Content marketing and building a relationship with customers with Karen Martin of My Pets Ashes (episode 210)
Karen Martin is the owner of My Pets Ashes, an award winning store that helps pet lovers work out what to do with their pets ashes. Founded in 2016 they now turnover £350k.
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About the Business
- Located in Devon, UK
- Exports to the USA and Australia
- On WooCommerce
Getting Started
Karen started in eCommerce after a failed attempt to go back to work following the birth of her twins. Having three boys under the age of 4 was not compatible with the typical 9-5 and like a lot of moms, Karen felt that the time spent at work needed to be focused, not squabbling over inconsequential details.
Around the same time, her partner Rich had written an article giving advice to people on what to do with cremation ashes. Seeing the extreme lack of advice and resources for people regarding that process, the couple started their website scattering-ashes.co.uk.
It was after the death of the family cat, April, and an awful experience at a pet crematorium that Karen started doing serious research into grieving and loss around pets.
She said there were very few resources on the subject and that’s how My Pet’s Ashes was born. Part resource central and part eCommerce, My Pet’s Ashes offers guidance to grieving pet owners and has a range of beautifully crafted objects for purchase.
Listen to learn how Karen has built content by being a go to resource for pet owners looking for advice on how to deal with their pet’s ashes.
Business and Grief.
Karen is especially attuned to the grief that the death of a pet can have on an individual or a family. She is currently working on a 12 part series about dealing with grief that includes mindfulness exercises and gentle reminders for self care.
Much of the content on the site is devoted to helping customers work through their grief and have a sense of peace in regard to the loss of their pet. Her dedication and genuine care for people dealing with the death of a beloved pet has helped the company establish themselves as a leader in the field.
Besides offering great content My Pet’s Ashes works with a variety of local crafts people to produce high quality memorials. Whether owners are planning to bury the ashes of their pet or keep them in a memorial, My Pet’s Ashes offers a wide variety of options.
Team
The in office team is comprised of Karen, her partner Rich and a single employee.
A major component of the business is customer service, and the company has always outsourced phone calls to a company in Scotland. Because it’s crucial to have good customer service when dealing with bereavement, creating a strong relationship with the call center was essential. Rather than hiring a big box call service center, Karen hired a small company owned by a woman that Karen says she clicked with immediately.
The call center is prepped and can answer most questions coming in, but they also carefully screen calls and pass them up to Karen or her team when the need arises.
Content Marketing
My Pet’s Ashes is content heavy—something that Kara says was crucial because of how little information was available regarding pet cremation and burial. A lot of customers come to the company with questions about burial and cremation and a big part of their job is tracking down good answers.
My Pet’s Ashes is currently positioned as the leading expert in the industry and their free education by way of the blog draws in potential customers. Building a strong relationship with customers has been a key foundation of their business, something Kara says they take very seriously, largely because they are dealing with death.
eCommerce Book Top Tip
- On Brand by Wally Olins
eCommerce Traffic Top Tip
- Word of mouth is an essential marketing tool for brands that are thoughtful, rather than impulse buys.
Tool Top Tip
- Canva—great for people who aren’t graphic design experts
Growth Top Tip
- Believe and put yourself out there
Interview Links
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