Resume: ''Boost Your Small-Scale Food Business''

The autumn 2023 workshop series "Boost Your Small-Scale Food Business" consisted of four lecture sessions conducted in close collaboration with the Yrkeshögskolan Novia project Myrsky. The workshop series was conducted in Swedish. Nathalie Aurén, a well-renowned speaker in the topics outlined in the schedule, was hired as the lecturer.

Each session lasted for three hours. Nathalie began by introducing participants to the day's topic. Subsequently, participants worked on developing their own business communication and presentation, with assistance from Nathalie, Heidi Baarman-Geust from Novia, and Mats Sabel from Proagria/Österbotten.

Workshop #1: Social Media

How should you, as a business owner, stand out amidst the noise of other media updates? How do you structure your campaigns to gain exposure and reactions on social channels? Who are your real customers, and where do you find them? What should you consider, and how can you utilize storytelling in online marketing and sales? At the end of the day, all participating businesses were expected to have outlined their marketing plans.

Workshop #2: Food and Product Photography

One of the most challenging subjects to photograph is food. What do business owners need to think about to succeed with their own photos, considering that a well-crafted photo naturally sells more? Participants received answers to questions such as whether natural or sunlight is the best light, whether the image looks too staged, and if they need to use other attributes to make their product enticing. Afterward, all participants took their own photos of their products with substantial assistance from Nathalie.

Workshop #3: Branding

How does a business create its own brand, and how extensive is the concept of branding? What considerations should be made regarding websites, labels, marketing, internal policies, storytelling, and the company's visual identity? The company's visual language (logo, colors, font) should permeate all written materials such as websites, emails, printed materials, etc. All these factors ultimately affect the company's brand, and together they form a strong factor for the overall company image. The workshop included practical exercises regarding the outward brand/image of each participating business.

Workshop #4: Digital Tools

How do you design an attractive ad on social media? What should you consider, and how do you make it look professional? What digital tools are available for newsletters, mass mailings, media campaigns, etc.? There are more free programs available online than one might think, offering these services, so why not use them? After the lecture, all participants independently designed their own ads/campaigns using the programs available and the materials they had developed during the workshop series, such as photos, graphic profiles, marketing plans, etc.

In summary, participants found the course not only beneficial but also essential. It is crucial for business owners to be visible and receive positive attention because nearly 100% of marketing today occurs via social media and various platforms. The workshop left many participants eager for more, both as further education and in entirely new subjects essential for small business owners.