Mistake No. 1: Putting off Paperwork
It's important to remember that although your business will not see profit immediately, you should have an accounting system in place to avoid feeling overwhelmed once tax season arrives.
How to keep it simple:
- Download a free spreadsheet to keep track of your incoming and outgoing funds so that you can easily balance your books at the end of each month.
- Have a filing system in place so you can easily organize hard copy receipts and documents.
- Try to keep your paperwork duties to under 10 minutes per day and aim to complete them at the start of your day so that they don't pile up.
- Use the free online service Outright to easily manage your business paperwork online.
Mistake No. 2: Advertising
I often see new shops that have little inventory and zero customer feedback trying to drive traffic with paid ads. I think there are better ways to bring new customers to your shop.
How to drive traffic for free:
- Try free social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter. Aim to spend 30 minutes per day building relationships via Twitter and updating your Facebook fan page with photos and links. Over time your fans will grow – as will your traffic.
- Networking with your target buyers in the forums they frequent. Do not spam, simply offer helpful advice, tips and stories to make people interested in you and in turn, your business.
Here's an example of an Etsy seller called Steppie, who started using a Facebook Fan Page as a promotional tool for her online shop. Now with over 1,600 fans, she communicates daily with a large number people specifically interested in her products and company:
Mistake No. 3: Not scoping out the competition
A great way to be successful in any market is by regularly scoping out your competition in order to find out what they’re doing right.
How to do this: Do a search for the items you make and find a handful of competitors doing well in your market. Ask yourself:
- What's the quality and style of their photos?
- What are their shop policies?
- How quickly do they ship out?
- What do their feedback/testimonials say about them as vendors?
It’s easy to feel discouraged when performing this task, but don't let it get to you. The idea is to figure out what you can offer that fellow shop owners aren't.
For instance: If they only ship out twice a week, then why not ship out every day? Does it take them 3 weeks to make an item? Make yours in one week. Reviewing your competition will keep you focused on reaching your goals and make you a better seller in the process.
Mistake No. 4: Forgetting to communicate with your customers
Seeking out new customers is all part of growing your business, but what about your current customers? By keeping in contact with them regularly, you will see loyal relationships being formed and repeat business coming your way.
How to do this: There are two ways you can communicate with customers, depending on your situation.
- For all your past customers, make a list of any buyer you have had in the last year and send them a card thanking them again for their business. You could even include a discount coupon or free gift. This gesture will go much farther then you think because it's unexpected and kind. Note: Be sure not send them any unwanted promotional material via email, because this is considered spam, regardless of whether they are a past customer.
- For new customers, always include a thank-you note, like the one below by EC Design, and discount coupon with their product. If you often hold giveaways and promotions, you could start a mailing list and ask them to sign up. This way you can regularly update them on company news and specials.
Mistake No. 5: Not taking advantage of free educational resources for creative businesses
Often sellers spend so much time focused on their business, they forget that there are many tools out there aimed at helping them through their handmade journey.
What you can do:
Start off by taking advantage of free educational tools like the Byte-Syze Learning tutorials right here on Meylah. You can also look into free courses like the ones offered on Wonder Thinking. Then, gradually work your way into something more advanced, like an online or local workshop. Educational resources aimed at sellers include e-books, courses, email newsletters, blogs and even membership sites.
Justine Smith is an Etsy success story who used her experience selling online and turned it into a full-time wholesale business. Her real passion is helping handmade sellers find success marketing their craft products. She offers tips on advertising, branding, social media and growth via email through her blog Handmade Marketer.
Main photo courtesy of Shutterstock.com.
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51 Comments
Thanks for another awesome article, Justine! You are such a wealth of information!
Great tips! I’m bookmarking this.
I love reading every article from Justine. Her articles are alway very educational. This article doesn’t disappoint!
I am convinced that my shops will grow in 2010, if I follow your advice throughout the year. Thank you Justine!
Thanks, Justine — and thanks, Meylah! — for more great info. I always come away with something useful.
These are great tips. I really need to get on #1! Thanks so much for the accounting website as I had been looking for one.
Thanks for a terrific article that introduces me to resources I’d never heard of before!
What a great article! I especially love the advice and info re bookkeeping ~ very timely! I’m going back to check out those forms and do more research re facebook and twitter. Thanks!
Great article. Thanks so much!
Justine, you are so helpful! Thank you so much for the reminder NOT to get discouraged when I’m scoping out my competition, but to figure out what I can do that they’re not!
-Shine On
Great article! I have often fallen victim to spending big bucks on failed advertising, while my fan page sits there empty and ignored. Do you have tips for adding useful content to a Facebook Fan page to make it more engaging and thoughtful?
Fabulous post full of helpful information. Justine, you’ve done a really great job with this article. Thank you for making the nitty-gritty business details a little easier to grasp! Hope to see lots more articles from you.
Great article, Justine! I always come away from reading your suggestions inspired and with new ideas.
Hey guys, thank you for all the comments!
Lindsey – about your facebook page, yes there are loads of ways, here’s a few ideas (which I just put in my latest newsletter!):
- Add a photo album – Add a video – Start a discussion – Allow fans to add their own photos to the fan album – Ask you fans a question and get them connecting with you
Another thing to consider is adding resources so that people will have a reason to join and be interested in what you have to say. So you make hair bands, maybe you could do a series of video tutorials for something related (but not giving away your ‘secrets’) like how to make hair pins. The online community is all about DIY and you can grab more people that way!
Great suggestions! Here’s an idea for another article- How does one go about using social networks for marketing?...Start at the beginning!
Wow, Justine! You’ve jammed at least 5 posts worth of material into one fabulous article! Way to go!
Hi Justine, Thanks for this really interesting and helpful article, you gave me lots of ideas for 2010!
All great tips. Always luv your advice!
Thank you!! :)
Thanks so much for the great article- this year will be fabulous if I can just follow all your advice Justine!
Thank you Justine for another excellent article! Not only is the information useful but I appreciate the links you provided for the free spreadsheet and Outright! I also love that you include other artists as real examples – they are inspiring and give me new ideas to make my own business better! You are a gem!!
Thanks for these great tips, Justine!
Justine, thanks for all you do help us improve our businesses.
The little touches of taking time to send a thank you note and wrap your item professionally are always a big hit with me when I get a handmade item. Thanks for the tips!
Thank you Justine! Awesome article with loads of great tips! :)
WOW! What awesome info and a great read! I must book mark this page! :)
Really helpful article! All of these tips are really useful and I’ll be following each. Thanks!
GREAT article! Thanks for featuring my Thank You Cards!
Great points. i do alot of what you’ve listed,especially thank you notes. I just need help with seo and facebook. They stump me and I need guidance!
Thanks Justine! I love your advice and have great comfort in knowing your advice and tips are just a click away. Great article!
What a fabulous article. You are always so informative!! Just the spreadsheet link is a great find. Thanks!
Thanks for the great tips. Am sure I’ll come back and review this article as I complete each item!
This is awesome! Some of these tips will certainly come in handy. Thanks!!!!
Layout is ‘fab’ ~ Thanks for the spreadsheets. Always get good info from your articles.
Thanks for all the great tips, Justine! I just downloaded the free spreadsheet and am going to look into the Outright web site. Thanks again for sharing this useful information!
Corinne @ Bagalicious
What a great article. I will definitely be passing this along to my friends with online businesses. Thanks so much for the great tips!
Love this article! Great tips!
Off to read more from this blog.
Great article. I look forward to more useful info. :)
Great article, thanks for the wonderful advice!
Great article! So helpful! Thanks!
So true. Really great advice! Thank you!
Useful article…thanks Justine. I agree that the concrete examples make the info more understandable.
Thank you for the great article and such a good piece of advice!
I think these are very helpful tips for all the beginners (like me)
:-) Tasi
Excellent! I immediately compiled a list of all of my customers (all first timers, as I am in my first year in Etsy) and began composing a ‘thank you’ email with coupons for their next purchase. So much great advice. Thanks.
Thanks for the great tips!
Very helpful. I think Wonder Thinking is just what I need. Looking forward to it. Thanks!
Thank you for your support. Knowing that you want every one of us to succeed is fabulous! You taking the time to do this is great. I know I appreciate it! Look forward to future e-mails !!!
Thank you so much for the wonderful tips!
Thanks for a great article.
Thanks for the great info! Looking forward to checking out the rest of your site.