How to Make Less but Sell More at your Next Craft Show
Running a handmade business can become exhausting. Because you must make each product you sell, you really are earning all your money, as opposed to making money. What’s the difference? Earning Money When you put in time and you get paid for that time. If you spend an hour making a handbag, you get paid…
How To Survive a Busy Craft Show Season (without burning out)
Craft show seasons tend to be feast or famine. I either have multiple events on my calendar in one month, or none. And when there’s more than one craft show on your schedule, it can quickly feel overwhelming. This article shares tips to help you keep calm and craft-show-on when you have a lot on…
5 Photography Tips to Take Gorgeous Bag Photos
This week we have a guest post from the handmade bag expert, Javeriya Sid from Sew Some Stuff and Road to Online Bagpreneur. She has amazing advice on her websites and is sharing some awesome tips for photographing your handmade bags today. But the tips also apply to any type of product photography so be…
How to Sell Handmade on Facebook (without selling)
This week’s article is written by Jackie Muscat, who is a Facebook coach and kids’ mural artist. I’m so excited for her to share her expertise on a subject we could all use a little help in 😉 Learn more about Jackie and her free Facebook group at the end of this article. Facebook announced…
Product Descriptions that Sell: 3 Answers you Must Know
In the first part of “Product Descriptions that Sell,” I explained the 2 main reasons people buy. If your products and their descriptions don’t appeal to at least one of those two reasons, you’re going to have a hard time making sales. Head over and read that article first if you haven’t already. And download…
Product Descriptions that Sell: The 2 Reasons People Buy
Welcome to the Product Descriptions that Sell series! Please sign up for my newsletter if you would like instant access to the free printable worksheets that go with these articles and include a fill-in-the-blank template you can use: Product descriptions tend to be overlooked by many makers. They have a ton of handmade products to…
5 Steps to Plan your Week and Organize your Craft Business
In order to be successful in business, you must plan. Plan your year, plan your months and plan all the days in your weeks. Going into a workday without a plan is like walking down a busy street, trying to find your destination with your head down. You’re going to bump into people, miss your…
10 Marketing Mistakes most Handmade Businesses Make
Marketing is essential to small business success but many business owners make these common mistakes. It’s easy to push marketing to the side, figuring the important aspects are to make product and sell it. But the number one question I see on message boards is; why aren’t my sales higher? That’s where marketing comes in….
3 Common Mistakes when Selling Handmade Online
When it comes to selling handmade online, it doesn’t matter which marketplace you sign up for, which platform you use to build your website, or which social media site you post to; you cannot rely on traffic just rolling in. Consider these 3 common mistakes: 1) Not targeting anyone specific If you’re constantly posting…
What to Sell at Craft Shows to Make Money
You likely already know the types of products you can make and sell at craft shows. So this article isn’t going to be a list of obvious craft show products. But rather, what to consider if you want to make money at craft shows. Not all products are a fit for selling at craft shows, so you…
How to Know if your Handmade Product will Sell
The hard part is; you’ll never know 100% what people will and won’t buy until you put it out there. But….you can increase your chances of creating a handmade product that sells and save costs along the way by doing research and working off facts, not guesses. Let’s assume you’re in the dream stage of…
What to Work on in Slow Times of a Handmade Business
When I was a visual merchandiser for a large retailer, so slow months after the holiday rush made it hard to get excited about work, but at least I had a boss telling me what to work on and giving me a sense of security. Once I started my handmade business, these times had me…
How to Make a Best-Selling Handmade Product
If you’re struggling to make sales in your
small handmade business, one of my first suggestions is to take a look at your
products. When you have a great product, people brag about it for you, write
good reviews, become repeat customers and if they own a shop, they carry it in
their store. Having a great product also helps take pressure off when it comes
to marketing and selling.
How to Display Jewelry at a Craft Show
Craft Show Display Tricks to Stand Out is one of my more popular craft show display-related articles with over 20,000 people reading it each month (and growing). Through that article, I’ve received many emails and comments from craft show vendors asking for ideas on how they can create an impactful display for their products. “How…
25 Ways to Market your Handmade Business without Saying a Word
Marketing is my least favorite task as a handmade business owner. But it has to be done. As much as I wish I could create all day, the things I create won’t sell if I don’t dedicate just as much time to marketing and selling them. But if you’re like me, and self-promotion doesn’t come…
How Other Craft Fair Vendors can Increase Your Sales
I often looked at other craft show vendors as my competitors. They could potentially take sales away from me. But there’s another perspective you can have that may help you increase your sales at a craft show. Think about how you can work with your fellow vendors to promote each other’s products. Cross-promote with another craft…
10 Times a Vendor should say “No” to a Craft Show Shopper
This article outlines the requests I’ve received from craft show shoppers over the years. They’re ones I wish I hadn’t accommodated (or at least not with some serious thought first). Shoppers don’t head to a craft fair with the intention of insulting the vendor. They’re usually just asking a question they see no harm in…
7 Ways Handmade Businesses Lose Money (when trying to please customers)
At the beginning of every business I’ve started, I’ve bent over backward for my customers. There’s nothing wrong with caring about your customers and their happiness, however, it can’t be at the expense of your profits. These are 7 things small handmade business owners often do, thinking they’re helping them make sales, but they can…
10 Ways for Introverts to Speak Less But Sell More at a Craft Show
Not every introvert is the same, but this article is written from the perspective of an introvert who gets drained from talking and selling for hours. Whether you’re an introvert or not or love speaking or not, creating a display that helps sell is beneficial for everyone. Here are 10 elements to have in place…
How to Use Product Collections to Boost Sales
Imagine you’re heading to a craft fair and are looking for a knitted scarf to go with your new cream winter jacket. You spot two vendors selling knitted goods. One has scarves in a variety of colors, folded in rows on the table. You think you see a couple of colors you might like but…