I’m a crafter who loves to experiment. I love trying new techniques and recipes. Etsy’s business model allows me to do this with much more ease. It fits perfectly into my current life and scheduling situations. I get to experiment in small ways without investing tons of money in new product or generating huge amounts of inventory that just sits on the shelf.
If a family crises arises…they always do. I can comfortably take a break and address it without worrying about creating inventory for potential sells because I’ve marketed something that I have no proven sells for yet must be prepared to meet should my marketing efforts payoff. This can happen when your growing a small business. The need to keep inventory for customers balanced with the cash flow required for raw materials. Here's one of my personal examples, QVC.
I had the opportunity to market my products on QVC once and it was an honor and a learning experience. Before the product was it accepted it had to meet their stringent QC (quality control) standards. It did and I was very proud. Then I had to commit to a preset amount of ready inventory before I went on. Why because it would not be good business for QVC to advertise a product for which they could not deliver. It took months to bring the whole thing together but we did it. And in the process I learned a lot. A lot about business, myself, and my then partner. All good things to know. The biggest thing I realized was that I did not want to be in the manufacturing business. It robbed me of my creative joy although not my will. I needed a more personalized creative business model. Enter Etsy!
I can make one-sy and two-sy…put them on the shelf in Etsy and see what the response is. It’s a great barometer for testing my product selection. I can offer one of kind unique products--even customized. If something turns out to be a hit. I know I can take it to the next level and increase my inventory and marketing efforts knowing the items will move.
If I had really understood Etsy’s value initially I would not have designed a website or pay for hosting. I would have just registered the domain name. That way it would be available whenever I needed. I knew the concept “if you build it, they will come” did not apply to websites. I knew I would have to market it to drive traffic to it and then hope that traffic produces sales.
- The beauty of Etsy is there is already a captive audience.
- Buyers and sellers who WANT qaulity handmade merchandise.
- A major hurdle is already overcome versus
- a “stand alone” “start-up” independent website that has to
build traffic, reputation, and product confidence in slow sparodic
traffic. - It can be done but it’s a very slow uninspiring process.
- The sparkling gem in the beauty of Etsy is--it's inspiring.
- Etsy is an inspiring community on the web.
This will be a continuation series article because there’s just so much about Etsy that I love, want to learn and share. As a craft artisian and entrepreneur I believe in sharing knowledge. It expands the teacher as well as all those it touches.
That’s what this blog is really all about. So I won’t try to write it all in one sitting. I’m still working on finding balance in my work and creative life. It takes time for me to transition from working, to creating, to writing. I want to be authentic and timely with this blog. So right now, upfront, I’m giving notice, here in the beginning, the consistency of postings may be sporadic but always useful. I want to let the direction of the blog be guided by my experiences and the needs I see. Knowing that I am not alone, I’m sure others will find the information useful too.
I do want to grow a successful business but enjoying the ride is an important part of that.
I’d love to have you tag along. Just understand before hand that I will be stopping to smell the roses. We’re taking the scenic route to great skin care, here at the Savon Shoppe and I’m bringing the treats and snacks…come join me.
Visit the Savon Shoppe, bath and body Confectionery. Decadence you Deserve.
http://www.savonshoppe.etsy.com/
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1 comment:
This is great - and I know what you mean about manufacturing robbing you of the joy of creating. One of a kinds are so great!
Thanks for your input in the forums too!
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