Gill Bullock, Swan Brewery – Brewing a successful business

Brewing a successful business

“I was slightly sceptical at first about the types of people who would be there and whether I would benefit, but when I went along and realised that the other participants were just ordinary business ladies too. I thought to myself ‘well it must be ok’ and I didn’t look back. I’ve now seen real sales generated as a direct result of the work I am doing on social media, which I wouldn’t have been able to do as successfully without attending the sessions.”

Gill Bullock is one very busy lady. As well as having two small children and working part-time in the food industry, Gill and her husband have set up Swan Brewery, a micro-brewery near Leominster in Herefordshire. While Gill’s husband Jimmy does the brewing and deliveries, Gill is responsible for the company’s finances, marketing, sales, website and social media.

Generating sales through social media

Gill set about straight away with business networking and quickly found herself on a mailing list which included information about the Faster Women workshops. Gill had already been dabbling with social media personally, but wanted to understand more about how to develop her audiences, get Swan Brewery noticed and be able to use more tools and shortcuts.

Gill has now attended two of the Faster Women workshops, one focusing on social media and the other on using online tools to increase productivity in small businesses.

“The sessions I attended were pitched at exactly the right level” says Gill, “and gave me the assurance that focusing online and on social media was the right thing to do for our business.”

The sessions also gave Gill the opportunity to make new acquaintances, many of whom Gill now regularly comes across on social media. “It’s been interesting to meet people first and then make connections with them online, whereas often you meet people on social media and then come across them later.”

The bottom line, for Gill, is that Swan Brewery has seen sales generated as a direct result of her activity on social media since she has been part of Faster Women. “We’ve had three new accounts recently through engaging with pubs on twitter or facebook and opening a dialogue with them” says Gill. “These are measurable benefits to our business and wouldn’t have happened without the confidence I have developed from attending Faster Women.”

Find out more about Swan Brewery: www.swanbrewery.co.uk