by BlondieWrites on May 3, 2010
Sell Your Crafts! Turn Your Hobby into Spending Money
If you enjoy creating and you constantly hear people telling you that you should sell your creations, it may be time to voyage into the world of selling your crafts for money. Like all things, entering the world of selling crafts should be carefully planned out. There are many websites and venues where you can sell your crafts both online and off.
Online venues are a great way to reach customers all over the world. Popular websites like Etsy, Artfire and eBay are great tools that help to reach your targeted customers. Before making the plunge into selling your crafts, be sure to take the time and do some research beforehand. Keep the following questions in mind as you consider the prospect of selling your creations:
* Do I have a product that people would want to buy? This is the most important question you have to ask yourself. If there is no target market for your products, you will have a hard time selling your creations and not because your items are not nice, but they may not be in demand.
* Who is my potential target market? This is a continuation of the question above because you need to know who to advertise to and how to successfully draw your target market to your items. It would be a waste of time trying to sell baby clothes, for example, to those who do not have children.
* What will I charge for my creations? Pricing is an important strategy. All too often, people undercharge for their creations forgetting to take into consideration the time and materials that go into a product. Make sure you account for both the cost of the materials as well as the time and effort you put forth to create your goods. Also be sure not to overcharge. You may find that your items do not sell because they are over priced.
* Where will I sell my items? Online websites are plentiful when it comes to selling handmade goods. There are websites such as Etsy and Artfire who only allow the sales of handmade goods, along with supplies. EBay is also another popular venue to sell handmade goods. Be aware though, that you will be competing with the other goods that are not handmade and may be cheaper. A good description of the item and its benefits is always a good idea.
If you choose to sell locally, try finding a store that will sell your items on consignment or sign up to exhibit at a local craft show. Both will be good for exposure. If you choose to go the consignment route, be sure to get all terms in writing. Otherwise you run the risk of having your items kept and not paid for.
It is very possible in today’s day and age to make some spending money selling your crafts. Be sure to do your research and follow through your plan by keeping the above questions in mind. Once you have your plan in mind, go ahead and take the plunge. But remember, like anything else, you will get in return what you put forth so make it worth your while.
by BlondieWrites on November 5, 2009
by BlondieWrites on August 2, 2009
Are you having a tough time choosing a business to start that you’ll have passion for? Ever considered using your love of crafts as a springboard to jump-start a new business?
Crafters are everywhere, and they’re looking for great advice and directions on how to make the things they love. You can help! Head over to JustAddSweat.com where they’ll teach you how to get started with your own crafts blog. The owners, Nicole and JoAnne have been running their own successful businesses for sometime now. They took that business expertise and decided to start a website offering people who have the drive to succeed the right tools to do so.
The ‘How to Start a Crafts Blog for Fun and Profit’ Guide offers real and practical information about how to get a blog up and making money in a very short time. It’s not nearly as hard as it seems once you have the steps to follow!
Stop by the site today to pick up the guide and you won’t regret it. In fact, I’d be willing to bet you’ll fall so in love with the guide you’ll be telling others about how they can start their own craft blogs too.
Visit the site now to check out the Guide.
by BlondieWrites on June 19, 2008
Scrapbooking as we know it today is a fairly new term. But scrapbooking has really been around for years. Girls have saved dance tickets and photos in albums, parents have saved photos of babies and toddlers growing up, and spouses save those special notes and photos of dates and weddings.
Scrapbooking has become big business and one of the most popular hobbies. Instead of just a regular plain photo album, scrapbooks are embellished with colorful pages and all sorts of wonderful extras. The huge popularity of scrapbooking makes a great home business for the would be entrepreneur.
The appeal of making scrapbooks is not only that they hold precious photos of loved ones and special memories, but the endless possibilities in designing the scrapbook. There are so many ways to create a scrapbook that almost anything goes. The immense popularity of the scrapbook hobby offers a great work at home business opportunity.
Starting a scrapbooking business doesn’t have to cost a lot of money to get started. That’s one of the nice advantages to this particular home business. It doesn’t require a lot of money to get it going.
There are many different directions that be be taken to have a scrapbooking home business. One might consider doing everything pertaining to scrapbooks, or choose a niche area and focus on just one thing. Some ideas are teaching others how to make scrapbooks by having classes, direct sales of scrapbook materials, designing your own line of scrapbook embellishments and pages, organizing scrapbooking events in your area, etc.
Whichever particular direction you choose to take in starting a scrapbook business, there are several things that should be done to get your new business rolling. You must advertise to let people know that you are in business. Taking out ads in your local paper is an inexpensive way to advertise. Ask family and friends to tell people they know about your new business. Business cards, a website, press releases, and word of mouth are just a few ways to advertise. You will also want to decide what or how much materials you need and set a budget.
If you decide to do direct sales of scrapbooking items, you have many options open in how to go about selling. You can host home parties, sell at craft shows, have a website, and post on auction sites like eBay.
Should you decide to make and market your own line of papers and materials, the above suggestions work plus you might contact craft shops about selling your items.
