shop?”. We knew we were on to something, and it was time to open our own storefront.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

At Kidz Digz, we offer a fun and educational way for children and families to learn about gemstones and fossils through our unique mining experiences. By walk-in or appointment, children can choose from one of our 4 themed dig stations. Our dig station themes are Minecraft, VIP Premium, Gems & Fossils and our brand-new station, Glow Stones, that features UV reactive gems. Kids get to dig for a variety of gems and/or fossils at each station, learn about their finds, and take home a selection of their favorites.

In addition to our Daily Digs, we offer a variety of classes that offer more in-depth learning on gemstones, fossils, earth science, geology and more. Classes can be scheduled daily, for one student or a full class. We are a proud vendor for several local charter schools and accept charter funds for both our Daily Digs and Classes.

Kidz Digz also loves to host birthday parties, and we offer a variety of themes to choose from or can custom create any theme to meet your child’s interests. Parties consist of a complete themed dig experience, gems and/or fossils for guests to take home as a party favor and we provide you the space after the dig to continue your party and serve your guests refreshments of your choice.

Kidz Digz is not just a child’s destination, as we also offer adult digs and classes for a “Adults Night Out.” Our shop is a place that anyone of any age can come to learn and take home real gemstones and fossils!

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Having previously owned a photography, videography and social media marketing business, our social media has been a very important piece to our business since day one. When we first started selling tickets for our “driveway events”, we found our customers exclusively on local Facebook groups. As we have continued to grow, so has our social media and the number one key to engagement is creative content. Since our business is so unique, it’s important to show our followers and potential customers just exactly what Kidz Digz is and everything we offer. Doing this is a fun, interactive and consumable way has been key to follower engagement and customer leads.

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

The number one way our potential customers find us now that we have a physical location is through Google. At this time, we do not pay for any Google advertising. We have spent a great deal of time making sure our Google business listing is complete and accurate along with maximizing our SEO. With every customer that walks through our doors, our goal is to provide them with the very best service and experience we can. This in turn has fostered authentic positive Google reviews that not only helps with our Google placement, but also allows future customers to know exactly what they can expect when they visit Kidz Digz.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://kidzdigz.square.site/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kidzdigzfun/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kidzdigzfun
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@KidzDigz
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/kidz-digz-murrieta