Social networks to get feedback from customers?

Many German companies are now doing this. But hardly any are as successful as Gusti Leder. The startup from Rostock has been working closely with the fan community since June 2015 to constantly develop its products. Employees present a product on Facebook in 15-second short clips and ask users for their opinion. The startup entrepreneurs see their beliefs confirmed by rapidly growing fan numbers and increasing page views.

What can we do better? Should the bag have large or small loops? And under what circumstances are you willing to buy our product?

These are questions that employees at Gusti Leder are now asking Facebook fans. Feedback from the community is essential for the company because the Rostock-based company earns over 95 percent of its revenue from online shipping. “Many customers get involved and help us improve the products, which can be seen from the high number of comments and likes. This gives us an accurate picture of our products, and it helps us collect customer opinions,” says owner Christian Pietsch. In addition to Facebook, start-up entrepreneurs also use Instagram, Pinterest, Snapchat, Twitter, and YouTube to address consumers.

Snapchat and Instagram for Millennials, and Pinterest as a do-it-yourself portal

The company’s main target group is women between the ages of 25 and 35 who have a middle income. The 25+ generation tends to use Facebook and Twitter. Millennials are increasingly active on Instagram and Snapchat. Pinterest is mainly used by users who want to be inspired, whether for recipes, interior design, or fashion. With additional tips and instructions, Gusti Leder functions as a kind of creative workshop and do-it-yourself portal. The different social media channels make it possible to address different groups of consumers.

To recruit new employees, Gusti Leder relies on Facebook and Kununu. The startup entrepreneurs have created a new page on Facebook where they publish job advertisements and try to express the special team atmosphere. There is an employer profile on Kununu that provides interested parties with more information about the company.

For Gusti Leder, customers are the best experts

Since June 2015, Gusti Leder has been using Facebook videos to get in touch with customers. Previously, the start-up company had a production team of four people who focused on developing new products. These were initially produced in small quantities to keep the risk of loss as low as possible. The disadvantages are high production costs and little flexibility. “Many of our products had to be sold again because they were unfinished,” says Pietsch. “So I decided that the product managers should only concentrate on contacting the producers in India and Morocco.”

But not producing new products themselves was not a solution for Gusti Leder. So, Pietsch decided to set up a sample video team: “I found access to the community to be very valuable, and the results surprised me in a very positive way. We can now offer much more sophisticated products, especially in niches, because the posts bring us to real experts who know what a good steamer bag or bike bag should have, for example.” Gusti Leder thus creates products that are supported by a large community. It becomes easier to produce in larger quantities and minimize losses and costs.

The transparent and open communication style is met with great approval by the community. Gusti Leder avoids empty and irrelevant questions and instead tries to involve users directly in decision-making processes and establish mutual trust. Competitions offer additional incentives for customers to become active and get involved in the voting. In this way, the Rostock startup even makes some large companies look old when it comes to Facebook fan numbers.

Leather as a controversial issue and a matter of conscience

Leather is a controversial issue and a matter of conscience these days, especially since certain lifestyles and diets, such as vegetarianism and veganism, are experiencing a hype. Gusti Leder makes the decision to work with it anyway, and engages in open and honest discussions with customers: “We haven’t had to deal with a real shitstorm yet,” says Pietsch. Gusti Leder is open about the fact that not all users support the materials and does not delete any negative comments. Instead, they try to talk to disappointed users and provide information.

“Gusti Leder nature’s leather goods are vegetable tanned. This means that we do not use chrome or other chemical additives,” says owner Christian Pietsch. Gusti Leder also strives to ensure fair working conditions: “I fly to the countries of origin of our products once or twice a year and find out about the production conditions.” To ensure better control, Gusti Leder prefers to work with smaller companies that have fewer than fifteen employees. Of course, Pietsch is also aware that one can never offer absolute security. But the transparent way in which Gusti Leder communicates with customers makes it easy to bring up controversial topics.