Cravory Cookies
https://thecravory.com
This is a local company based in Point Loma that started in 2014 by two young guys in their twenties. They have many different cookie flavors and pride themselves on releasing 6 new cookie flavors each month. They sell these cookies out of their shop and also ship via their website and also through an online distributor called Goldbelly.com. Customers can also order cookies for local delivery through Postmates and Doordash. As of right now, it seems they only have one store location but they have hopes to expand.
On their website they have links for Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest. These are easily accessible at the top right corner of their page.
Instagram- The IG page has 31,000 followers and they have over 2,000 posts averaging 1-2 posts daily. Their most recent post was about 12 hours ago and it was to advertise a 20% discount on all online orders.
Facebook- Their Facebook page has 19,692 followers with the same posts as the IG page. This is probably because of the the link with Facebook and Instagram; you can upload a post to Instagram and it will automatically link to Facebook making it much easier for businesses to engage in both simultaneously. So their most recent post was also 12 hours ago on February 8, 2021.
Twitter- Their Twitter account is much less active, with the last post dating back to July 11, 2015. This account has only 1,225 followers. They seemed to be much more active on it back then with almost daily posts throughout the year. Then after July the posts stop completely. I assume this may be because of a change in ownership in 2014.
Pinterest- Pinterest doesn't have much, they have 146 followers along with their website link and several photos of cookies. There is very little engagement on this site, but then again Pinterest isn't necessarily for direct engagement and daily updates. There are no dates on the photos so I can't tell when they last used this website.
Overall, they are a small business with a fairly strong social media presence. They are actively engaged on Facebook and Instagram with their daily posts to advertise discounts and special deals, new cookie flavors, and holiday specials.
Uncle Biff's California Killer Cookies
https://www.unclebiffskillercookies.com
Uncle Biff's is another local cookie company with a shop in Hillcrest and one also in Phoenix. This is definitely a family run business and has been around since 1987. Uncle Biff started the company after perfecting his grandmother's recipes and makes them fresh in his shop 7 days a week. They ship nationally and deliver locally all with orders placed directly through their website. They don't seem to use any other third party delivery services and social media is not strongly advertised. There are links for YouTube, Yelp, and Zagat. Other forms of social media I had to Google, but there was still very little that came up.
YouTube- This page has only 15 subscribers and a total of 3 video posts. These date back to 9 years ago on May 14, 2011.
Yelp- Their Yelp page has 821 reviews with 4.5 stars.
Zagat- This is not a social media page but they did receive praise on this site in 2014 for being one of San Diego's top 12 best chocolate chip cookies.
Instagram- This is for the Phoenix location only. I had to Google this as it was not linked on their website. This page has 235 followers and the latest post was on February 6, 2021. The Instagram was started at the end of 2019 and since then has a total of 92 posts. So their Instagram engagement is pretty limited.
Facebook- This is also only for the Phoenix location and was only found using Google. Their last post was on January 24, 2021. This page has 1,037 followers. Engagement here is also very limited.
Great American Cookies
https://www.greatamericancookies.com
This is a company that began in 1977 in Atlanta and has since expanded all over the country and has become a franchised company. They offer their signature cookie cakes, along with many different cookie flavors, cookie sandwiches, and brownies. These are said to be made fresh every day and can be delivered all over the country. They specialize in making their cookies and cookie cakes for celebrations. Their website has links to Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Facebook- This company is much larger than the first two companies I researched. Their Facebook page has 451,182 followers. Their last post was on February 7, 2021. They seem to post every few days, it is not daily.
Instagram- Their IG page has 38,000 followers and has all the same posts as Facebook and Twitter. The most recent post being February 7, 2021.
Twitter- This account has 5,484 followers with the latest post on February 7, 2021. They clearly have all their pages linked for easy manageability.
Christie Cookie Co.
Appalachia Cookie Company.
This cookie company began in 2012 by a young college kid in North Carolina. He wanted to offer late night dessert for local people. This company currently has one location in Boone, North Carolina with plans to open a second location in Charlotte. Links to Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest are shown clearly on the website. They offer wholesale options, delivery, and shipping.
Facebook- This account has17,136 followers, the most recent post was today, February 8. Posts are made daily to keep customers informed and hooked.
Instagram- This account has 26,000 followers and just like their Facebook account, posts daily and interacts with customers.
Twitter- This account has 1,571 followers. The latest post was on September 9, 2020 and then before that April, 2020. Clearly this is not their preferred social media platform.
Pinterest- This account has 141 followers and several posts of cookie photos. No clear known date for photo uploads.
Overall, after researching all these cookie companies, I have found that Facebook and Instagram are the most preferred platforms for customer engagement. This was not really a surprise to me since that is mainly what I and most people I know use the most. Instagram and Facebook are great for sharing imagery of food, which is what will draw customers in and get them to buy. It seems the older guy who owns Uncle Biff's cookies is slightly out of date with social media. This will most likely keep his business small and prevent him from growing, but then again, that may be exactly what he wants.
Social media is incredibly important these days for gaining popularity and maintaining a solid customer base. I found this research to be incredibly useful to my learning the competition for my own cookie company. It has shown me the importance of gaining on online presence on Instagram and Facebook.
Hello Joseph! Nice choice on business research! (Quick note, I wasn’t able to click the store websites from the hyperlinks on your page here.)
ReplyDeleteAlso, it’s impressive that the first cookie shop 🍪 Cravory Cookies has 2,000 post! That definitely took a lot of social media input. Looks like a fun business area to research as well!