the melting pot Archives - The Melting Pot

This is a bit controversial. As a small, sweet, chocolate business I do try and be nice and friendly at all times. I wouldn’t be here without my lovely customers, and I’m so grateful for your bookings and business. I love meeting you all at the chocolate tanks, hosting and hearing your stories.

It’s really hard work running any business, especially at the moment (life is difficult for so many, running a business or not). We just need to take a moment and think and be as kind as we can – the world needs kindness right now.

Sometimes my patience is worn a little thin (I’m only human). I think there are many small business owners out there that will agree with me, and I think we try and keep this under our hat, as we are not allowed to moan, are we?

Well, after a series of challenging encounters recently, I thought I’d come up with 5 things I’d love to moan about……..

1. Tumbleweeders…..

A potential customer sends an enquiry – you ask me about a date, maybe you want a bespoke workshop and I respond as quickly as possible covering all your options. You never respond again, despite all my follow-ups. Plans change, I get that, but please can you tell us no thanks for that particular date. It means we can release the date for others to book, and we know where we are.

I’m big enough to cope with a no (I even wrote a blog about saying just that), I promise, and you never know, you might want to come along another time – it’s chocolate!

2. Mañanas…..

Pay me on time and please don’t make me chase. If you are off to a shop to buy something, you pay for it there and then – no negotiation, just choosing whether to buy or not.

I set deadlines for deposits and balance payments, and most customers are brilliant, thank you. The odd person has to be emailed, phoned, chased again, bargained with, and finally the payment arrives. Cash flow is a real issue, and late payments make life hard and add hassle – please pay on time, it makes all the difference as well as avoids all the time spent chasing up.

Sometimes an unforeseen problem arises, and payment might be delayed for a very genuine reason, please just explain, and then we all know where we are.

3. Ghosters….

This is one of the hardest things to deal with.

I promise to be professional at all times, please offer me the same courtesy.

I will do what I promise to do, and if I can’t, I will keep you informed and explain what I intend to do improve, enhance, remedy or make amends. I would expect a business/person to do the same and treat with me equal respect.

It’s so disappointing when you think you have a relationship with a business or client and they just start ghosting you for seemingly no apparent reason. How many times do you try and make contact? What did you do wrong, and can you make amends? What has gone wrong for them, and could I help? Being ghosted is upsetting and knocks your confidence.

4. Bargain Hunters.….

Now I love a good bargain or a bit of discount of course. I also understand that everyone has a budget, and sometimes we won’t be able to offer a customer something affordable.

Just a little justification of how we price. There is more to your experience than meets the eye, the price you pay is not just what you actually do at a workshop (or other service/product you purchase from a small business).

Before you got there, I ordered all the stock, I cleaned and prepped the workshop, popped the chocolate on two days before your arrival, put the heating on, tempered the chocolate, delivered the workshop, cleaned and tidied up when you left. That is not including the marketing, website, admin, professional services and other related costs that go with running a business. Not forgetting the initial investment in training (the first training course I did, at the outset of my business on how to temper properly is a two-day course and (at the time of writing this) an investment of £700), premises, setting up a business etc.

I like to think there is some good money advice in the plumber scene from the film Moonstruck!

Flexibility on pricing is key, and I try and offer different price points for different budgets. Money is not personal, its business, and we are all entitled to earn a living.

5. Experts……

You know better than me – after almost 20 years in the business, the person that comes along and tells you how it is 😊

Every day is a school day, and I’m happy to learn and always up for ideas and suggestions, but this is telling me something that I know inside out and backwards!

You have to have a little laugh, don’t you!

What would you add to the list……

PS I hope I have not put you off booking a chocolate experience and coming and having fun – that is the joy of what I do and you make that happen and for that I will always be grateful! Thank you.

Can you believe I’ve been running my business for 16 years – I launched way back in September 2009! I always try to keep upbeat and positive (who wants to deal with a moaning Mrtyle?) in my messages/media. It’s a fun, tasty business, welcoming visitors to my workshops. However, it’s time for some truth from the choccie tanks – it’s not been too rosy lately.

Hands-up! I have to take responsibility for what happens in my business, and life got in the way (I talked about this in a previous post). We cared for loved ones at the end of their life, and it literally happened one after the other with my hubby’s mum, then my Dad, and we were not able to fully function in our businesses for quite a time.

It was lovely to get back to work after months of difficulty.

What’s great….

I LOVE welcoming you to the chocolate tanks. Getting to spend a couple of hours with young ones celebrating a birthday, or adults coming along for a treat, is as magical today as it was all those years ago. Having a really good chat and learning all about what you do is always interesting and often fascinating. Seeing you get creative and make such lovely treats to enjoy, share, and be proud of is so rewarding for me too.

I’m immersed in the world of chocolate, and that is fantastic of course. I’m going to digress a little here, as I have a top tip to share – I’ve been signed up to the Cocoa Runners Tasting Club for the past few months and it’s totally amazing – highly recommended (a subject for another blog post soon). However, chocolate is only a small part of what brings me joy. I realised some time ago that I just love to ‘host’. To welcome you to my special space and try and create something memorable and enjoyable for the time I have with you. (I just had to auto-correct memorable, as I’d written memorial, I think you can see how my brain is working these days ☹)

What’s not so great……

The reality is that I’ve lost my mojo for marketing and promotion. You need a plan to move with the (ever-changing) times of socials, and put a lot of energy and effort into the process. After what I went through, I didn’t feel like doing that, and that is a habit that has got a little stuck.

One can buy that sort of input for your business, and many entrepreneurial types will do just that. That causes me some dilemma too, as it’s a costly investment, easy to get very wrong, and if successful, could make one super-busy. I don’t want super-busy, I would love just right (I’m a bit fussy, aren’t I!).

What would be great……

Just right involves me working most weekends, being booked up in advance for Saturdays and Sundays, running an event each day, with the odd school, corporate event, or book group covered off during the week. I was lucky enough to need to book weekends out of my calendar to take time off in the not too distant past.

The longevity of my business, the word of mouth marketing (the gold standard of marketing, thank you) means that I am lucky to get bookings, but they are far short of what they need to be for me to carry on running the business long-term.

I blame the owner. She could do better!

I also wonder if, after so long, everyone has been and done the chocolate-event, and is looking for a new experience (don’t forget you can add a bit of blacksmithing into the mix with hubby’s courses). There are many who haven’t heard of me, and I still find mums saying they didn’t know I existed.

Well, after 16 years, I’ve been a little less positive here. It’s hard to fill the spaces sometimes, and when bookings are down, you feel a little despondent and wonder if it’s maybe time to hang up the apron. I’m not ready for that yet. AND October is the month that celebrates Chocolate Week!

So, can I ask a favour, please? Can I ask if you could help with one of the following:

Would you be kind enough to let a friend know about The Melting Pot in Hitchin? Here’s a link to my website.

Can you share my details on Facebook? Here’s a link to my facebook page.

A like goes a long way, so even acknowledging this post will help it be seen by more, thank you.

Possibly come back for another workshop or try one for the first time – Christmas is coming! Here’s a link to my calendar for availability.

Talk to me about what you want to do – if there are budget constraints for a full workshop, I can offer talks and tastings, or we can make fewer things. I’m my own boss, so can be flexible where possible.

I thought long and hard about writing this, asking for your help when I’ve owned up to not doing some of the hard yards. It’s not lazy on my part, I promise, it’s sometimes not being able to see the woods for the trees, and I think in this day and age, some good old honesty goes a long way. I do hope you agree.

I also sincerely hope I’ve not been a Debbie Downer on your day. I truly appreciate everyone that has supported my chocolate-workshop business over the many years, thank you from the bottom of my chocolate tanks 🙂

Dawn x

Category: the melting pot

5 Things I’d Love to Moan About