Jess Ballard: “The InstaMind Changed My Life”
When Jessica Ballard of Ballard Crafts joined the InstaMind, little did she know the immediate and far-reaching effect it would have on her business and life in general.
Find out more about the InstaMind through Jess’ eyes, what she got out of it, and why she believes it’s the best investment everyone should make for their business.
Who are Ballard Crafts?
Ballard Crafts was founded at the beginning of 2018 by Jess, a graphic designer from Manchester. Selling mainly through Etsy, Jess designs wedding stationery for brides on a budget.
Having only used Instagram for its filters in the past, to edit photos and post them straight to Facebook, Jess admits she had absolutely no idea of the potential of Instagram for making sales. It wasn’t something she’d considered, and she’d certainly never sold through the platform.
So when she heard about Kimba Digital’s free 5-day #instabizweek challenge in a Facebook business networking group she was intrigued and decided to join up.
Why did Jess join the InstaMind?
Having taken part in the #instabizweek challenge in February 2019, Jess realised she could be making Instagram work harder for her business. And while implementing Kimba’s tips and advice over the course of the 5 days she was amazed to find she got leads and even made her first direct sale via Instagram.
She was hooked, and knew as soon as we announced the InstaMind, that she wanted to be a part of it – especially once she’d seen the glowing testimonials from the previous group. The problem was the cost.
As a mum of three young children on one wage plus her business earnings, she didn’t feel she could afford the lump sum required. But as soon as Kimba announced her payment plan options Jess signed herself up. She says it was a no brainer.
And what did she think of it?
We’ll let her tell you in her own words:
“On the InstaMind, Kimba literally covers every nook and cranny of Instagram; everything you can use it for. How to gain leads, how to get sales, how to find your ideal clients, how to set out your grid…anything that will benefit you and showcase your business in the best way possible. There’s so much to it.
It’s personalised too, never one size fits all. If there’s ever a point when Kimba’s teachings don’t work for your particular business, she’ll pull you aside and help you work out a different way of doing it instead. This happened when we were looking at grid layout as Kimba suggested using only three colours for consistency. But since my designs come in all different colours for different brides, I couldn’t do it this way. So Kimba had a chat with me and suggested colour blocking – focusing on complementary groups of colours for a number of posts and then moving to different ones. This works brilliantly for me.
And Kimba is great. She’s a really lovely person, so genuine and easy to get along with. But she’s not afraid to tell you straight. If you suggest something that she thinks won’t work for your business she’s not afraid to step up and say, ‘look, I don’t think this is going to work, try this instead.’ “
But more importantly what results has she seen?
Having never made a sale through Instagram before, Jess says that the biggest thing she’s got from the InstaMind is the belief that it is a massive platform for business sales, and the confidence to make it work for her.
Jess’ Instagram account is linked to her Etsy shop and since taking part in the InstaMind her sales have “skyrocketed” beyond her wildest dreams. So much so that she’s taken on an employee and her husband has left his job to work with her in the business, making it their sole family income.
On June 14th of this year Ballard Crafts hit 1,000 sales and credited Kimba and the InstaMind with helping to transform the business in such a wonderful way. In fact, currently Jess is regularly receiving around 100 orders through Instagram every week.
Remember, back in January she’d never even had one!
Jess says:
“The InstaMind is amazing and everyone should do it. It’s one of the best things that’s happened for my business, but also for me personally as well – my life is completely different – I actually feel like I’m successful now and that’s because of Kimba and the course.”
This is an incredible testament to how hard Jess has worked, but it’s also proof that this stuff works.
Anything else you’d like to know? You can find jess (and check out her beautiful grid!) at: @BallardCrafts on Instagram.
Find out more about the InstaMind and sign up to be part of the next wonderful cohort of businesses starting in May.
