TODAY the GeMa❤️ Shop has been online for 2 months.
Last Saturday evening, Gerald and I sat in Rovinj in wonderful weather and enjoyed our short break. In the evening by candlelight, we reflected on the last weeks and months. We thought about the topics of success and trust. Think about what went well in the past and what we would like to improve in the future? We noticed that it has been a while since the last Stock Blog and decided to share our thoughts with you.
Warning: I can't sum it up in 3 sentences - book format.😉
I, Marion, have caught myself repeatedly over the past few weeks putting a lot of pressure on myself and looking for new strategies to help us get closer to our goals faster. In the spirit of co-creation, we wanted to use the feedback from our customers and therapists to learn from each other and to be able to optimize our services and products. We have also created a feedback form for this purpose, particularly because we are interested in developing statistical skills. Research question: How effective is the Gema❤️ cane or walking with a cane?
Shall I tell you a secret? 😉 It's interesting that we want something from our clients and therapists that we don't like to do ourselves. We are both people who like to give personal feedback, and we do so voluntarily. We usually ignore all surveys or feedback forms from companies that we receive. With this important realization, my pressure on this topic has fortunately disappeared. "We, or I, cannot expect something from others that we are not prepared to do ourselves." Buying likes and feedback, which is supposed to happen, does not fit with our values and is therefore not an issue.
We thank you❤️-ly for your feedback and every single exchange of experiences if YOU like it and are very happy about it. Regardless of whether this happens online, via WhatsApp or in person. Every piece of feedback is valuable to us. Of course also for those people who visit the shop and look for feedback from people who use canes to get an idea of how it works. It is usually easier to make a purchase decision afterwards. I have known about cane walking for 20 years and I am enthusiastic about it. A "self-made foot reflexology massage" with little cost and time expenditure that grounds me and relaxes me. At the same time, I am always surprised how many people are not aware of this simple and holistic exercise for increasing their own well-being and reducing stress.
Here is a small excerpt from the many pleasant, regular verbal feedback from therapists and people who have integrated walking with a cane into their everyday lives: A large number report that they no longer suffer from daily headaches, neck tension or back pain. A foot misalignment, a hammer toe, has also improved significantly after 3 weeks of walking with a cane and there are also fewer cold feet. Sleep problems have also disappeared for some people who use a cane. We are very pleased with this feedback.
Of course there was also feedback: I didn't notice anything, but I have to admit that I use the stick very irregularly or hardly at all 😏 and didn't manage to do it for 21 days a day, as recommended. That's OK and not a big deal. According to the motto, I can't manage 21 days, so I'm not even going to start again. Recommendation: Better now and then than never.
One of our therapists told me that, especially in the case of a foot misalignment, such as a very visible hallux valgus, you need around 80-100 foot reflexology massages at recommended intervals as a supplementary therapy in order to see results. In addition, you should ideally do the following on a daily basis: walk barefoot, do "self-made walking with a stick", do foot gymnastics/grip exercises. Massage your feet and calves, and take regular relaxing foot baths, preferably a salt bath. Also helpful for heel spurs. All of these exercises can also be easily integrated into your everyday life. 😉It's not enough to just know.
We like to share our holistic experiences, old knowledge and expertise here. Walking with a stick is a very old and effective foot acupressure massage technique. You move. You get going. This changes something positive in your life and activates your body's self-healing powers. You have your life, your scepter or your magic wand in your hand. GeMa 😍
At this point a few feedbacks about the GeMa❤️ Stock - our product.
We asked the following questions: Are the products appealing? Are the products as expected? Is the product information sufficient and understandable? Are the products properly packaged? Can I recommend the products? I would like to say the following about the products:
Only one feedback form came back from the many that we handed out and sent out. Instead, we received calls, WhatsApp messages, emails and feedback from personal conversations. You can find some very touching feedback under "Feedback and exchange of experiences".
What we have heard again and again:
Everything is great, a very attractive and handy product. The stick is much too cheap. What costs nothing is worth nothing. A plastic fascia roller costs many times more, the stick is high quality and a natural product and is sold far below its value. Another suggestion, thank you dear Michaela B. and Daniela S., was to offer the stick and bag as one product in the future. Thank you to everyone for your valuable feedback.
What is also worth mentioning: GeMa is becoming a registered word-image trademark. Other products are still in the development phase and will, or at least that is our hope, be available in the shop from autumn. In cooperation with Vanessa, we wanted to present and offer a new project/product in June. Due to a serious accident, this will now also be delayed. We wish you a speedy recovery, dear Vanessa. The photos and videos of the GeMa Ener-KI exercises with the GeMa ❤️ balance stick are already in the can. Thanks to Nathi and Julia, you are a great team. We have also already received photos and videos from the first GeMa workshop. Thank you Konrad for your valuable support. There is a lot to do. Editing, organizing and labeling this image material so that we can present you with other helpful self-help exercises with the GeMa❤️ stick online and in the future also as a PDF. In addition to our other or actual professional activities, these tasks are a nice challenge from which I, in particular, can learn a lot of new things - keyword patience.😉
A personal tip from me if you are one of those people who think everything goes too slowly. Welcome to the club.😉The Bach flower 18 promotes patience and understanding, ideal for people who put pressure on themselves or are constantly under time pressure. Breathing and walking with a stick while listening to loud music and moving my hips strongly always helps me personally.😉 This combination releases those pent-up emotions that are stored in the hip, more specifically the iliopsoas (running and soul muscle). Try GeMa❤️.
Luckily, Gerald is much more relaxed about everything and, especially when it comes to the shop and trading, he is more experienced than me. His attitude is to identify and strengthen functioning processes, and the rest: it'll work out. 😊
In our reflection we asked ourselves the following questions:
- Which strategies feel right for us after two months? Offline and online - what exactly? Online business in particular gives us the impression that it is more show than substance. For newbies like us, online business is very time-consuming and sometimes we are actually surprised at the practices that some experts seem to be using to be extremely successful. I (Marion) spent hours online at the beginning to get a feel for Facebook and Instagram. My personal experience is that without expensive advertising it will be difficult to increase our reach AND don't believe everything you see and read there. I am confused and overwhelmed by the speed and flood of tips and options. Acquiring customers through social media is expensive and being online all the time is exhausting, time-consuming and energy-consuming for me. A waste of time? Looking back, there were more inquiries via Facebook and Instagram asking whether we needed a loan, could donate something and other very dubious inquiries. Valuable personal exchanges with genuine interest took place very rarely. Of course I tried to talk to different people, asked questions and came to the conclusion that very few people respond, the majority don't respond or simply have pre-written messages. I tried the pre-written messages for a short time at first. An expert recommended this strategy to me for the first personal contact and of course I wanted to know what I would get back. 😳 NOTHING. This strategy is frustrating and didn't feel right or real to me. The fact is that with an online shop it's just part of being visible online, posting regularly, using the advertising effect and being found on social media. As long as what you do triggers good and meaningful feelings, everything is perfectly fine. This feeling of "having to reach someone, having to sell something or, as with feedback, "we need feedback on this" is not fun but it creates pressure on all sides. Fortunately, we don't have to. For me, this is a valuable observation and insight. Gerald's following view on this topic is totally relaxing: "It's nice if we do, but nobody has to - not even us." Patience is trusting that everything will happen when the time or the person is ready for it.
- Basically, we both agree, we want to use our shop to reach more people who seek and value personal exchange or shared activities in real life. This has also proven successful over the last 2 months. Therapists and trainers who introduce their patients, clients or course participants to walking with a cane and other exercises with the cane. If desired, the customer can purchase the GeMa❤️ cane directly on site and take it away immediately. This saves time and delivery costs. A win-win situation for everyone involved. We are also touched and grateful for your suggestions, the valuable exchange of information and specialist knowledge. We all learn from each other. Co-creation and cooperation are a beautiful, new path together. Thank you for your openness and willingness to support us in bringing the GeMa ❤️ cane into the world and introducing people to a simple and effective self-help method. "Gratitude and joy".
- Our first free “Getting to know GeMa workshop” was also a great success and will remain in the program. If you have the time and inclination, on June 13th there will be another opportunity to get to know us and walking sticks in person. Register in the shop, we look forward to seeing you. 😉
Our focus is clearly on honesty, authenticity, personal conversations from heart to heart and at eye level, co-creation and cooperation, the presence of a quality of being that we are satisfied with or that makes us both happy. Will this attitude make us successful? - we will see.
Other questions that we will explore in more depth are:
- What attitude or support do we need to create a successful GeMa shop?
- What does successful actually mean to us?
- Do we already speak the language of our target customers?
- Where are we with the ongoing projects?
- What are the next steps needed to actively work towards our goals?
It will definitely remain exciting and we are looking forward with confidence and optimism. In addition to the planned changes and changes, we want to relax by the sea or lake as often as possible, dance barefoot through the grass, hike through flowering meadows, breathe in the mountain air, celebrate with friends, enjoy the summer to the fullest and let ourselves be touched by the abundance of life. The best thing😍 is that it finally worked out, we have found a house for ourselves and are moving soon. We certainly won't be bored over the next three months, the air smells of adventure.
Enjoy every step of your journey…
Gerald & Marion