The Business Chat - 3 ways of selling

No matter how beautiful your work is, if you don’t sell it, your business will fail. In a crafty business money is sometimes not the main reason we’re in business. We do this because we love it, because we want a creative outlet, because we want to share our talents. Regardless of why you are in business, if you lose money it’s a failure.

The bottom line is you need to sell your work.

There are 3 ways you can sell your work.

1. retail your products directly to the public
2. wholesale to stores/galleries
3. in stores on consignment

There are advantages and disadvantages to each method. Each method isn’t mutually exclusive and most successful makers use a mix of all three.

Retailing to the public.

Let’s start with retailing your products directly to the public.

Pros:

• You receive 100% of the final selling price and you receive this immediately. Cash is good.
• You control the sales environment. You design your own display or store
• You meet the buying public and conduct on the spot market research

Cons:

• Time spent selling is time away from the studio
• You have to deal with the buying public. You are the salesperson
• Craft shows cost money. Opening your own store or studio costs money. Selling online costs money
• You have to start up and maintain your own display or store, or website

 Where to sell to the public:

• from your own studio/shop
• craft shows
• home parties/office parties
• online

Wholesaling to stores
Wholesaling is when a store buys your jewellery outright. They order from your catalogue, you produce the work and they give you money.

Pros:

• you don’t produce the work until you receive an order so you don’t have to invest as much in inventory
• you spend more time in the studio, less time selling
• unlike retail where you make a lot of small sales, in a wholesale model you set a minimum order and make fewer, but more lucrative sales

Cons:

• stores expect a discount from your retail price, usually at least 50%
• you need a catalogue or line sheets
• you must have work that is consistently repeatable, wholesale does not work for one of a kind work
• you still have to sell the work, to the store buyers

Consignment
With consignment, the store doesn’t actually purchase your work. They agree to display it and sell it for you. When it sells, they send you money. This is advantageous to the store as they do not have to spend money on inventory. While most of us would prefer to sell only wholesale, most stores deal on consignment. In the beginning of your crafty career, you will find that you are obliged to deal with stores on consignment.

Pros:

• your work is continually on display somewhere unlike a craft show which is a few days here and there
• unlike wholesale, you set the selling price
• you usually receive a larger percentage of the price than you do with wholesale
• consignment works will with one of a kind work or with large expensive pieces
• more time in the studio, less time selling.

Cons:

• As the store has not invested any money in your work, they may not be as motivated to sell it as you would like
• You must keep meticulous records of what pieces are in what stores
• Your inventory may be tied up for a long time without bringing you any return for it
• Stores aren’t always prompt in paying, it is up to you to be a collection officer

How you choose to sell depends on a number of factors. If you know that you are not a people person and don’t like the general public then craft shows are not a good option. If selling your work for 50% of the price means that you are losing money and you feel that you cannot raise your prices, then wholesale will not work for you. Think about how much time you want to spend in the studio rather than in a selling position, although if you want to sell wholesale or consignment you still have to sell, only this time to a store buyer.

Sometimes it’s a loathing of selling that stops many crafters from moving forward with their busines. Think of it not as selling, but as an exchange between friends. You are gifting them with your work, and they are gifting you with money. And you have made their world a more beautiful place, that’s fair.

The Business Chat - How to Sell Your Work

Boy is my inbox full lately! Too bad they aren’t the “You’ve received a new order” emails, but hey, it is January so no one is really expecting those. No, most of the emails are “gee, it’s a new year and this year I really want to sell my sweaters/earrings/soap/pottery. I saw you at a show and thought you might be able to help me.”

The answer is yes, I can try to help. I can tell you about how I got to where I am, and I can outline some steps that you must take. What I can’t do is make the decisions for you, or give you a magic bullet. I got to where I am by persistence and hard work. Harder than it needed to be because when I started there weren’t all these resources online. Persistence because there is no overnight success, there is no quick and dirty way to sell $10,000 by next month. It takes time. It also takes a lot of work you probably didn’t realize or don’t want to do. Simply making your work is not enough. You need to market it in order to sell it. And selling it is why you are here isn’t it?

So, in a nutshell here is how to sell your work.

1.       Know what you sell.

a.       What do you sell? Not sweaters/earrings/soap/pottery, you sell you the artist,  you sell magic, you sell a story

b.      Brand your work, and your company. Branding is setting customer expectations. It’s about building trust. Branding is way more than a logo, it’s a feeling. Think Tiffanys. Think Nike. What do you see in your head? What do you feel?

2.       Know who you are trying to sell it to.

a.       Know your target market, exactly. You can’t be everything to everybody and you’re wasting your time trying. Find only those who LOVE you and talk to them.

3.       Find a place to connect with those people.

a.       Do your research and find where they hang out, where they buy.

b.      You can sell 3 different ways, wholesale, consignment or retail.

4.       Tell those people about what you sell.

a.       Great product descriptions. If I wanted “silver hoop earrings” I’d go to the mall. Sell me your item.

b.      Great photos. If you’re selling online I should feel like I’ve picked it up and played with it. If you want to get into a craft show you have to sell yourself to the organizer.

c.       Tell them about you. Tell me a story.

d.      How do you tell them? Where are they, your right people? Do they use facebook, read blogs, subscribe to your newsletter?

5.       Let them know how your product will make their lives so much better

a.       Benefits not features. No one cares what the item is, they care about how it will make their life better.

6.       Make it easy for them to give you money

a.       Once they think your work is going to change their lives, how do they get it? Do you have an online store with a nice clear shopping cart, a big screaming green “BUY NOW” button? Can they come to a craft show, are you in stores?

7.       Exchange their money for your work with a giant smile and a big thank you.

a.       Customer service is everything.  

8.       Let them know how they can come back and buy more.

a.       Repeat business is critical to your success.

9.       Keep in touch.

a.       A second sale is so much easier than the first. They’ve already told you they like you. Don’t ignore them. Say hi.

10.   Repeat. Over. And over. And over.

Each of these points is a whole story in itself. So sit back kiddies, over the next few weeks I’m going to tell you about all these things.

Jewellery News

The front page of the Toronto Star this morning was splashed with an article re: recalled toys and children's jewellery - Made in China, loaded with lead. Some of it even tragically labeled lead-free. Mostly sold through dollar stores - these items continue to slip past testing (and realistically - how much testing could be done?) and make it onto the shelves here. It's sad - and an argument for sure for sitting down with your granddaughters and nieces (and grandsons and nephews) and teaching them to make jewellery from components that you know and trust! There's a moral in here somewhere about trying to turn lead into "gold."

On a happier note - the Royal Ontario Museum's (ROM) exhibit of diamonds opens on Saturday. Called "The Nature of Diamonds" - there will be some fabulous diamond jewellery on display. I know I've had it on my calendar for months. The ROM is also offering a series of lectures related to diamonds - although I can't easily find the info on the website - I do know about it because they put a flyer in the paper. Guess their advertising department supersedes their web development budget! Imagine! What noive!

And, if you are looking for a more intimate jewellery event - our own Sailorgirl - Catherine Winter is having a Party/Jewellery Preview at her new studio. Catherine teaches our jewellery business classes ("How to have a successful craft show" and "Pricing your jewellery - Starting a micro business.") If you are a fan of her happy, shiny jewellery - or just to see what the queen of marketing is doing - why not step down to her studio and have a boo. That's at:

Flux + Form
116 ½ Sherbourne St
Toronto

Friday October 24 6 – 9 p.m. Wine and cheese, beads and jewelry, Gallery Opening!
Saturday October 25 12 – 6 p.m. Coffee, tea and cookies, beads and jewelry!

Craft Show Season!

Well, June has finally arrived and with the warm weather and sunny days comes craft show season! Almost every weekend there seems to be another show or sale on. So why not get in on the action?!

Have you always wondered what it takes to get started in the craft show circuit? How much you should make and how on earth to price it all?

Not to worry, Catherine Winter aka Sailorgirl is back from sailing the Caribbean to answer all your questions! Catherine successfully makes and sells two jewelry lines using commercial beads for one and her own handcrafted lampwork beads and silver components for the other. She spends her summers working the craft fair circuit in Ontario and wraps the season with a booth at the prestigious One-of-a-Kind Craft Show.

Starting this Thursday, Catherine will be teaching her famous How to Start and Run a Successful Microbusiness followed by How to Have a Successful Craft Show on Thursday June 19th. With spaces filling quickly, don't wait until the last minute to register! If you are unable to make it to the the June dates, more classes are scheduled for July and August.

And if you're unable to make it to Toronto, Catherine has come up with a book based on her classes. Start Your Own Jewellery Business gives you the straight dope about making a living from making and selling jewelry in the Canadian craft market.