Here's six business lessons I've learnt from watching Instagram entrepreneurs on Boss Babes

Thursday, 8 August 2019

BossBabes follows Auckland influencers and businesswomen Iyia Liu and Edna Stewart.

REVIEW: As the voiceover on TVNZ's new reality show Boss Babes says, 'influencers are like one-person ad agencies, they can sell anything'.

The show launched this week, following the wealthy lifestyles of e-commerce entrepreneurs Iyia Liu, famous for her Celebration Box debacle and paying youngest 'self-made' billionaire Kylie Jenner $300,000 to post an Instagram photo, and swimwear designer Edna Swart.

It's clearly not designed to be taken super-seriously - the first episode opened with Liu declaring eyeliner was out of fashion.

But some social media entrepreneurs have become millionaires thanks to their followers, so what semi-serious lessons can we learn from these businesswomen?

* What insta-famous entreprenuer Iyia Liu learnt from her Celebration Box debacle

* Commerce Commission finds Celebration Box may have breached the Fair Trading Act

* Here is how much Shaaanxo, Iyia Liu and Art Green could be earning per post**

1) Know when to exit a business.

TVNZ revealed the entrepreneurs' business model in the first 40 seconds of the show: Develop e-commerce start-ups and then sell them for a profit.

Boss Babes follows Iyia Liu and Edna Stewart, two Auckland influencers and businesswomen.

As one of the 200 'high-profile' guests on the show, Josef Rakich, observed while speaking with Liu: 'You think of an idea and then move on it pretty quick'.

When Liu sold the business that put her on the map, Waist Trainer, she claimed she made enough to build the $3 million mansion at which she threw a 'white soiree' post-breakup party.

The mansion and the party also set up the main storyline for the first episode - some very low-level drama between former prime minister John Key's son Max Key and his ex-girfriend.

Last year Liu said she also sold her protein powder company Luxe Fitness and that Celebration Box was her fifth business.

2) Talk in business jargon even when the conversation is not business-related.

Six minutes into the first episode, Liu, 26, and Swart start talking business, banding around terms like 'ROI', and 'investment'.

Never mind the 'investment' they're talking about is $20,000 spent on a party.

Boss Babe Iyia Liu is always thinking about content for her fans.

And the ROI is the potential for finding a husband.

'You gotta think about the ROI on a husband,' Liu explained.

The bonus ROI from the party was high engagement from followers on Instagram posts.

Liu alone has 44,000 followers on Instagram where she posts about her businesses, surgeries, and networking events.

She hired a troup of samba dancers because they made for great Instagram story content. No brainer!

3) Don't grow too fast

The show would be remiss without mention of what catapulted Liu into relevance last year – Celebration Box.

Liu's dessert box company left a sour taste for some customers and complaints about late deliveries, or boxes arriving that weren't as advertised, escalated on social media.

Last month, the Commerce Commission found Celebration Box might have breached the Fair Trading Act but chose not to take legal action.

Liu explained the quality of the dessert boxes just wasn't 'good enough' because the business was just six weeks old and could not keep up with demand.

Bonus lesson: Having a reality show would also help an entrepreneur share their side of the story if their business copped flak.

The Celebration Box which arrived was not what we were promised.

4) Diversify your product line.

If you're looking to start a business, start with you. Was there something in the market you wanted but could not find? Well, create it.

That is what Swart said she did when she started her swimwear line because she could not find timeless pieces. But she did not stop there.

Swart and her business partner, who is also her ex-boyfriend (and described her as being like a chihuahua on the show) created a tanning/body oil to compliment the swimwear.

But to differentiate themselves from the competitors, they made the product appealing for both women and men.

Liu said her business was growing too quickly, which caused the mishap with Celebration Box orders.

How, you ask? It's whiskey-scented. Everyone wants to smell like whiskey at the pools. Never forget your point of difference.

Liu, too, has diversified. She said the company was now selling not just confectionary but also savoury and body products in her Celebration Boxes.

5) Have a business partner who complements your skill set.

While Swart is no longer in love with her business partner, she said they both still loved Ed and I, the swimwear brand they started.

Celebration Box co-owners Iyia Liu and Briar Howard discuss the business in episode two, before Liu goes under the knife to get a Brazilian butt lift.

In Liu's case, her business partner, Briar Howard, manages the operations, while she takes care of the marketing and social media.

'She does the things I can't do and I do the things she can't do,' Liu said.

6) Finally, always think business. Even on a girls weekend.

Swart and another friend, Rosie, accompany Liu on her Brazilian butt lift surgery to Sydney.

While Rosie exclaimed 'girls weekend!' Swart excitedly thought about the potential to create content for her business's blog. The girls also shopped up a storm, which made for more content to share with the fans.

Swart used the trip as an opportunity to shoot some blog content for her swimwear line Ed and I, with Rosie, who happened to be a former model in Japan.

Killing all the birds with one stone!