Issue 500 – Dilton Marsh businessman tweeted to Dragon’s 185,500 followers

A DILTON Marsh businessman was delighted to get the stamp of approval from entrepreneur and businessman Theo Paphitis, best known for his role on the BBC’s ‘Dragon’s Den’.

Barry Slip runs his small printing company “LF designs” in Dilton Marsh, where he specialises in creating personalised gifts and promotional goods from photos or artwork. He regularly uses social media as part of his work.
On Sundays Theo Paphitis invites small businesses to tweet him and then re-tweets his favourite six – and on Sunday 30th October Barry’s tweet was chosen and tweeted to the Dragon’s 185,500 followers.
Barry’s tweet, which impressed the Dragon read, “I’m no mug, but I’ll print your photo on one! We’ve got all your personalised Xmas gifts in one place. Top quality items!”
Following the tweet Barry explained, “I run a small printing company based in Dilton Marsh. I specialise in creating personalised photo and promotional gifts. My products include mugs, mouse mats, jigsaws, keyrings, plates, canvases, slates and many many more!
“I am heavy involved in social media as a means of marketing, and use Twitter on a daily basis. Yesterday (Sunday) I won a mention from Dragons Den’s Theo Paphitis! The last 12 hours have been very manic indeed and I’ve already received hundreds of new followers and a few orders too!”
Such is Barry’s enthusiasm for tweeting it goes beyond his own company. He explained, “I am a partner in a Twitter group called @PurpleDogNet. Our motto is ‘We sniff out and promote UK companies who are looking to build their business online. You promote us, we promote you. Simple!’. If you are a local business and you would like @PurpleDogNet to promote you, please do get in touch. Tweet @PurpleDogNet or @LF_designs for details”.