E-Commerce Assistance

The INNOVATE Hawaii (HTDC) E-Commerce & Digital Marketing Assistance Program is a combination of webinars, workshops and 1-1 consulting sessions designed to raise e-commerce and digital marketing capabilities for Hawaii’s manufacturers and businesses.

The program was intended to:

• assist manufacturers in taking their first steps into e-commerce or digital marketing
• impart e-commerce and digital marketing best practices
• provide a network of e-commerce and digital marketing resources for businesses

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We encourage you to connect with us on the following platforms to get updates.
Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | LinkedIn

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JOIN US!	UPCOMING WEBINARS/WORKSHOPS
RE-WATCH	PAST WEBINARS/WORKSHOPS
	The Power of Storytelling: Building an Irresistible Brand Presence on Social Media In the fast-paced world of social media, capturing audience attention requires mastering the art of storytelling. Join our webinar "The Power of Storytelling- Building an Irresistible Brand Presence on Social Media" to explore how crafting compelling narratives elevates brand presence by creating powerful connections. WATCH HERE>>
	The Impact of Influencers: A Small-Medium Business Approach Explore the dynamic world of influencer marketing in the realm of small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). Join industry experts as they delve into strategies tailored for SMBs, unraveling the potential benefits and challenges of leveraging influencers to elevate brand presence and drive growth. Gain valuable insights and practical tips that will empower your business to navigate the influencer landscape effectively and maximize its impact on your bottom line. WATCH HERE>>
	Create 30 days of social media content using AI 2-day Workshop: Feb 10 (Sat) - 9am-10:30am Feb 17 (Sat) - 9am-10:30am Starved for time as a business owner? Then you won't want to miss this 2-day in-person workshop! Learn how to leverage six AI tools to create 30 days worth of social media content, ranging from images, quotes, videos to carousels. AI tools that will be covered in this workshop include ChatGPT, Canva, ElevenLabs, HeyGen, SubMagic and Veed.io. This workshop will not be recorded so attendees will have to be physically present during the two sessions.
	Digital Marketing 101: What's Hot and What's Not Algorithms are everchanging but the fundamentals of digital marketing stay constant. This session will provide an overview of the digital marketing landscape, including trends for the new year and what business owners need to keep in mind as they leverage the different platforms to promote their companies and products. This webinar is crafted for business owners and entrepreneurs who are new to digital marketing or would benefit from a refresher. WATCH HERE>>
	AI Marketing Revolution - How AI is Transforming Content Creation AI is the hot word in 2023 and will continue to be a significant game-changer for businesses over the next decade. Join us in this webinar to learn how artificial intelligence is impacting marketing and facilitating content creation. Walk away with a deeper understanding of AI, its applications and tips on how you can incorporate it into your business. This webinar is a precursor to our in-person workshop where business owners can learn how to leverage AI tools like ChatGPT, ElevenLabs and HeyGen. WATCH HERE>>
	It's Time! Create Your Content Marketing Plan for 2024 A well-crafted content strategy created today is the backbone of successful marketing efforts through the year. Join us in this session to learn how to develop a strategic plan that aligns your digital marketing content with the broader business goals. Stay ahead of the game in 2024 by taking action now so that you can focus on creating the best content with less stress and last-minute scrambling! This session is suited for business owners and entrepreneurs who are new to content creation or would benefit from a refresher. WATCH HERE>>
	Selling Online with Hawaiiverse Are you a Hawaii-based manufacturer or maker of products looking to expand your digital sales channels? Or are you getting your feet wet with e-commerce? In this webinar, Jared Kushi, founder of Hawaiiverse aka the "Amazon of Hawaii" shares about the platform and how the company is helping local businesses scale through e-commerce and digital marketing. Established in 2016, Hawaiiverse supports more than 1,000 companies on its platform across 40+ product categories. It has amassed a strong social media presence of over 35,000 followers on social media, a rapidly growing listener base for its podcast series, a video series spotlighting local companies, and Hawaii's largest coupon directory. www.hawaiiverse.com WATCH HERE>>
	Using LinkedIn for B2B Marketing LinkedIn has become the go-to platform for Business to Business (B2B) marketers. B2B marketers report that 80% of their social media leads come from LinkedIn. LinkedIn is the top choice for professionally relevant content, with 91% of executives choosing this platform. In this webinar you will learn to develop effective marketing strategies targeting other businesses in the LinkedIn platform. We will discuss how to optimize your profile, target your clients, publishing content that adds value, how to get your employees involved, and creating visually appealing posts that capture the attention of your LinkedIn target audience more effectively. With over 660 million registered professionals, the right LinkedIn marketing strategies can take your business to the next level. Whether you are marketing yourself as a sole proprietor, or as a company, you will discover some of the best ways to improve your LinkedIn marketing efforts through this 90 minute webinar. WATCH HERE>>
	Selling Your Food Items Online Do you know about the regulations associated with selling products online locally and to the continental United States? Join us on Monday, April 4 at 9AM to learn from Certified Food Scientist Dr. Lauren Tamamoto who will discuss local and federal laws associated with selling packaged food items online and identify label requirements for products sold in certain states (primarily California) to help you determine if your food production adheres to safety regulations. She will also provide a brief overview of the Food Safety Modernization Act and how procurement of packaging and ingredients may affect your products and documentations. WATCH HERE>>
	Sell Through Makuake: Internationalization To Japan Interested to gain social proof from Japanese consumers before making the huge leap permanently into Japan? Consider leveraging the Makuake platform! Similar to US-based Indiegogo, Makuake is a platform in Japan that enables manufactures and makers to gain exposure among supporters and fundraise for a set of product offerings before embarking on actual production. There is a wide variety of categories ranging from food, beauty, body products, art and even music. In this upcoming session, Innovate Hawaii hosts KC Tokumori, a curator and global strategist from Makuake. He will be providing more insights into the platform and how brands have taken advantage of it to build a base of Japanese consumers and explore the potential of expanding into Japan. About Makuake Makuake's mission is to connect the world through the creation of the "new". Makuake is a pre-sales platform for the launch of "new" products and services from all over Japan and the world. Company was founded in 2013 by a group of young professionals who shared a vision to create a world where worthy things can come to be, grow and endure. Today, as a platform, we are focusing on increasing user experience for both project owners and supporters through improving our services and developing new features. WATCH HERE>>
	E-Commerce: Tactics for the Holiday Season If you have not started planning for your holiday e-commerce sales yet, be sure to watch this 2-part session to help you with your online strategies to SELL SELL SELL for the upcoming holiday season! WATCH PART 1>> WATCH PART 2>>
	Expansion Into Japan: Things To Consider Are you a manufacturer who is interested in expanding into the Japanese market? Watch guest speaker Takaho Iwasaki, CEO of MajiConnection, as she provides an overview of the Japanese market and highlights best practices to reach and attract Japanese consumers. WATCH HERE>>
	E-Commerce & Consumer Trends in Japan Are you a manufacturer who is interested in expanding your e-commerce reach to Japan? Watch this webinar by guest speaker Takaho Iwasaki of MajiConnection to learn about the history of e-commerce in Japan, what has changed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the different platform players and current trends. WATCH HERE>>
	Intro To Shopify What is Shopify? How does selling online work? What features are available? How can Shopify help you grow your business? In this workshop, we will cover the history of Shopify, how it works to help businesses sell and scale as well as get an understanding of the costs involved. It is an essential class for anyone considering opening a business. Join us as we dive into a high level overview of commerce with Shopify and see how this tool can help you reach your goals. WATCH HERE >>
	Deep-Dive: Amazon Japan Are you interested in learning about selling your products on Amazon Japan? Watch this webinar to hear from guest speaker Noboru Okada, CEO of Compasspoint Inc. as he and moderator Takaho Iwasaki of MajiConnection discuss the trends of the platform and discuss best practices for non-Japanese vendors. WATCH HERE >>
	Shipping 101 Take a deep dive into all things shipping! In this course, you'll learn how to create a shipping strategy, set up packaging, tracking, insurance, shipping costs, and much more! Learn how to customize and optimize your shipping! This webinar features guest speaker Chris Snyder of Shopify. WATCH HERE >>
	Deep-Dive: Rakuten Listen to guest speaker Takumi Kawashima and as he discusses Rakuten Japan and how to succeed in e-commerce. This webinar is moderated by Takaho Iwasaki, CEO of MajiConnection WATCH HERE >>
	Getting Started with Shopify Marketing Google and Facebook attract billions of engaged users every day. Your ideal customers are already on those platforms, so Shopify is making it even easier to reach them. Now you can create, manage and track your marketing all in once place, directly in Shopify. No more tab overload as you switch between multiple platforms. Watch today to learn how to streamline the process of running successful ad campaigns with Shopify Marketing. In this workshop, Chris Snyder from Shopify will also show you how you can use Shopify's free virtual employee, Kit, to help boost sales and manage marketing tasks. This webinar is designed to grow your business with Facebook and Google Ads. WATCh HERE >>

RE-WATCH	PAST WEBINARS/WORKSHOPS
	Starting Out: E-Commerce for First-Timers This webinar is best suited for solopreneurs and companies who are thinking of venturing into e-commerce but have no idea where to start. In this session, Brandon Hughes of Hoku Marketing presented a live demonstration of how an e-commerce website is set up using the Shopify platform. He also shared best practices to be undertaken when creating an online store. WATCH HERE >>
	E-Commerce Fundamentals: UX/UI UX/UI - which stands for "User Experience and User Interface" is a critical component of good e-commerce websites. Akemi Hiatt of Hidden Gears guides you through UX/UI best practices so that you can ensure that your e-commerce website meets the demands of the modern day consumer. This workshop is suitable for both newcomers to e-commerce and businesses who are looking to enhance their online stores. WATCH HERE >>
	E-Commerce Fundamentals Working on your e-commerce platform? Join Brian Dote, Founder of Tapiki who will guide you through critical areas that would make or break your online store. This webinar is best suited for businesses who already have an e-commerce presence but newcomers to selling digitally are also welcome. WATCH HERE >>