To want to grow my Craft Business

[speakout]

I make and sell craft items. At a stage where I need help to grow my business but unsure where to turn. I need website, branding etc. Will all that be expensive?

Nobody can possibly advise you without more information.

You can learn. Use shopify for your website, easy to do but it will cost you monthly so that is a fixed cost. Alternatively you can just sell via etsy or Amazon or ebay which would be cheaper if you're not sure you can sell enough steadily. Branding is well, easy if you know what you're doing. You can get a logo/letterhead made to look more professional via fiverr.com or similar. Might get one for about £5. Social media marketing will be free if you do it sensibly.

What information do you need? I am happy to tell you.

I love crafts and get my fix from:

Youtube
Instgram
Etsy

are you on these?

YABU to put this in AIBU.
If you ask in Arts & Crafts you'd get more pertinent answers.

Thanks zigzag.

I am swithering whether to do the website and branding myself- I have no skills in these areas. My time is limited and I am trying to develop new products that are less time consuming/partially made.
I could potentially learn but the results perhaps would not be so good, although I can see the benefits in having some " ownership" as I make new products, need new labels etc.

Have a look at Squarespace for website building, it’s very easy, they have example templates and you can just add your own text and photos. No need to pay for anything unless you decide you like the site you make and want to keep it, and then it’s v cheap.

It sounds like you are tempted to pay a designer to do your branding and site, which is absolutely fine and a good idea if your business can afford it. Consider how much profit each of your items makes (not including your time, materials, and any other business costs, then consider how many items you’d need to sell, in order that that profit would cover the cost of a professional creating your branding and site (anything from a few hundred £s to a thousand)

Thanks curl.

I have a strong hold on the finance side of things. My business has been running for 2 years now. I will check out that website. I have a good idea about how I want my branding to look, but getting that flavour onto graphics seems complicated,

Off the top of my head here are a few suggestion's: building a website is relatively easy now and there are plenty of free sites : www.wix.com

Somebody has helpfully suggested where to get a logo.

Costs are financial and time invested to raise awareness of your business.

Good quality images of your products = good quality camera.

Deciding if you want to spend on advertising and where?

Attending to events and exhibitions (so thinking about displays and having enough stock to sell).

Producing promotional literature.

developing your online presence via social media so always posting on Instagram, Facebook, youtube, pinterest etc.

I'm thinking about starting a small business next year, so I've been watching the growth a few small independent labels to gain ideas. I'm currently being stalked by fashion nova, I put an item in my basket and now they're messaging me via Facebook messenger to remind me to buy the item in my basket! I'm surprised at their speed and don't recall sharing my email so how did they do that?? Anyway, I've digressed.

Good luck xx

You need to sell on etsey. Please don't outlay too much.

I usually recommend WordPress for websites, but it's a steep learning curve. I think squarespace might be better for you.

You can try existing selling spaces like etsy and folksy, and having an Instagram or pinterest presence and Facebook page might serve you well, as it's easier to get people to see you there than going to a separate website.

You'll find courses on website creation online, some are fairly inexpensive. Try udemy.

Good luck!

Thanks.

I have tried etsy, but don't have the time. I sell mostly on Amazon and ebay, but have had to put my Amazon settings on holiday mode for the past two weeks as I can't keep up with orders.
To give you an idea of scale I have sold £80K worth of stock in the past 12 months, £55K of profit.

If you already have more interest than you can serve, why are looking at ways to expand your business? Surely you should firstly find ways to manage what interest you already have?

If you've made 55k profit I'd pay someone to do your graphic design and website, plus maybe some marketing or PR

I am managing, I am looking to grow.

I am developing new products that are less labour intensive and are more easily prepared in a batch fashion, but I feel a branding would help with that.

People per hour?

Is your craft something you could teach too? You need to tap into buyers but also those with a similar interest who will follow you.

Are there any similar sellers you could join up with to increase exposure (the craft Youtubers all talk about each other/meet up at events etc) It's a bit predictable and boring really - like a script they all follow - but there are still some interesting bits.

Thank you.

Piggybacking on this.

How is Wordpress difficult - I'm suddenly paranoid that I'm missing something. I only have a blog on it - which I haven't written on yet due to nerves - it looked ok so far, but am I missing something obvious?

Wordpress is easy if you stick with a theme and don’t want to custom CSS it. And keep it updated with a strong password and change the user name from admin to avoid hackers.

CSS?

Though if the OP earns as much as she says, I can’t fathom why she wouldn’t pay someone to design the branding and profiling and set up the wconmwrce for her

Wordpress, and get a theme.

If you message me I can pass on link to a great course for people who want to learn how to build a Wordpress website using a theme from a starting point of zero prior knowledge. Also a couple of places to go look for themes.

You will want an e-commerce theme, and make sure it's fully mobile ready and responsive.

Try not to get overfaced by all the terminology - it gets easier as you go along and you learn as you go by googling and asking.

Disclaimer - I work with small businesses wanting to grow and to be in charge of their own websites.

Why do you need to look any further at platforms when you sell so much already?

For what it's worth, the following sites....

NuMonday
Folksy
Etsy
Not on the high street (you need your own website first though)
Wow thank you

Make sure that if you make toys that they're CE tested. And nothing against copyright xx

I have tried etsy, but don't have the time. I sell mostly on Amazon and ebay, but have had to put my Amazon settings on holiday mode for the past two weeks as I can't keep up with orders.
To give you an idea of scale I have sold £80K worth of stock in the past 12 months, £55K of profit.

#Pay someone to build your website

#Pay somebody (or do you have a family relative that is able to help???) to keep on top of order fulfilment (don't close your business, set up an automated email upon receipt of an order that states items will be posted in 3-5 business days). Offer free postage aka add to cost of product. If customers want it quicker they pay extra for postage. This will help you to prioritise order fulfilment.

A website and a well planned PR plan is your best way forward. There's a website that finds experienced creative professionals to do one off projects (marketing/PR/web design/literature design etc) for small business. If I can find it I'll post on here for you.

I did B2B marketing before I trained as a nurse. My little brain is whirring away for you LoL

Good luck I'm excited for you x