Alam Santi was honoured for the opportunity to help a local community in Tuban, where the ancient art of Batik Tulis (hand drawn batik) was being revitalized through a local poverty alleviation program.
BAZNAS, the national CSR for Islam in Indonesia, taught Tuban batik artists to create batiks from natural dyes made from kitchen scraps for a year. This tradition was almost completely forgotten in the region due to factory work becoming the main occupation for locals.
The foundation approached Alam Santi for our help with training the batik artist women's group in the branding and marketing of their microbusinesses, through an intensive 2-day workshop.
This opportunity was important to both revitalize the local tradition of tulis batik making and empower these artisans to create beautiful products they could sell both locally and internationally.
Understanding the Marketing of Batik
Marketing is very much a practice of understanding what customers consider to be valuable. With batik, customers usually ask a few simple questions before a purchase. Is this batik made with natural dyes? Is it handmade? Is it created by true artisans and supporting their local livelihoods?
Locally, a batik made with synthetic dyes has an average retail price of Rp.250,000 and will sell internationally for $15-$30. Handmade batiks made with natural dyes can sell for Rp.2,000,000.
Are you communicating the story and the values effectively?
Marketing is also the practice of capturing your customers' attention. Alam Santi also taught the workshop participants about the fundamentals of brand value by working with them through the process of incorporating their stories into their products.
Finally, the workshop participants learned about common sales strategies used locally and abroad, so they can consider the strategy they would feel comfortable using.
How will your product stand out from the others? Alam Santi discussed the importance of brand recognition for each participants individual’s product
Branding
Once the product is defined and a brand story has been established, it is time to create the final look.
First came the logo & brand colors:
Are they still easy to read when printed small, such as when printed upon a bag?
Will they effectively tell the story we created for the brand previously?
Branding activities included each participant designing hang tags for their products. Most opted for a batik design hang tag and were reminded to add a detail that reflected back to the story they had developed for their brand.
How would your customers stay in contact with you? The group discussed the different methods they knew of and as well as some new concepts, such as e-commerce.
Alam Santi Successfully Teaches These Marketing and Branding Strategies
Alam Santi was very happy working with this women’s group in Tuban.
Alam Santi is passionate about helping local communities create successful enterprises. If your socially or environmentally conscious project is looking for a marketing and branding partner contact us to discuss your project.
To book a branding and marketing training workshop for your team or project contact Alam Santi now.
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