Lots of crafters out there have fabulous hand-made products. We set up shop, load our inventory, and then it sits. No traffic... few sales...and then the frustration begins. I look back into my shop and wonder, "what is it that I'm doing wrong? I know I have a great product but my shop is collecting dust on a weekly basis." With this all being said, I've come to see that writing a business plan is a must.
- Products and/or Services and your Unique Selling Proposition
- Pricing Strategy
- Sales/Distribution Plan
- Advertising and Promotions Plan
Products/Services need to be unique. Make it different from everyone else! What makes your product different from your competitors? You need a unique selling proposition. What is the message that you want to get across to your buyers? The marketing plan is all about communicating this central message to your customers.
Pricing: What is the cost for your product/services?? What is the cost of materials and labor? Include the cost of mailing, selling fees and other administrative costs as well.
How does the pricing of your product or service compare to the market price of similar products or services?
If your price is lower than competitors how are you able to do this? If you charge higher, how does this benefit your customer? These are things that come into play while planning your pricing.
Sales/Distribution Plan: What costs are associated with distributing your item? How long will it take until your customer receives their item?
If your business involves selling a product, you should also include information about inventory levels and packaging in this part of your marketing plan. Explain how your products will be packed and shipped. What methods of payment do you accept? What is your return policy? What type of product warranties does your company hold? Is there an area on your site for customer feedback?
Advertising and Promotions Plan: When advertising your product, which media outlets are you going to use? ie: internet, radio television, billboards, flyers etc.. Sales promotions are a good way to lure your customers in. Offer coupons, free gifts, product demonstrations etc. Marketing materials are always a huge plus- business cards, pamphlets, brochures etc.
How do you get publicity?
- product launches
- special events, including community involvement
- writing articles
- getting and using testimonials
Craft fairs are a good place to start! Find out about local craft fairs in your city. Check city websites for this information or visit www.eventlister.com to sign up (for free) and get a list of upcoming events in your area.
Start up a business website! Godaddy.com has some great offers to get you signed up. Microsoft Office Live has a free hosting/website too. There are other paid sites to use, however when starting out, sometimes its just not in your budget at the time.
No business is too small to have a marketing plan!
Have you ever found yourself wandering around on etsy searching just about anything and everything? Maybe a cute cuff, coffee cozy,handpainted necklace, clay earrings, or a piece of wheel thrown pottery? You might even glance at the price of the item and think, "that's a bit expensive for a coffee cozy". But, is it really? 
I for one, like to bargain shop. I live on a budget like most people, but you can't really look at a handmade item at being too costly when you are comparing it to Target/Walmart prices.
not cut corners like this and I hope that shows. Each hook is carefully placed in and then a tiny piece of clay is placed in that loop and smoothed over with a very tiny tool. Again, everything is smoothed out so no blemishes appear around the edging. Do I have to do it this way? No, but I choose to for durability. Each topping of choice is sculpted out and pressed onto the clay and centered. Now, for the face, it is not painted on. Each pupil is rolled out with just the right amount of clay and very carefully placed on, making sure the eyes are placed apart with a right distance and that each shape is as round as it can be. Then, the cute little smiley is rolled out in my hand and placed on with a needle, or sometimes my fingers. Once the construction is complete, it doesn't stop there. They are baked for 15 minutes at 275 degrees, pulled out to cool and then each little imperfection on the toast are scratched out and sanded out with a needle and a special tool that i scrape into the clay. Sometimes little dark pieces of clay get into the lighter clay and need to be removed. This too is time consuming and may cause blindness!! After each little imperfection is taken out and removed from the clay, it is then glazed by painting on a layer of glaze for each side, one side at a time. This too takes about 20 minutes including drying time in between glazing each side. While waiting for the final coat to dry, i begin cutting and measuring each necklace chain for each charm made. After it is dry, the charm is attached by a jump ring onto a silver chain. Now, imagine doing this on a daily basis, and having lots and lots of orders and only yourself to create them! It's alot of love into these!
This is just an example of my handmade creations. There's lots of other crafts that also take alot of time that are tedious and have high attention to detail. I hope after reading this, some of you might realize how time consuming and how much love really goes into each and every piece that I ship out. If I'm not happy with the piece, it doesn't get shipped- it's that simple. So, next time you think about purchasing an item at walmart that appears to be handmade for $5 you might just want to head out onto etsy an support a real handmade artist that works hard and shows pride in their artwork. Support handmade artists :)
Me and my daughter, Ava Sky... my inspiration and the love of my life :)
