GEORGETOWN CUPCAKES

Another weekend, another trip to a different bakery! This weekend's adventure was to Georgetown Cupcakes, a bakery that has taken the country by storm and recently opened a location within the last year at the Buckhead Shops. If you have not seen their hit TLC show "DC Cupcakes," then it is likely that you have at least come across their Instagram page that has more than half a million followers. Since the launch of their television show, they have become known for their "signature swirl" of frosting, and have grown this empire into six locations and even ship domestically. With such growth in limited amount of time, I was honestly expecting the product to be average. However, I was very pleasantly surprised. The actual cake was very moist, and tasted just like the different flavors that I tried. The "signature swirl" of frosting was VERY cool to watch them pipe onto the cupcake, but it was entirely too much icing for me to consume. I mean, I knocked off 1/4 of icing from each of my cupcakes, and I still feel as if I was in a sugar coma when I walked out of the door. 

From a marketing standpoint, the television show opened many doors for them. More specifically, it literally opened the doors of their 5 additional locations. As well, it allowed for an Instagram takeover. Katherine and Sophie, the sister-duo behind the brand, allowed TLC to document a reality series behind the scenes of their lives, their bakery, and all the craziness in between. Naturally, people fell in love with it, found themselves salivating at their television (like myself), and wanted to order it to their home. So what did they do? They decided to go BIG! Although their show only ran from 2010 to 2013, its popularity transferred from the big screen to Instagram. On this social media platform, where they pay no money for marketing, Georgetown Cupcakes is able to blast pictures of their cupcakes as well as videos of their signature swirl to nearly half a million followers. 

Another huge marketing tool that Georgetown Cupcakes has placed into effect is something that I have not seen any other bakery utilize: Live Cameras. Fans must navigate to their website, click on a link, and suddenly they are watching working staff members of the bakery's original location in real time. There are six different cameras, each capturing different tasks at the bakery. A secret that only some customers know, myself being one of them, is that if you watch the "Fridge Camera," there is a cupcake flavor listed on a whiteboard. It may change daily, or every other day, but if you walk into any one of their locations and say the "Secret Cupcake Flavor" then they will give you one cupcake of that flavor for free. The best part about it? You do not have to even purchase anything else! 

If anyone that reads this decides to visit, I highly suggest finding the secret flavor, getting a free cupcake, and creating a "cupcake sandwich" by taking the bottom half of the cupcake and placing it on top of the icing!