Tell me about solutions, not problems!
Tell me about solutions, not problems! This guide will help anyone who has little to ZERO dollars to start or grow their brand online. The experience I will share is solely based off the success of our “Pretty Elephant” tee design which sold out in a week after releasing it via our online shop. This article will outline what we did from start to finish and how we managed to execute a marketing strategy with ZERO experience in the field. I will provide as many resources as I can from memory that will allow you to tailor this guide to your specific needs. Before we get into the meat of things let me start by sharing a story to set the tone for this guide
The Precursor: My brand was without movement and progress for about 1 year before I decided to get up and start doing the necessary things for it to grow. There were times when I asked myself if this was really what I wanted to do being that I had a decent job and moving up in my company was and still is very achievable especially for a go-getter like myself. It took a close friend crying to me over a very deep phone call to boost my motivation enough to continue on with this brand. From that point on, I realized that the path to success is very clear – and very easy! The problem was the brand was stagnant, there was little to no traffic to the site for months – and during that time, i didn’t really use any of our social media accounts to progressively stay current with our followers. I was definitely in a rut. The only pieces we released were the OG LOGO (logo changed after that) and the Au Gold t-shirts. What was the correct way to rejuvenate a stale brand or for the sake of argument let’s ask “Why would anyone buy from our brand?” The budget we had for any new release at that time was ZERO. During that time, I relocated to Philly with my company and spent all my resources (time, money, value) making myself more marketable to suit them. There wasn’t even enough money to pay for my website hosting. I lost all viable contacts and didn’t preserve any of our early relationships with printers, artists or customers.
The Change: The reason I wanted to share that story was to give you an idea of where the state of the brand was and how possible it is to overcome and get back on track even if you tried, failed and failed some more. The point is that if you are trying to build your brand from scratch you will have more pitfalls than victories but the bigger the failure – the sweeter the rewards. Remember, we had ZERO budget and some old designs stashed away from 2011. The good thing to note is that designs are only old to you if never released. I remember feeling like I was not succeeding because I didn’t have any fresh new designs to release but then I realized that you can pretty much use what you already have and make it work. PERIOD. Before we continue to the selling aspect of this guide lets sidestep to the changes you have to make within yourself first. Ideas come to those who are open to receive, utilize and execute them with definitive actions behind it. It was this past June when I decided to take 100% responsibility for my thoughts and actions without complaining or blaming others for the circumstances I was in. Once I stopped complaining and saying things like, “This will never be what I want,” “I don’t have the money for a collection.” “Who is going to buy from us now” or “Is this design even good enough to release” – amazing things started to take shape in my personal life, which ultimately is a mirror reflection of my brand’s life. Instead of focusing on the problems, I geared all my energy in allowing for positive solutions and as a result, I completely transformed how I think. I remember I would start believing in my brand and visualize an email that stated YOU OUR OUT OF STOCK – ALL ITEMS ARE SOLD OUT. I took the focus off of what others were doing to free up my mind space for my own personal and entrepreneurial goals. If you are visiting the websites of top brands in your market – just stop. They are not focused on you. If you look at them as competition then they are, but if you look at them as sharing space equally with you in a win-win situation then they will. Tell your own story, and cultivate your own space.
The Solution: After months (I changed myself so rapidly and in a short space of time, the energy and vibrations that I was receiving in the form of opportunities kept coming at a scary pace) of reading, writing out my goals, rebuilding my old network and re-branding Preferred Classics through the website’s content the solution came to me during a late night session at the gym. I asked myself: What was stopping me from releasing a t-shirt RIGHT NOW, like today, like get the hell off this treadmill and get it DONE. The answers were blatant: no money, no marketing, no shirts, no printer, no packaging … endless. The answer that my new thought process came up with was that nothing is stopping me. The only internal or external thing that can stop you from succeeding is yourself, no one cares about you and your little brand as much as you do. Remember, the circumstances you are in were created by you. Therefore, nothing should stop you from doing whatever you want regardless of what the old negative mind wants to believe. I quickly hopped off the treadmill because the answer came to me so intensely and so powerful, like a ton of bricks crashing and surely I wanted to experience it instantly. All this time after years of stagnation the simple piece to the puzzle was solved. This guide will explain exactly the steps I followed to not only release a t-shirt design but will also present the strategies I took to sell every one of them.
The Outcome: This past summer has taught me so much about being a great person and creating good in all that I do. This is why after many attempts to break down what Preferred Classics meant, I was finally able to create the brand’s identity when my own identity was aligned. I am forever grateful of the knowledge I gained during this time and although I am not an expert nor do I make millions from this brand (not yet =]) I am willing to share my experience so that it may speak to at least 1 person who may be seeking a guide such as this to continue following their dream and passion in order to validate their goals.
The Precursor: My brand was without movement and progress for about 1 year before I decided to get up and start doing the necessary things for it to grow. There were times when I asked myself if this was really what I wanted to do being that I had a decent job and moving up in my company was and still is very achievable especially for a go-getter like myself. It took a close friend crying to me over a very deep phone call to boost my motivation enough to continue on with this brand. From that point on, I realized that the path to success is very clear – and very easy! The problem was the brand was stagnant, there was little to no traffic to the site for months – and during that time, i didn’t really use any of our social media accounts to progressively stay current with our followers. I was definitely in a rut. The only pieces we released were the OG LOGO (logo changed after that) and the Au Gold t-shirts. What was the correct way to rejuvenate a stale brand or for the sake of argument let’s ask “Why would anyone buy from our brand?” The budget we had for any new release at that time was ZERO. During that time, I relocated to Philly with my company and spent all my resources (time, money, value) making myself more marketable to suit them. There wasn’t even enough money to pay for my website hosting. I lost all viable contacts and didn’t preserve any of our early relationships with printers, artists or customers.
The Change: The reason I wanted to share that story was to give you an idea of where the state of the brand was and how possible it is to overcome and get back on track even if you tried, failed and failed some more. The point is that if you are trying to build your brand from scratch you will have more pitfalls than victories but the bigger the failure – the sweeter the rewards. Remember, we had ZERO budget and some old designs stashed away from 2011. The good thing to note is that designs are only old to you if never released. I remember feeling like I was not succeeding because I didn’t have any fresh new designs to release but then I realized that you can pretty much use what you already have and make it work. PERIOD. Before we continue to the selling aspect of this guide lets sidestep to the changes you have to make within yourself first. Ideas come to those who are open to receive, utilize and execute them with definitive actions behind it. It was this past June when I decided to take 100% responsibility for my thoughts and actions without complaining or blaming others for the circumstances I was in. Once I stopped complaining and saying things like, “This will never be what I want,” “I don’t have the money for a collection.” “Who is going to buy from us now” or “Is this design even good enough to release” – amazing things started to take shape in my personal life, which ultimately is a mirror reflection of my brand’s life. Instead of focusing on the problems, I geared all my energy in allowing for positive solutions and as a result, I completely transformed how I think. I remember I would start believing in my brand and visualize an email that stated YOU OUR OUT OF STOCK – ALL ITEMS ARE SOLD OUT. I took the focus off of what others were doing to free up my mind space for my own personal and entrepreneurial goals. If you are visiting the websites of top brands in your market – just stop. They are not focused on you. If you look at them as competition then they are, but if you look at them as sharing space equally with you in a win-win situation then they will. Tell your own story, and cultivate your own space.
The Solution: After months (I changed myself so rapidly and in a short space of time, the energy and vibrations that I was receiving in the form of opportunities kept coming at a scary pace) of reading, writing out my goals, rebuilding my old network and re-branding Preferred Classics through the website’s content the solution came to me during a late night session at the gym. I asked myself: What was stopping me from releasing a t-shirt RIGHT NOW, like today, like get the hell off this treadmill and get it DONE. The answers were blatant: no money, no marketing, no shirts, no printer, no packaging … endless. The answer that my new thought process came up with was that nothing is stopping me. The only internal or external thing that can stop you from succeeding is yourself, no one cares about you and your little brand as much as you do. Remember, the circumstances you are in were created by you. Therefore, nothing should stop you from doing whatever you want regardless of what the old negative mind wants to believe. I quickly hopped off the treadmill because the answer came to me so intensely and so powerful, like a ton of bricks crashing and surely I wanted to experience it instantly. All this time after years of stagnation the simple piece to the puzzle was solved. This guide will explain exactly the steps I followed to not only release a t-shirt design but will also present the strategies I took to sell every one of them.
The Outcome: This past summer has taught me so much about being a great person and creating good in all that I do. This is why after many attempts to break down what Preferred Classics meant, I was finally able to create the brand’s identity when my own identity was aligned. I am forever grateful of the knowledge I gained during this time and although I am not an expert nor do I make millions from this brand (not yet =]) I am willing to share my experience so that it may speak to at least 1 person who may be seeking a guide such as this to continue following their dream and passion in order to validate their goals.
