TELUS recently challenged entrepreneurs on the TELUS Business Facebook page to share their best to-the-point and convincing elevator pitch for a chance to win one of two business productivity prize packs. With more than 100 submissions, Lindalu’s pitch was one of the top finalists.

After an injury forced Lindalu Forseth to leave her job as a leasing manager in the automotive industry, she didn’t skip a beat. She moved to Powell River from Calgary and then followed her passion by starting the Malaspina Soap Factory.

“If you’re not passionate you’re not going to survive. We started out on a shoestring, which I wouldn’t recommend,” she laughs. “But we’re still here three years later.”

Using ingredients like clay, oil, and herbs, she handcrafts colourful soaps that resemble cakes and fancy pastries. They’re sulfate, paraben, and detergent-free. “My business is all about balancing nature with science.”

Let’s talk about the process of coming up with the pitch – it’s something small businesses struggle with.

In 60 seconds or less include what the customer needs to know. You’re not begging for their business, you’re going to tell them what they need to know and why they want to buy from you. There’s emotion in there whether you’re working for yourself or someone else.

How did you pick which social media tools to use? How it has most helped you?

On Facebook you can have relationships with your prospective clients and customers who are already buying from you. By looking at the statistics I know who is looking at my product and similarly I can see statistics on my website. I have a good idea of the age ranges of my buyers – they’re mainly men and women, 35-55. The next group is women 25-35.

How do you measure the success of social media initiatives?

At this point I only have 200 or 300 friends or ‘likers’ on Facebook, but on occasion I’ll do ad words and target my audience. I have statistics at my fingertips that say I’m getting this many hits per day, per hour, this many actual visits. And these are the pages they are looking at, these are my entrance pages, these are my exit pages and this is where the business is coming from. When you have to do marketing or poll people that gets terribly expensive. So why do it when you can do it very inexpensively with social media?

Quite a few businesses struggle with building their customer base and attracting new customers with limited funds.  Your advice?

When you get a customer pay very close attention to them because it’s easier to keep a customer and less expensive, than it is to go find a new one.

How do you address customer feedback and what does it take to implement changes based on this feedback?

The customers are the experts. So the changes I’m making are product and fragrance changes and that allows me to start narrowing my lines, which saves me money and time on production.

In 2011, what technologies did you rely on to grow your business?

If I lost my computer I would really be upset. And the Internet. I’m a paid vendor and I advertise on badgerandblade.com, a male shaving forum of 40,000-50,000 men. And I market through my website. So it wasn’t just technology it was my male customers!

What do you regard as your greatest success as a business in 2011? How did you make it happen?

My greatest success is my shaving product line. It took me 18 months to two years to develop it. I launched in January and I now have three private label accounts and it’s in some stores. It’s made my Internet sales explode. My customer is not the one who likes his five-blade cartridge and the goo in the can.

What are your business goals for 2012?

To let the business grow naturally because the natural, rather than forced growth, is getting better long-term results. The people who want to carry my products or private-label them are coming to me. And you’ve got to learn more from your failure than your successes.

Amber Nasrulla is an ex-pat Canadian writer based in L.A. who specializes in profiles from business leaders and scientists to Hollywood celebrities. Her work has appeared in North American and British publications including L.A. Times, The Globe and Mail, Los Angeles Magazine, ELLE Canada, Chatelaine and London Weekly Times.

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