Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Destiny Mitchell . We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Destiny , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Taking care of customers isn’t just good business – it is often one of the main reasons folks went into business in the first place. So, we’d love to get a conversation going around how to best help clients feel appreciated – maybe you can share something you’ve done or seen someone do that’s been really effective at helping a customer feel valued?

I strongly believe in giving back to others. That’s something my grandparents and mom installed in me from a young age. Rather it’s doing outreach or giving back to my customers, or giving away free desserts just because. Every time I have a sale for one of the holidays, I love to surprise one of my customers with a free item. I’ll do a drawing for all the customers that purchased an item. If they order a box of chocolate covered strawberries, that has roses and a bottle of wine in it. They’ll receive a mimosa box that consists of 6 chocolate covered strawberries, a bottle of orange juice, and champagne. Or a dozen of chocolate covered pretzels. Just to name a few examples of what I may give away. I also like to surprise the kids and pick a random kid to give them a free breakable chocolate heart, with candy and toys under it. For Valentines Day this year, I decided to make 8 dozen cupcakes for the veterans at VOA in Detroit. Just to put a smile on their faces. Those are a few of the ways I show my customers and the public how much I appreciate them. My business wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for them.

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?

My business is Mama Mary’s Sauce and Dessert’s. I specialize in baking homemade desserts from scratch, using my grandmother’s recipes. I started baking at the age of 9. But my business started in 2019, in Houston when Covid started. I make homemade pound cakes, cupcakes, cheesecakes, cookies, pies, peach cobblers, my specialties apple pies and the strawberry crunch cheesecake cake, with a variety of other desserts, and chocolate covered treats. My business is named after my grandmother. She inspired me and I do use her recipes. She thought me everything I know about baking. She’s the main reason I love to cook and bake. I do it with love, as she would say. I’m most proud of the fact that I get to keep my grandmothers name and legacy alive. I feel like I’m finishing what she started with my baking and cooking. She was well known in Michigan and in Alabama for her cooking. And now with my baking and cooking, I’m following in her footsteps and continuing her legacy. That’s what she would have wanted me to do. If she was her today, she would be sitting in her chair smiling and singing. That’s what sets me apart from other bakers. I do it with love and knowing that I started out on this journey doing it with love. Baking is my passion. I love being in the kitchen.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

I used Facebook to my best advantage. I’m in A LOT of different groups on Facebook. From social groups, to Black Owned selling groups. I would start posting the items that I would be selling in all of those groups on Wednesday. With pictures, the price, how to contact me, and when the deadline is to place orders. I also have a lot of free things away to people that were known, so they could sample them and if they liked it, they would post on their Facebook and instagram pages, and promote the products for me. With me doing that, I received a lot of friend requests and my customer base grew within weeks on Facebook. I still do that four years later.

We’d love to hear about how you keep in touch with clients.

If I have their phone numbers, I send them text messages saying hi with my business name. Telling them that Mama Mary’s is having a sale going on or that the sale is coming up. I also send the menu with the prices and the pictures. If I do not have their numbers, I use social media and send them inbox messages and post on their walls. With loyal customers, when sales are going on, I still like to give them something extra. I add a small token of appreciation into the item that they purchased. To show my gratitude for their loyalty to my business.      

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://instagram.com/mamamaryssauceanddesserts?igshid=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mamamarysbbqsauceanddesserts

Image Credits
Mama Mary’s Sauce and Dessert’s