Nook Needs
Background/Context
After the pandemic hit and it started to look like there was no end in sight, I wanted to put my business degree to use while staying at home and keeping safe. While playing the video game called "Animal Crossing: New Horizons", I realized that I can make money by selling digital items to other players.
This inspired me to go to eBay and try to sell players digital in-game items so I can make a little profit while saying at home. As I continued selling and building up a reputation, I started to have more orders come in. Eventually, I realized that eBay was getting a pretty decent cut because I was selling on their platform. I wanted to try to cut out the middle-man by making a website to continue growing my side business, assist the customers, and save fee costs from eBay.
Action
The business and website grew into a huge project I did to keep myself busy during the pandemic. I put a team together to help with website creation, and I was even able to do digital design like create banners for the website, product images, and even Instagram posts that increased our social media presence.
Instagram Posts
These are a couple of sample Instagram posts I made for Nook Needs. All these pictures I used are images in the game (except the "Giveaway" post).
I wanted to create something fun and creative for May 4th as it's Star Wars Day. I tried to recreate the image of the infamous battle of Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker in the game, using items found in the game to make it look as close to the real battle as possible.
The next Instagram post was created at the end of April. I wanted to recreate the Tulip Festival we have every year. With everything still closed in April, I wanted to show that you can still have fun and for a moment pretend you're attending the festival.
For the Giveaway post, Nook Needs offer island experiences and I wanted to get the community excited and engaged by offering them a giveaway they can participate in, and maybe get them to learn a little bit about what else the business has to offer.
Although it is controversial topic, I wanted to show support for the LBGTQ+ community by creating a post for Pride Month. It shows that Nook Needs is accepting of who you are no matter who you love or who you identify as. We are a safe community that accepts you for you and we want you to know that.
For all these posts, I used Canva for easy creation. I can create holidays, giveaways, events, and even everyday posts for your social media.
Product Listings
I have also created some sample product listings for the website.
I created the postcard looking image from scratch. I wanted the listing to look like it was a postcard because Nook Needs has an online delivery service where the customer can order any in-game item and we will deliver the items online through in-game trading to the customer's home/island. This is similar to a postcard you might see when you're on an island vacation. I created the listing though Clip Studio Paint and Canva. The postcard background I was able to make through Clip Studio Paint, and the information on the product listing I created through Canva.
The other image is a bundle. I took an in-game picture and used Canva to create the listing. I decided to add minimal information and let the pictures speak for itself. However, more information can be found in the item description when potential customers are interested in learning more.
Banner
Not only can I create posts and listings, but I can also created banners for the websites as well.
One of the first banners I created with Clip Studio Paint was the Process Banner. I wanted to depict the process for a visitor for easy understanding. The banner shows the whole process they would go through from browsing the website to receiving their items.
I used Canva to create the Mother's Day banner. Since there are some "Mom Items" in the game, I decided to make a bundle for all the "Mom" related items and put them all in a bundle. From there I created a banner for the website announcing that the specific bundle is on sale during May.
I wanted to get people excited for Halloween since it's the only time of year we can dress up as anything we want, get free candy, and not be judged for it. I created the Halloween banner using Canva while announcing an entire site sale for anyone who wants to dress up in-game too!
Results
I am able to use all I've learned throughout my career to grow a small business that resulted in 228 positive feedback on eBay alone. Not only was I able to build a small, successful business, but I was also able to learn what it takes to grow one on my own using this experience. I hope to get the chance to apply what I learned to help your company grow as well!
