6 Tips for Outstanding Craft Business Customer Service

One reason people like to shop from handmade businesses is the personal attention they receive. You can easily become known for your phenomenal customer care and personal touches that keep customers coming back for more.

Here are a few ways you can take care of your customers:

1) Try to learn and remember every first-time customer’s name (or, if you’re terrible with names, some other important detail about him or her). When you greet them the next time they shop from you, your memory of them will demonstrate how important they are to you.

2) Find small extra things you can do for your customers, above and beyond what they expect. When the art teacher at my son’s school asked me to redesign some old beads into new necklaces, I also created a pair of matching earrings from some of the beads, which she hadn’t thought to ask for. She was thrilled with that thoughtful extra touch.
Read more

5 Tips for a Better Jewelry Booth

Are you ready to have a successful, profitable jewelry show? Here are some things you can do at home, in the days before the show, to make setting up your booth easier, more professional, and more profitable:
Read more

Online Printing for Your Promotional Materials

For craft sellers who use Etsy, Artfire, DaWanda, or other online outlets, one of the most effective ways to drive additional sales has almost nothing in common with the internet, and is made of just plain, old paper!

Many of the best online sellers promote their work by sending creative business cards, sale announcements, or referral coupons with their product shipments. It’s a great way to get your message in the buyer’s hands and to keep them coming back to your store. When I’m shopping for handmade gifts, I always look through the stack of cards on my desk to rediscover those crafters whose work I loved the first time around.

For my own business cards I’ve been using an online printer called PsPrint. They focus on sustainability and recycled materials in their processes, and offer a pretty simple process for ordering their products and services. You can create business cards, postcards, direct mailings, and even have them do vinyl sticker printing. Be creative so your personality stands out! To try a test order, you can upload your own promotional designs to their website or, if you’re photoshop-challenged like me, choose from a wide variety of design templates they offer. You can preview your finished product before ordering, either as an image online or with a physical proof sent to you by mail. Check out their site for more information.

In a time where many of us only sell online, sometimes we forget to add a personal touch for our buyers. Send a business card with a handwritten ‘thank you’, and you’ll be surprised how this can enhance your relationship with your customers.

Advice on Taking the Leap into Selling Your Crafts

To many of us, crafting is a hobby. A very interesting one, but still a hobby. We like making cute little things and sometimes we gift them to our friends. The most talented of us even may sell our work and it is very nice to get some money for it.

I am not going to give you a magical equation for getting richer, if I knew it I would use it, but there are things we can do more efficiently and still have good time. So, it depends on how much time you are willing to invest in this.
Read more

Top Sellers on Etsy

Have you ever wondered who the top sellers on Etsy are? What categories do they sell in? I have compiled a list of the top 25 sellers on Etsy, including their store, how many sales they’ve had, and what category they sell in. The list is as of September 9, 2009.
Read more

Copyright for Artists eBook

Have you ever wondered how copyright protection works for crafters and artists? How do you get your work protected? Where can you apply for a copyright? Copyright for Artists provides the answers to these questions and dives further into helping artist understand how they can protect their art from being copied. Read more

Creative Offline Advertising Ideas

Are you looking for creative ways to market your home business offline? If so, I have some creative offline advertising ideas for you to try out. I recommend that you try 2 of these ideas every week and to be consistent with your offline advertising.
Read more

Twitter in Plain English

A quick and plain English intro the micro-blogging service Twitter.

Etsy Tips & Tricks

I recently received the following article from a fellow Mile High Etsy – Colorado team member. Jesi, www.HipViolet.Etsy.com, was previously in online marketing for a retail store. Jesi was lucky enough to get paid to go to online sales conventions and take classes in how to sell online. She has now put together this wonderful article on tips and tricks for your Etsy store. Read more

Tax Time for your Etsy Store

Keeping track of your receipts and other records throughout the year will help make filing your return a less stressful experience.
Read more

Next Page »