
Featured Biz – Classy Girl Cupcakes
Updated: October 11, 2023
Published: November 22, 2011
The Featured Biz blog spotlights businesses and organizations in Milwaukee, WI and surrounding communities who do an outstanding job using social media.
Organization: Classy Girl Cupcakes
City: Cathedral Square Park – Milwaukee, WI
Social Media Outlets:
Classy Girl Cupcakes:
Women Behind the Avatar:
Erica Elia (Left) & Sara Elia (Right)
Owners – Classy Girl Cupcakes Milwaukee
When did you start using social media for your business?
We started our Facebook fan page in the early catering days as a way to connect with customers that we couldn’t really see face to face in a bricks and mortar store. Then when we started planning for the store opening, everyone got really excited and our fan base grew exponentially.
Did you have a plan or strategy when you started or did that evolve as you began using it more?
Our use of social media really evolved as we started to see how we could interact with our customers through Facebook. We started by posting mouth watering photos of our cupcakes, photos of weddings and events we’ve catered, and general information. Once we opened the bakery, we posted cupcake flavors we have in stock, invitations to events, and photos of new flavors to get people talking about us. We actually have some customers who will stop in or send their devoted hubbies in every time we post a new flavor!
Our biggest development to date has been the Crazy Cupcake Auction. We cater so many weddings and events that we often end up with extra cupcakes with decorations that we don’t normally sell in the bakery. So we auction them off in lots on Facebook, and our fans can bid by commenting on the post. The highest bidder comes in to pick up the order, and they get a great deal while we get paid something for cupcakes we couldn’t normally sell. Auctions have been a way for us to create more interest in our page and make loyal customers who actually see real value in being our Facebook fans.
Auctions are also the only way we have decided to discount our product going forward, as we don’t want to become known as a place where you can always find a deal or a discount somewhere. We have tried Groupon and LivingSocial in the past, which unfortunately didn’t work for us, because the way those programs are structured doesn’t really fit the capacity of our bakery.
Our strategy going forward is to create a desirable product that people don’t mind paying full price for, and if they want the chance at a special promotion, the only way to get the news is by following our Facebook fan page. Closely. Because the auctions are over quickly, so our fans don’t want to miss them!
Has anything ever gone viral that was posted as your business? If so, what and how?
Not that we’ve really heard. If you uncover something, by all means let us know! 🙂
How do you measure your social media success?
Well, our Facebook fan base keeps growing steadily, and our monthly active users is pretty high. Even if we get one customer though our doors from something we posted on Facebook, we consider that a success, because they wouldn’t have known about us otherwise. Our Crazy Cupcake Auctions are a real measure of success in themselves, because we are creating revenue through an advertising outlet that costs us nothing but our creativity and a few minutes of our time.
What advise for social media do you want to offer our readers?
I think there are two levels to using social media successfully, and this is just from personal observation, not anything I’ve researched.
The first level is trying to create buzz and interest in the product, and that allows you to really only capture people’s attention on a limited basis.
The second level is offering something of value to make it worthwhile for for people to interact with you on social media. Some businesses do it with coupons and codes, and while that will raise interest and generate sales, the codes are usually searchable by the public who can just use the coupon code without any further interaction. Try to offer something of value through social media that holds interest, creates loyalty, and generates revenue. Easier said than done, but when you hit on the right thing for your business, it will really pay off!
Any additional information or social media links you’d like to add?
In the photo, I’m on the left, and my business partner/best friend/sister-in-law Sara Elia is on the right. Our story is on the About Our Company page on our website if you’re interested!
Contact Keystone Click to improve your social media execution!