0 to 6 Figures with a $300 Marketing Budget with Huckleberry Gems | EP 168

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“We all start from zero.” - Sarah 

Katie did something I didn’t think was possible. She silenced a large group of creative women - subscription box entrepreneurs - with one statement. I posed a question to my SubSummit workshop attendees about ad spend. Katie’s drop the mic response was that she reached 6-figures in subscription box revenue with a $300 marketing budget. 

What? Is that possible? 

Katie Sager of Huckleberry Gems is a member of Launch Your Box, Scale Your Box, and my Mastermind. She’s also a lifelong entrepreneur. You could say it’s in her blood. She was raised in a creative, entrepreneurial family. And like so many of us, she tried a few different things before she hit on something that generated a good amount of income and fed her passion to create. 

After making and selling cloth diapers (until new government regulations made it too difficult to continue), getting a degree in Criminal Justice (and having to abandon dreams of being a police officer because of a serious injury), and realizing working alongside her husband in his auto body shop was bad for their marriage, the answer came in the form of a laser cutter. 

Katie set up shop in the back of her husband’s business and got cutting. She made cutting boards and hosted paint parties. Katie differentiated herself from other crafters by producing craft kits that don’t require glue. Instead, customers assemble them using adhesive strips. (Genius!) 

Katie loved what she was doing, but knew she needed to grow the business. So she learned all she could about digital marketing. This led to diving deeply into Facebook Ads, learning how they work and how to understand and apply the data. 

Katie also realized she needed to bring recurring revenue into her business. One off sales weren’t enough. A tiered-tray subscription box was the answer. 

The first step was to identify her ideal customer. Katie went deep and did just that, marketing directly to that woman. She decided to spend $10 a day on Facebook Ads and she knew video performs well. So she created a video of herself crafting and put $10 a day of ad spend behind it. 

You have to spend money - and this includes having a marketing budget - in order to build a business. A business without a marketing budget is a hobby. Katie didn’t want a hobby. She wanted to build a business that would grow. 

So Katie ran her ads, analyzed the data, made changes when needed, and kept going. She launched with more than 40 subscribers and, within 7 months, hit six-figures in revenue. It took only 5 more months to double that number. 

Did all that growth come from Facebook Ads? 

No. Katie knew that building her email list was also important, so she turned her focus to that. She created a lead magnet and ran ads to it. She started a free Facebook Group for crafters and required their email addresses to join. 

Katie is a true entrepreneur and a super smart business owner. She knows there are a lot of puzzle pieces to starting and growing a successful business. She also knows how tempting it is to chase one shiny idea after another. Katie attributes her success to focusing on one puzzle piece at a time. For her, that meant ads first then email. 

Katie’s advice for anyone getting started is to get super focused on one thing to build your business and then, once you’ve mastered it, look to add something else. Build your following and build your list. 

Her focus for Huckleberry Gem going forward is all about community. Katie continues to create a community of women who have lost themselves in the busyness of parenting. Women who love to craft and connect. 

Join me for this episode as Katie and I talk through how she started her business and grew it to six figures in seven months with a marketing budget of only $300 a month. Get ready to be inspired! 

Find and follow Katie: 

• Huckleberry Gems on Facebook
• Huckleberry Gems on Instagram  
• Huckleberry Gems Website