For some companies, small social spends lead to big business

Jaime Chapman, owner of Pineapple Pedicabs, carts two customers and her dog, Bill, through Reno this past summer. Chapman launched the company in 2019 and has since grown her fleet from one to five pedicabs thanks in part to wise spending on social media advertising. Courtesy Photo

by Kaleb Roedel

When Jaime Chapman launched Reno’s first bicycle taxi service, Pineapple Pedicabs, in the spring of 2019, she knew using social media would be key to not only reaching new customers — but also educating them.

“In Reno, nobody knew what a pedicab was,” said Chapman, who relocated to Reno from Key West, Florida, where pedicabs are more common than taxicabs. “I would be driving it and people would be like, ‘is this for Burning Man?’ And I’d be like, ‘No, it’s a taxi service.’ So a lot of it’s been education.”

After the coronavirus pandemic slammed the brakes on the economy a year later — and nearly emptied the streets of Reno — Chapman felt the importance of having a strong social media presence accelerate.

“My business would not survive without it,” Chapman said. “It was the best way to reach my demographic. Besides people being out on the street and just seeing the pedicabs, the next avenue I have is social media.”

As a result of actively engaging on Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook, demand for Pineapple Pedicabs’ services has not been slowed by COVID. Many people, Chapman found, are seeking new ways to explore Reno’s downtown and midtown areas — and, in general, spend time outside.

So much so that in 2020, Chapman started four Pineapple Pedicabs tours: the Biggest Little Downtown Reno Tour, Biggest Little Midtown Mural Tour, Burning Man Art and Mural Tour, and Biggest Little Brewery Tour.

Chapman, who started the business by herself with one pedicab, has grown her fleet to five pedicabs with a team of riders.

Read the entire article in the NNBW: https://www.nnbw.com/news/2021/nov/09/some-companies-small-social-spends-lead-big-busine/