Most people who know me know that I am not on social media. And most people who follow this blog know that I recently opened a small online shop.

I think you see where I’m going with this.

A few days ago, I sent the link to my shop to a friend telling her about what I’m doing. I asked her to pass the link on to anyone who might enjoy what I have to offer.

She asked me why I was making the decision not to use social media. She said that my decision not to use social media was like voluntarily tying my hands behind my back in this day and age.

Over the past few days, I’ve thought a lot about what she said. Am I nuts? How did we sell products or connect with people before social media? Is social media really the only way to reach people?

First, let me tell you a little about why I don’t want to use social media.

I am very bad at confrontation. And I’m very sensitive. Many years ago, when I used to have Facebook, I spent ages making sure that whatever I posted was not going to anger or upset anyone. Ultimately, I looked at my Facebook wall just to see what people were posting. I didn’t really post anything myself. I know I couldn’t handle it if someone came at me — really came at me — for something I’d written on there.

Now, I find myself in this strange place of needing to reach people but not quite knowing how to do that.

What I’ve decided is this.

I wrote down the names of all the people from my contact list I want to reach out to. Granted my circle is small but that’s perfect for what I want to do.

Each day I send a personalized message to a few of those people. I tell them about my shop, what I’m selling, and what the shop’s ethos is. If I hear back from them, great. I’m glad to have reconnected with someone one-on-one. If I don’t hear back from them, that’s okay, too.

I know this will take time. Word-of-mouth marketing requires patience and a rigorous attention to the quality of what you’re marketing/selling. I’m not in a hurry and I am happy to spend hours ensuring the quality of what I make.

I hope the people I reach out to feel a connection to me, that they know I’m reaching out to them and only them with that message.

Perhaps you remember those chain letters that were popular when we were in school. This works in a similar way.

I’ll reach out and ask a contact to pass the link on to someone in their circle who might like my shop. Maybe this gives them the opportunity to have a meaningful one-on-one conversation with someone they haven’t connected with in a while. I’ll also ask them to ask their acquaintance to pass it on. And so on.

Maybe it’s a long shot, but before I turn my shop over to algorithms, I prefer to try this on my own.

Perhaps you’ll join in this chain mail.

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