Here is her interview:-

1) How hard/easy is it really to sell our handmade crafts?

Well, like almost anything we do, it can be as hard or as easy as we choose to make it. It can be time consuming to do all of the leg work that you may find necessary to sell your crafts, but if selling is your goal, then you’ll be pleased with your results. Making a plan and being really clear about your goals as a seller will make things much easier. Do your research on your customer, find out where they shop, how much they like to pay for things, and then just meet them there! You may find them online or in a local store, but once you get the research part out of the way, the rest will fall into place. And hey! You’re a creative person! Just turn your leg work into a creative process and you’ll be selling on easy street before you know it.

2) How can we determine if people will actually buy our creations?

Try selling them! I know that sounds a bit flip, but seriously, how many times has someone you love, or just plain ole’ know, commented on how beautiful what you make is? I’ll bet that you’ve made plenty of gifts, by hand, for people that have been well received.  Has anyone ever asked “You MADE this?” with a look of wonder in their eyes? If so, then people will buy your creations. Likewise, do you make something useful? Of course you do! People buy useful things all the time. Look around your own home and the home of your friends. These people, including yourself all have useful things – like blankets, clothes, plates, rugs… because we all need those things. If you make something that is useful AND beautiful, then you’re ahead of the game. Sure, maybe not everyone wants to pay for an extra special, super lovely useful handmade thing, when a much more economical version is available at the big box store that just moved into town, but your customer is out there. They are out there and they will buy your stuff – in fact, THEY WANT TO.

3) How should someone go about pricing their craft item?

This is a tricky question and it can be hard to find a straight answer out there. The reason it is so hard to answer is because it is so subjective. Pricing your work is a really personal thing and you should never charge a price that you’re uncomfortable with. Here are some things to keep in mind when deciding what to charge for your handmade goods:

• Don’t undervalue your work. Pricing too low hurts you and your fellow artisans.
• Don’t charge less than what your supplies cost you.
• See what your competition charges.  How do you feel about their prices? Do their prices seem fair for their work?
• Beyond that, settling on a price for your work is up to you.
• Try to figure out what a reasonable hourly rate for your work is and add that to the cost of your supplies. Do you like that price? If not, raise it.

I discuss some pricing strategies in The Handmade Marketplace and I encourage you to check them out and see if any of seem like something you would want to try.
There are lots of ways to justify higher prices for items, but that is a whole other topic. Just pick a price that allows you to make a profit and then adjust it as often as you need to in the beginning. Really take a close look at what goes into making what you do and make sure you’re comfortable with the final number.

4) Where can someone sell their crafts online?

Oh the options seem almost endless! You could join an online marketplace like Etsy or you could sell from your own website, blog, or you could hook up with a store that sells their shop wares online. You have so many choices! I list a bunch of online marketplaces in the resource section of The Handmade Marketplace which you might find useful.

5) Can you give us any advice on approaching stores to sell our crafts?

Find stores that match what you make and then ask what their shop submission policies are. Stores will have different policies and will require different things from prospective stockists. Some may like you to bring in your actual products for review, some may require a sample of your work, some may only see people on Tuesdays, and some may prefer to conduct business over email… every shop will have their own set of guidelines. Find out what the store you want to work with likes, and then comply. Remember to be confident, smile a lot, and really sell yourself and what you make. Tell stories about your goods and make the buyer see that their customer will be delighted to see your work in their store. You can do it! Also, I know that approaching a store can seem really scary and be tough. Keep this in mind: Stores that sell the kinds of things that you make (because remember you are approaching stores that are a good match for you, so chances are they sell handmade things) need people just like you or else they would be out of business. Sure, shop keepers can try to start a relationship with someone if they already know about their work, but they really depend on people coming to them first, too. They opened the kind of store that they did, because they love selling these kinds of products and working with the people who make them. They NEED you and you could be doing them a favor by presenting your wares. Take a chance!

6) In your experience, are there any factors that may increase our chance of success?

Yes. Believe in yourself. That may sound like new age gobbledygook, but seriously, if you believe in your products and what you make – if you truly think they are special, then others will too. Never make yourself make things that you don’t like. If you become unhappy working within your chosen craft,  then you won’t want to finish what you start and you’ll be come disenchanted. Make sure you keep yourself and your hands happy. Keep the excitement alive in your work, and share it with others.

Bio:
Kari Chapin is the author of the best-selling business book The Handmade Marketplace: How to Sell Your Crafts Locally, Globally and Online. (Storey Publishing 2010) Kari has spent the past 15 years in the professional world incorporating marketing, publicity, buyer, freelance writer, community relations and stylist as various job titles. As someone who spends a great deal of time with artisans and craftspeople, it wasn’t surprising that one day, a compact fluorescent light bulb went off above her head, and she sat down and wrote The Handmade Marketplace. You can find her helping handmade artists and crafters online through her popular and successful e-course, all focused on making handmade entrepreneurs successful in today’s various marketplaces. She lives in Northampton, MA with her husband Eric Nixon and their two miniature dachshunds. Find out more about Kari, her book and her e-courses by visiting www.karichapin.com.

Leave your comments so we know that you have enjoyed this interview – we are planning to bring your more very soon

The craft business Course still has a website template as a bonus but only for another few days!!  Make today the day you decide to get your craft into the online marketplace

http://www.craft-business-online.com/blog/craft-business-online-in-a-month/

I said I’d do a quick video for you all about the new Face Book “like it” button – and I have..  This is very cool especially if you want to sell any thing online..  I hope my little video will help you see that

We are getting very busy looking after our students in the craft business Online Course – not sure how much longer we’ll leave it open – If you have any desire to “get online” with your craft don’t miss this opportunity!  Seriously – we are basically “giving” you a website and all the training you’ll need to make your new website “work for you!”.

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE COURSE AND HOW EASY WE HAVE MADE IT FOR YOU..

P.S. I have just been looking at a course that Penny Halgren is offering to help quilt shop owner get online – Its $497 and DOES NOT include an actual website!!  Currently we make websites for other small businesses for $2500 +  we really do know what we are talking about

Jeff Block - Just Paper Roses

Jeff Block is an American artist who took his hobby of Origami and turned it into a successful online business..  He started http://www.justpaperroses.com/ in 2000 and has even authored a book – “Steel Wool on a stick, my hobby on steroids”.  Jeff was kind enough to answer a few questions for us..  I hope you get as much out of Jeff’s interview as I did

First here’s a short introduction from Jeff about himself:- Hi. I’m Jeff Block, an American artist who used to have Origami as a hobby.  Now, JustPaperRoses, Inc. is my “hobby on steroids”.  I started with fold-out heart-shaped Valentine’s Day cards in 1994 (that’s me getting awards from Jerry Stiller and Steve Allen.).  I added Origami Orchids (made by me) like the one pictured on the table in 1998.  In 2000 the business morphed into JustPaperRoses®

1) Can you give us brief background of how you came to sell your origami roses online

Selling paper flowers online morphed from my attempt to sell my self-created Origami greeting card online.  I had started with the greeting cards in 1994 and by 1998 everybody was getting a website.  The paper roses morphed from the greeting card business and were created from inspiration after showing some kids how to make cocktail napkin roses, twirling them around their fingers.  That night I thought “why don’t I create an “upscale” cocktail napkin rose” and the business was born/morphed on the path for what it is today.

2) How hard/easy is it really to sell handmade crafts?

Not difficult at all to sell handmade crafts.  What might be difficult is selling them in a volume that makes a profit and/or compensates the crafter for their time put it to the products.

3) How did you determine if people would actually buy your creations?

Since it’s so easy to put products online, it’s the customers who decide whether your products will sell or not.

4) How did you decide on the pricing for your roses?

Since I have no direct competitor I’ve set my prices to be comparable to fresh flowers, and maybe a little more expensive.

5)Why do you say the internet is invaluable to start up business/homemade craft business?

The internet enables zero cost or very little cost to start up and create a craft business.  My business is national and international and could never exist if I had to depend on just the local market.

6) In your experience, are there any factors that may increase our chance of success?

It helps if you start when you are young, because it’s going to take 10 years just to get to the point where the business is self-sufficient and you know what you are doing.  Also it’s important to find a reason for people to buy other than “our stuff is pretty”.  I just came from a high-end arts/crafts show where the most crowded booth was a crafter who makes custom wooden spoons and other wooden kitchen utensils.  His craft has a utilitarian purpose and his price point is such that everybody can buy a spoon or two.  In my case we sell because of the traditional themes for wedding anniversaries, NOT because our stuff is pretty.

7)What are your 3 top tips to newbies looking to sell their crafts online?

a) Start now, right now.  If you don’t have a website today then have one by sundown tonight.
b) Followup with your customers.  ASK them after their purchase how they liked your product.
c) Become the BEST in your craft.  It also helps if you become the fastest making your craft too!

*********************

Jeff makes a great point about starting right now!  Getting a website before sundown tonight!  The only way to really make any head way is just to start..  Lucky for you, we have created an amazing SHORT CUT to getting a website before sundown!  The bonus in the Craft Business Online Course is just that – A WEBSITE …  and we make it really easy for you by doing BASICALLY every thing for!  I still remember how scary it was the first time I put a website up – I promise we will make it fun!

Go check out all the things you’ll get as well as a website when you order the Craft Business Online Course..

http://www.craft-business-online.com/blog/craft-business-online-in-a-month/

Technorati Tags: craft business, craft business online, craft online, online craft business

A chance to win a free copy of the brand new Online Craft Profits course we have created and are about to release..

This course includes step by step video instructions to get your craft online and create a real business (or to just make some extra cash to pay for your supplies).

I’ve saved the best to last -  you also get your own actual website with the Online Craft Profit course!  Not only that – Simon and I will create and upload your website for you, taking away all the tricky bits and leaving you with an online business

How can you win the Online Craft Profit course?  Great question…

All you need do is post a comment below telling me why you NEED this course and how you are going to use it?  The best comment will win a complete copy of this new course.  The only catch is that you must leave a comment in the next 24 hours to be in the running..

Leave your comment below – I’ll announce the winner on Wednesday USA time, just before we release the limited Online Craft Profits course

Good Luck..

Before I show you the last video all about marketing your Etsy shop online, I wanted to share this amazing interview I scored for you recently – I have been on the look out for some inspirational online craft people to share with you and boy have I found a few..

The first one is from James Dillehay, he is a fiber artist & author of no less than 9 books!  He has been interviewed by the Wall Street journal and countless other impressive organizations..  In the following interview you will see that he has revealed some amazing tips to help you succeed in your online craft business.

He is also the founder of: www.Craftsu.com

and he blogs about craft business tips at: http://www.craftmarketer.com/sellyourcrafts/

Let me know what you think – leave a comment

Enjoy..

1)  How hard/easy is it really to sell our handmade crafts?

It’s not difficult to sell crafts. Craft fairs are easy enough to find and set up at and take in some extra cash over a weekend.

Some craft artists have made a full time business doing home parties or trunk shows; easy enough that almost anyone could do it.

Websites like Etsy.com, Artfire.com and 1000markets.com have made it super simple to set up your own online store front and be ready to sell within minutes.

Where it gets more challenging is selling wholesale to stores. Sometimes stores take awhile to pay and you have to be sure you can make a profit when selling at wholesale prices.

2) How can we determine if people will actually buy our creations?

No one can guarantee you that your craft items will sell. What is certain is that the online market for handmade crafts is growing. Etsy.com sold $90 million of crafts in 2008 and sales were up again in 2009. Etsy averages more than 11 million visitors a month. Craft sales on eBay and Artfire.com have grown as well, showing the rising demand for handmade items which means you are in the right marketplace.

3) How should someone go about pricing their craft item?

Here is a simple formula I’ve used with success:

Cost of Materials + Cost of Labor = Recovery Cost

Step 1. Add up your material costs. If you use small amounts of thread or glue or other supplies, you may have to estimate their cost. But be sure to include all the costs.

Step 2. Add up your hourly labor. Let’s say you pay yourself $15 an hour, then figure out how long it takes you to make one piece and determine the labor cost. For example, if it takes you 4 hours to make an item, then your labor cost would be $60.

Step 3. The sum of your material costs and your labor costs gives you the minimum amount you have to recover when selling the item. We will call this your recovery cost.

Step 4. Determine the average price of items like those you are selling in the market you are selling in. If you sell at craft shows, learn what items like yours sell for at craft shows. If you are selling on eBay, how much do items like yours sell for. This is called the average market price.

If your recovery cost is lower than the average market and you price your work at the average market price, you know from your research that customers are willing to pay that amount and you will make a profit.

If your recovery cost is higher than the average market price, you will lose money. You will have to either lower your costs or find other items to make that you can profit from.

4) Where can someone sell their crafts online?

Here are 12 out of 70 sites for selling art and crafts online taken from the book, “Sell Your Crafts Online” (www.craftmarketer.com)

eBay.com
Etsy.com
Ioffer.com
Ecrater.com
Dawanda.com
Bigcartel.com
Bonanzle.com
Rubylane.com
Ebid.net
Artfire.com
Artprice.com
Wigix.com

5) Can you give us any advice on approaching stores to sell our crafts?

• Know your recovery cost; can you profitably sell wholesale  –  Stores typically double their cost to arrive at a retail price. Remember you must first know your recovery cost before you can determine if you can make a profit selling wholesale.

• Have high-quality images  –  Great photos make a professional impression.. You can use your images in your portfolio, on your website, on brochures, flyers, postcards and business cards. You need something memorable you can leave with store owners.

• Learn your production capacity –  Stores order in quantity. Can you produce enough to meet demand? And can you produce under pressure if a store does well and quickly needs to reorder?

• Stores don’t pay for at least 30 days or longer  –  Stores usually won’t work with you unless you extend them 30 days credit. This means they don’t pay for your items until 30 days after sending you an order. Can you afford to produce and ship merchandise and then wait maybe even longer than 30 days to get paid. The large store chains are notorious for slow payments.

The following five sites (also from “Sell Your Crafts Online”) are for selling to wholesale buyers. These sites charge a monthly listing fee and a percentage of sales made:

Wholesalecrafts.com
Erayo.com
Art-exchange.com
Seekingdesigners.com
Elsewares.com

6) In your experience, are there any factors that may increase our chance of success?

Follow the money. Look at what kinds of craft are selling now. Go online to www.etsy.com/time_machine2.php. Choose the link “Just Sold” to get a slideshow of what’s recently sold on Etsy.

You can also follow the top selling handmade crafts on eBay.com. On the left side of the page, under “categories”, select “crafts”, then look for and click on “handcrafted & finished pieces”. Then look for “preferences” and choose “completed listings.” The last time I did this search, I got over 19,000 listings.

On the right side of the results page are completed auction listings of products, some of which are inexpensive crafts to make and sell. You can sort the listings. When sorting, choose “price: highest first.”

For a free video on discovering what the best selling crafts are see http://www.craftmarketer.com/handmade-crafts-that-sell-best.htm

7)What are your 3 top tips to newbies looking to sell their  crafts?

Learn from successful sellers. Almost every site where you can sell your crafts, there are community forums which discuss craft business topics. Just open an account and start browsing the forum posts for a wealth of information.

When you are designing think of themes; collectors love buying items related to their favorite animal, location or other genre.

Keep a customer list. People who like and buy your work are more likely to buy from you again when you come out with new pieces.

About James Dillehay
James is a weaver / fiber artist and author of nine books. He has been interviewed in The Wall Street Journal, The Chicago Tribune, Bottom Line Personal and has appeared as a featured guest on HGTV’s The Carol Duvall Show and Entrepreneur Radio. James teaches workshops on marketing, pricing and online promotion of arts and crafts. He is founder of www.Craftsu.com, the social network for craft artists and he blogs craft business tips at http://www.craftmarketer.com/sellyourcrafts/ . He weaves and writes in a studio frequently visited by deer, bear, bobcats, the occasional skunk and other wildlife next to the Cibola National Forest in central New Mexico.

Technorati Tags: craft business, craft business online, craft online, online craft business