What “You’ve Got Mail’s” Shop Around the Corner May Have Been with Social Media

There is always an air of excitement around new possibilities in September. We can’t help checking out all of the new school supplies ... and maybe arranging a “bouquet of newly sharpened pencils” on our desks (even if the pencils are just for show). While January might be the official start of a new year, many people associate the start of the year with the month of September. With so many of us at Schmooz still at school or having only recently graduated (or have kids starting school), old habits die hard.

Speaking of newly sharpened pencils, the movie You’ve Got Mail (1998) not only captures the excitement of September, but also the joys and the challenges of running a small business. And we can’t help wondering how the fate of ‘The Shop Around The Corner’ (TSATC) might have changed in the age of social media. For those of you unfamiliar with the plot, this small business children’s bookstore is fighting to survive after ‘Fox Books’, a big chain bookstore, sets up a location in the neighbourhood.  What if ‘The Shop Around The Corner’ had the opportunity to implement a social media presence and been able to utilize it when they were protesting against having a Fox Books store in the area? Replace the 1990’s computer with a sleek laptop, add Schmooz Media’s creative and effective marketing strategies, and that deserving and brilliantly niche small business might have survived to serve many more young readers with the best of children’s literature.

Assuming you wanted TSATC to survive, Social media would have given the store the opportunity to connect with many of their customers and organize an online protest in addition to an offline one (#SaveTSATC, #StopFox). It could have also served as a way to garner additional supporters for their cause, such as book lovers, local entrepreneurs, teachers, parent groups, etc… In addition to social media playing a role in connecting with potential protesters, certain platforms could also have been used to present the wonderful qualities of the shop. For example, posting pictures of story time and their amazing book displays on Instagram or pinning their favourite reads on Pinterest could have increased their visibility and customer base by attracting customers who value both the quaint and charming environment of the shop and the staff’s excellent customer service and expertise.

Who knows what could have been? What if Schmooz had been there? We can relate to the joys and challenges of running a small business, and we can definitely relate to having a passion for reading and books, especially children’s literature! Schmooz creates, implements, and monitors personalized and effective social media strategies for its clients that reflect evolving insights on their client base and industry. We know that we would have had a lot of fun creating a marketing plan for The Shop Around The Corner.

It is with energy and excitement that we welcome the month of September, ready to bring more creative ideas to fruition. So sharpen your pencils everyone, and Happy September :)
See what Rachel Bartholomew and Elyse Sunshine had to say about social media and being the founder of a business in their Schmooz blog posts.