By Zoey Lim, Bachelor of Arts with Honours in Business and Marketing
“How did you start your online business?” I get asked this question every so often, so I thought I would share my story, in case you have the same dream as me.
Several years ago, I established a social media agency called Wildflower Social because of my passion in social media, with an aim to help new and/or existing brands to create a strong brand presence through creative and engaging content and the right marketing strategies. I loved how wildflowers grow in the wilderness, and are usually the first things to pop out of the ground after a long winter. Hence the name of my social media agency. Wildflowers are very resilient and withstand rough weather conditions, which I hope to inspire brands to have the same faith to keep on growing and flourishing.
Having worked in a digital agency before, I have always had great ideas but was never able to properly ideate as I was working more on social media management, and not so much on creatives. It was only with the establishment of my own agency that I was really able to direct the social media marketing campaigns myself, where I would help clients to generate ideas on how to attract their target audience, such as using trending topics, conversations or aesthetics.
But there were challenges along the way. The first two years of starting the business were definitely the hardest. It was the COVID-19 pandemic period, and I had to constantly be on the lookout for potential clients. At the same time, I had to think of ways to enable my business to survive with the money I had saved before I quit my previous job.
Besides that, I had to find a way to stand out from many freelancers and boutique agencies out there, who had also decided to start a business during the pandemic. The competition was tough, but I managed to get all my clients through using word-of-mouth marketing or creating relevant content on Instagram. My retainer clients include a dance company, JUMP Productions and Rebel Label, an online accessories boutique store. I have also worked with brands such as Screenkit.app, Curry Wok Singapore and NTU Graduate College.
One of the most interesting campaigns that I have developed was with Bubbleworld, a platform with curated NFT (non-fungible token) collections from known creators in the web3-verse. I worked closely with the Bubbleworld team to plan a treasure hunt to create a hype around the launch of their platform. We had fun creating puzzles and seeding the hints on Twitter for Singaporeans to find the treasure. The campaign was a great success because people worldwide also participated to help the locals solve the puzzles. We even planned an IRL (in real life) dinner.
Another interesting campaign was for an agency I was freelancing for – IMM’s 2022 West The Sale Campaign, which was meant to drive more footfall to the mall during this event period. What helped to increase the visibility and reach of the web page and campaign was the trend-jacking post we did with Ronny Chieng, an actor and comedian from Malaysia. The reel in our post went viral and got us 1,000+ new followers on Facebook and Instagram.
All this is possible because I had the benefit of taking a marketing degree course at PSB Academy, which taught me how to start my own business and helped me understand how to position it better. In particular, all the coursework and projects that I have done gave me a taste of how managing a business would be like in the real world. I also learned various marketing strategies, including the dos and don’ts of public relations (PR). These skills even landed me an internship at BLK J Agency, where I was able to learn more technical skills, providing me with the confidence to eventually start my own agency.
You may have come across certain perceptions about studying in a private education institution in Singapore, such as how it’s more difficult for the graduates to compete and get a job, or they will not earn as much as those who graduated from public institutions. I disagree with these perceptions because I feel that as long as you have a passion for something, you’ll eventually reach your desired position or goal. I didn’t let the negative connotations stop me from getting an internship (and also subsequently being offered a full-time position) and starting my own agency. Although my company currently focuses on working with startups and smaller brands, I definitely would like to expand the company in future to take on bigger projects and come up with grander and cooler campaigns!
To be a successful entrepreneur, I believe that passion and determination are important, as they drive you to want to achieve. Being action-oriented and organised also helps with setting short-term and long-term goals. I am also thankful for the support of my family because although it is not easy for the older generation to understand what I do, they still fully support me, and I think that is very important.
Finally, if you have the passion to do something, go for it! Take risks, but have a backup plan too. Learn from your mistakes, and never forget to celebrate small wins!
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