In the competitive and challenging world of small business, our family-founded and owned Darianna® Bridal & Tuxedo strives to stay ahead of the various competitive forces that affect our business. The innovative use of technology and the offering of new features are just some of those ways we have been able to stay several steps ahead.
Last year, this strategy and dedication caught the attention of a major tech giant—Apple. As small business owners, this was a unique opportunity for us. In a series of unexpected and thrilling events, Apple News featured our business in an article on apple.com on April 26, 2023. This was shocking and exciting, and taught us the true power of Apple.
The Impact of Apple
At first, we thought our feature would be limited to an individual publication. However, once that article was published, several other companies and news outlets wanted to speak to us and learn about our business and how we serve our customers. Several of them featured us in articles on their websites, their publications and news apps.
To our surprise, the features weren’t just part of U.S. news. We ended up in international newspapers, premium magazines, and local news sites. As the months passed after the original publication of the article, you could see more and more sites were picking up the story on an organic basis.
While certain publications were a better news source than others, we could immediately see from our website analysis pages, that traffic was substantially up. We even had a few business schools contact us asking us how we were able to get onto Apple’s website.
Now, even though the article was not published in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, the New Yorker, Washington Post or even the San Francisco Chronicle, we can say that having it published on Apple’s website was certainly reliable news! The dedicated site is a credible and excellent source of news full of the latest stories.
After the article was published, we had an entire wedding party renting tuxedos from us who worked at the Center City Philadelphia Apple Store on Walnut Street. They told us that they were in a store-wide meeting and realized that the bridal and tuxedo store they were using was featured on Apple News. They even seemed a bit surprised!
All this happened just because we used Apple services and Apple products!
End of story, correct? Not correct.
What Happened Next?
One weekday morning in June 2024, we received another communication from Apple with an incredible opportunity: to be showcased across their digital media. The proposal included both Apple’s paid and unpaid advertising, marketing on their website, on Apple Music, the App Store, Apple’s social media channels, Apple’s retail stores, and many other potential avenues that are too numerous to even list.
We were shocked and stunned by this communication. We were even a bit skeptical, even though the communication came from the internal person who coordinated and published us on apple.com. As a small business who could never afford that type of public relations exposure or advertising on its own, it almost seemed too good to be true.
Wait – How Did All This Happen?
Let’s go back to the beginning. Our journey began in 2013 with a simple desire to continuously improve how we interact with our customers. As a small family business, every interaction matters. We want to provide a high quality experience for all of our customers.
Integrating technology into our operations not only streamlined our processes but also created a more seamless and enjoyable experience for our customers. From the beginning in 2013, we have used Square. Since 2016, customers have been able to send and receive text messages to and from Darianna® Bridal & Tuxedo’s staff almost any time of day. This, we have to say, has been one of our most amazing offerings to our brides, grooms, mothers, fathers, groomsmen and prom-goers.
While Apple was intrigued by the ability to text our landline when we were speaking to them, that is not what got us into an article on Apple’s website.
Fast Forward To June 2022
Square asked Darianna® Bridal & Tuxedo if we wanted to test a new payment feature that Apple was developing. The service was not publicly available yet. The feature was called Tap to Pay.
Without the need for additional equipment, you could process a credit or debit card payment by having someone hold his or her NFC enabled card above a Darianna® Bridal Tuxedo employee’s iPhone and the payment will be instantaneously processed.
The system also works with Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay. Our adoption of Apple’s Tap to Pay technology was a game-changer. This feature allowed us to process transactions quickly and securely, reducing wait times and enhancing the overall customer experience.
During very busy times of year, Darianna® Bridal & Tuxedo often has lines of people waiting to pay for their wedding dresses, mother of the bride or groom dresses, prom dresses and tuxedo or suit rentals. We even have 4 cash registers to receive payment. In years past, new customers waiting to be served would sometimes become frustrated and leave the store. Lost business is not something anyone wants.
Now that we have Tap to Pay, employees can walk around the store and check customers out immediately with their iPhones and Tap to Pay. No longer do we have lines or a wait to check out and our customers are happy about it. In addition, we are not losing customers who do not want to wait to be served. All around we are providing an enhanced customer experience and better revenue for our family business.
Square Feature:
How Did We Get Connected to Apple?
Through Square!
Since we tested Tap to Pay through Square, Square featured us in our own article about Tap to Pay on its website. Certainly a score for a local family business to get exposure on a publicly held company’s website like Square! But it didn’t end there.
Apple saw that Square featured us on their website and asked Square if they could speak to us.
There were several interviews with Apple News editors, exchanges of photos of us and our store and lots of questions from Apple about how we run our business. It was an amazing experience and fun to participate.
The recognition from Apple News was both an honor and certainly a surprise. The article highlighted how our use of Tap to Pay had revolutionized our business, making transactions smoother and more efficient. It was a testament to our commitment to leveraging technology to better serve our customers. The response from the community has been overwhelmingly positive, and it brought a new wave of customers eager to experience the convenience and efficiency we offered.
Lasting Impact
Being featured in Apple’s ad campaigns is bringing unprecedented exposure to our business. Our story is being shared across their website, social media platforms, and even in their stores. The reach is incredible. Customers from all over the country (and even internationally) connect with our story and tell us that they appreciate the personal touch we brought to technology and how it improves their shopping experience.
This recognition has not only elevated our business but also inspired us to continue exploring new ways to integrate technology into our operations. We’ve seen firsthand the impact it can have, not just in terms of efficiency, but in building stronger, more meaningful connections with our customers.
The increase in our website traffic in North America has been quite noticeable. In addition, our quarterly financial results started to increase immediately. We are curiously watching what will the impact of being featured more widely by Apple in our new financial year and our full-year results. While we are not an international business, we can certainly see impact of the mention of our company’s name on an iconic multi-national company’s website.
Our journey from a local family business to being featured by Apple is a testament to the power of innovation and the importance of customer service. We are grateful for the opportunity and excited for what the future holds. This experience has reinforced our belief that with the right tools and a commitment to excellence, even the smallest businesses can achieve great things!
What’s Next?
We don’t know exactly, but we are very excited to see how Apple will use our company in its ads throughout its endless business ecosystem.
As a business, we remain dedicated to our customers and committed to staying at the forefront of technology. Our story is a reminder that innovation and a personal touch can go hand in hand, creating exceptional experiences that resonate with people near and far.
Our family members and staff are grateful to Apple for this elevated opportunity and we look forward to improving our customer service through technology for years to come. We are also grateful to Square for featuring us first and providing us with limitless opportunities.
Advice To Other Small Businesses
Our advice to any other small business: work and collaborate with your local, national and international suppliers. They are always looking for the best stories to tell and you may be the next one.
The long-term question for us is what impact will this opportunity bring Darianna® Bridal & Tuxedo? One thing we certainly learned is you need to try different business strategies and ideas and make an effort to collaborate with other companies.
We also made sure we have the necessary infrastructure for our business. Most of that includes the proper technology, equipment and software to better serve the customer. As only one simple example, we upgraded our internet connection in our store to reduce wait time for our customers when checking out.
With these systems and equipment in hand, you too can become the day’s top story!
Darianna® Bridal & Tuxedo is proud of what we’ve done with our family business over the past many years. Customers have told us how fascinated they are that we’ve been noticed by Apple. If we’ve created any new questions for you with this blog as a business owner, feel free to contact us and we’d be happy to answer them.
We are not a global sales company, rather a small family business that understands the impact of important stories on your business operations.