Things I've Learned From Running an Indie Biz: Part 1

I opened up my Etsy shop over a year ago and I went from knowing basically nothing to sharing my "biz know how" and such within the Etsy teams, Etsy Hearts Beads, I captain and the one I'm a leader of, New and Not So New to Etsy.  I'm not saying I'm some kind of selling pro, that's just not true, but I've learned a great deal over the first year of selling my handmade jewelry and art pendants.  I've stumbled, I've fallen,  I've even been so frustrated I wanted to give up.  But I didn't, I brushed myself off and kept going.  Now my hard work is starting to pay off and it's becoming easier to increase sales and heck I'm even famous (within a small community, lol).

I wanted to share with you some of the valuable lessons I've learned and I hope you can gain some insight as well or avoid some mistakes I've made.  This is just part one and there's oodles of valuable information that I've learned so stay tuned for more posts, however many that may be!

• Know the legalities of running an indie biz.  I'm one of those "do it now and figure it out later" kind of people.  Oh boy.  I hit the ground running and just went for it not having a single clue that I was supposed to register my business with the county and oh apply for this little thing called a sales tax permit.  Thankfully I got my head out of the sand and did all that before I got in trouble but it's best to have all that information up front.  Check with your CPA, if you see one, about things you can claim and what you can't, and other things you need to know for your state and federal regarding taxes.  They should be able to tell you where to apply for sales tax permits and your tax ID number (your state's official website should also have info on small business permits/tax permits etc).  Some states let you file with your personal taxes, some don't and you probably have to collect sales tax too.  Also call your local city hall or county clerk's office to see if you need to register your business or purchase a license even if you don't have a brick and mortar store. 
• Keep track of your accounting.  Again, I decided to shove this off to the side.  I waited almost half the year before I thought "hey maybe I should know how to get my tax stuff ready".  BAD!  I have a craft show buddy who took pity on me and showed how to do my spreadsheets and to inventory and all that jazz.  I was smart enough to keep receipts and invoices for everything but do you know how long it takes to catalog the cost of each and every individual bead and finding for over 6 months worth of start up supplies?  Yeah basically forever plus a visit to the doctor for carpal tunnel (at least it's tax deductible, lol).  I now keep up with my cost of materials sheets, sales, fees, expenses, travel, etc every week or two.  I even know exactly how much each item I have for sale cost me make so I'm not scrambling to figure it out when it sells.  That's a huge chunk of stress off my chest.  Here's link to snag yourself some free accounting worksheets to keep track of your sales and fees from Megan's Creative Blog.
• No matter how awesome your stuff is, it won't sell itself.  This should be obvious, and I did know that much upon opening shop.  What I didn't know was how much work it was.  There's blogging, Facebook pages, email signatures, Etsy teams, and more.  Each one of these comes with their own set of do's and don'ts.  I started out promoting my Facebook page by posting it on various beading site's Facebook pages and tried to sound as un-spammy as possible.  This was before I joined my first Etsy team (which I now captain).  Most importantly, SEO is your best friend and can work for you if you use it right.  If you're unsure of it check out this Etsy blog.  I'll get into more about getting your shop seen in a later post.
• Don't be an annoying self promoter.  We've all done it before and the hardest part is finding the right balance of promoting your work.  If all you ever do is plop your listing's url all over it's just plain annoying.  Do it too little and everyone will forget about you.  "Oh she has an Etsy store? When did that happen?"  On my Facebook page I've found it's better to post new items once a week, maybe twice.  I also make sure my "likers" know I'm a human being as well.  I share what I'm doing, I share treasuries, I post interesting quotes, I ask what they're doing this weekend.  I apply the same idea with my blog.  I used to promote myself waaaaaay too much.  Now I tend to forget to mention a new listing, which reminds me I need to do just that! Lol!  It's way more interesting to share DIY crafts you've done, a fun day you had or a trip you took, advice, etc.  The same goes with Etsy teams.  If you just post your new items and nothing else people are bound to ignore you.  Even in the teams I'm not terribly active in I at least favorite somebody's item, post a comment or play a quick game/contest if I post a new listing.  Nobody likes a person who "posts and runs".
•   Take yourself seriously even when others don't.  This is a really tough one and it's something I will have to deal with probably forever.  You are bound to come across at least one person who regards your business as if you're a kid selling lemonade even if you have big kid business cards and everything.  Unfortunately for me this came fist as a few nameless people I know closely.  It hurt.  It was very discouraging.  I wanted to slap someone.  But I didn't.  I'm an artist and I don't have a "payroll" job and it's the most rewarding thing I've ever done even if it doesn't quite pay the bills right now (that's what hubby is for).  I'm proud to tell others what I do and I do not care what they think of it anymore.  I get just as much scrutiny over being a stay at home mom (why is it so weird to not work a "regular" job? It's not like I sit around all day drinking margaritas) so I just chalk it up to "they're jealous" to make myself feel better if I need a little boost.  What really matters to me is that the most important people in my life don't think I'm a kid selling lemonade :)

Big girl biz card from Moo.com

Before this gets too long I'll stop it here for now.  I have lots more to share so stay tuned for part 2!

Check out all of these lovely treasuries I've had the honor of being in recently!  Thanks!

2012 Goals: How Am I Doing?

Instead of waiting till next January to see what I accomplished on my goals for 2012, I thought I'd do a check up every so often throughout the year to keep me on my toes and increase the chances of me completing my goals.

Shop Goals Recap:

• Reach 100 Sales.  At the time I first made up my goal list in January I was at 47 sales, as of today I'm at 54!  Not too bad for a month later considering last year I only had 3 sales from Jan 2011 to Feb 20th.  To reach 100 by the end of the year I only need to average 5 sales a month, so I think it's achievable for sure.
• Grow my Etsy Hearts Beads Team into a larger and engaging team.  This has been going very well!  The team has grown from around 30 some members to almost 50, and it's very active!  I have two wonderful and enthusiastic team leaders by my side and I couldn't have done it without them!  We have fun games and contests and we even started our own creative product challenge where members make an item for sale in their shop according to a theme and then we hold a public vote for the best one!  

• Try something new.  My original ideas were metal embossing or stamping, but I need a nice chunk of change before I start buying the supplies and numerous tools needed for either of those.  I have however tried some new things.  I bought a bunch of red brass wire to expand my wire designs to include brass instead of just copper.  I just love this new wire!  I also bought an inexpensive ring mandrel and tried several times to make wire wrapped rings with little success.  It's not that I can't do it, it's more that I cannot get the sizing right to save my life.  The ring starts out the size I want and then somehow I pull it too tight or let it get too lose.  Considering rings are largely custom work, I'm going to put the project on hold.  It's become very frustrating and if it's not enjoyable I'm simply not going to do it right now.  Perhaps some other time.  Another new thing however is that I just ordered some absolutely GORGEOUS sari silk ribbon that is hand dyed and not edged so it can fray naturally.  I'm looking forward to adding some luscious silk to my jewelry!

New brass designs!

• Be more outgoing and charismatic at craft shows.  I haven't done a show yet, so I can't really address this yet but I have been more open lately.  If I get a compliment on something I'm wearing that I've made I'm more open to forking over a biz card and saying "I sell these and more at my shop on Etsy!"  Before I mostly just thanked them and was on my way in my usual shy manner.  I was always afraid of looking pushy but that's just not the case most of the time I've found out.
• Get a Square card reader.  I have a cool new Droid and I have a cool new Square too :)
• Buy new jewelry tools because mine suck.  Yeah they did suck, and I did get new tools too!  I got a set of ergonomic tools from Bead Smith (the link isn't the exact one I got but it's close enough, mine had less pieces) and some nice flush cutters that I hopefully won't break this time and I absolutely LOVE them!  My fingers don't hurt anymore!

• Grow my blog following.  I joined an awesome blog team on Etsy, and I'm very happy that my following has gone up and I get more comments too!  If you haven't followed me yet, be sure to follow me using any of the following options in the column to your right near the bottom.  If you don't have blogger though, don't use the Google Friend Connect, Google is doing away with it soon for bloggers who use other blogging platforms.  You can still follow me with Networked Blogs, Blog Lovin or by email if you don't use Blogger.

Isn't he cute?

Since this is turning into a novel I'll save my personal goals for some other time! 

The 365 Project: Week Seven

I can't say I was overly thrilled with the past week's Picaboo theme but it was inevitable I suppose.  The week's them was "me" and the challenge was taking self portraits.  Yippee.  I'd much rather be on the other side of the camera but I was game, why the heck not?  I just decided on one thing; I was not, I repeat was not, going to take one of those photos of me in the mirror with the camera to my face like everyone else was posting on Picaboo's Facebook Page.  It just seemed overly cliche to me.


Despite not wanting to be in front of the camera I did get some neat shots during the week and perhaps I'll be in the picture more often, even if it's just from family outings and and Christmas photos.  There's just one photo I didn't actually take during the past week.  Yeah yeah I cheated, get over it.  My hubby works really late and a lot so I wanted to make sure I included him so I tossed in a photo of us from when we went to see Saving Abel in concert last August.  In addition to the self portraits I wanted to include a photo of my painting supplies since I am an artist and it's very important to me of course.  The cupcake you ask?  It was Valentine's Day and my Father-In-Law dropped off some goodies for Kaylie and us so why not?

And of course here's some recent treasuries for you all to check out!  The one on top I made and could use a little more love! Thanks!

New Items in Both of My Shops!

Swirly Heart Necklace and Earrings, sold separately

Spring Blossom Necklace

Black Forest Necklace

I've been rather busy adding more items to both my shops lately and I have yet to blog about them!  I know Valentine's Day is tomorrow but heart jewelry is always in season and I've made two new copper heart themed pieces called Swirly Heart Necklace and Swirly Heart Earrings that are available in my Etsy shop.  Also new is a pretty necklace that I hand forged and wrapped from solid brass wire.  I've been itching to use the new wire I got and I'm very happy over how Spring Blossom turned out!  It's made from Czech glass beads in pinks, olive greens, and some soft browns just like spring!  I made the delicate chain by hammering the brass s-links and oxidizing/polishing them to give it a antique finish.  Also made from brass wire, Black Forest features some lovely black moss agate beads that I wire wrapped and attached to brass plated chain for a sleek and elegant look.

Orchid

White Calla

I've also been busy listing lots of artwork in my new shop at I Support American.  I'm also in the process of adding jewelry and scrabble tiles from my shop on Etsy that I have more than one of and made to order items.  Feel free to check out what I've got over there!

Red Poppies I,II,III All sold separately

Dandelion Wishes I,II,III All sold separately

And of course here's a couple of awesome T's to check out!

Treasury Time!

I've been in a lot of treasuries these past few days and I wanted to make sure I featured all of them in my blog as a big THANK YOU!!  So here's a bunch more lovlies and thank you so much to those who have included me in such wonderful collections!!

Project 365: Week Six

This week's Picaboo theme and challenge was much better for my sleep!  This week the theme was night and the challenge was silhouettes.  Usually we try to avoid having the source of light behind your subject so it was actually fun to do this on purpose!  I could have done more with silhouettes now thinking back on it, but it was such a perfect week for sunsets and I just couldn't resist!

The best thing to get a good silhouette is to make the sky your subject (or whatever is your source of light) so that your actual subject is underexposed and therefore a silhouette.  If you have trouble, just point your camera lens a little higher than your actual subject.  Also make sure you don't use your flash.  For sunsets the best white balance setting is usually the cloudy setting, which really warms up those fiery colors!  I did get some cool shots for this week too!  My favorite is the one on top of this post.  My Canon has a photostitch feature so I was able to take several pictures of that gorgeous sunset and "stitch" them on the computer to create the panoramic image you see on top!  I also got a great shot of my cat, Zoe, peeking at the birds one evening in the window and one of the moon at dusk (actually I took it last summer but I really wanted to use it!).  The other three are sunset shots taken near my home.  One great thing about living in Michigan's Upper Peninsula is that we get some pretty amazing color out of our sunsets and they last for quite a long time too! 

Lastly, here are some more Treasuries I've been featured in over the past week!

The 365 Project: Week Five

One of two photos Picaboo featured in their blog!  Cranberry pancakes.

Week five was a little bit of a challenge.  Picaboo's theme this past week was morning and the challenge was to capture a sunrise.  I am not a morning person, at all.  However one super awesome thing, TWO of my photos were featured in Picaboo's blog for the best photos of the week!!!!! HOW COOL IS THAT?  Check it out!!

Now this week was only a little tough because the weather was terrible.  I didn't get my sunrise shot till Saturday which was actually week six, but I don't care!  Since I couldn't get a bunch of shots of the sunrise and such I took pictures of other morning stuff, fresh pancakes my daughter begged me to make one morning, my hazelnut cappuccino,.Jasper hovering over my face when I woke up, Zoe on the end of the bed, and an old weathered fence at the local beach.  However out of all of them, my sunrise photo is indeed my favorite and was well worth setting the alarm for!  It is so peaceful being the only soul standing on the motionless beach, the ice making the waves look frozen in time.  Very cool.

Sunrise on the frozen beach

Lastly, some treasuries, the first one I made and the rest I'm happy to be featured in!  Thank you!

And Then There Were Two

My Second Shop

I'm SUPER excited to announce that I've taken the plunge and opened a second online shop!  I still love Etsy and always will but I wanted to branch out a little more.  I have been wanting to do this for some time but it got so time consuming and frustrating trying to find one that was cost effective and still worth it.  I found this completely new selling site at I Support American which is for American sellers.  I'm usually pretty weary of sites that are new since they don't yet have a big market and yadda yadda but everyone has to start somewhere and Etsy was new once upon a time too.  Plus they had an offer I couldn't refuse.  There are no commission fees, no listing fees and the membership fee is only $5/month.  Simple and easy.  I like that.  However it gets better.  I get FREE membership FOREVER as a promo which expires on Monday Feb 6th.  All I had to do was set up shop and list 10 items.  Easy enough!  Over the weekend they're supposed to be adding an Etsy/Artfire uploader which is sweet!  I figure I'll list things I have more than one of on the new site and things that I am tired of re-listing on Etsy can go there too as they expire thus saving me money on my Etsy bill.  I know it will take time to build up the new shop just like it did to build my Etsy shop but after over a year selling online I have valuable knowledge of SEO and all that stuff for getting yourself out there.  I'm just soooooo happy I can open another shop without it costing me a cent!  Yay!!  If you're also thinking of opening another shop, check it out!  I will be busy over the weekend working in my new shop but if you want to see it now,  you can see my new storefront here.

Project 365; Week Four

Jasper and a cup of hot chai

This past week's Picaboo theme and challenge was fairly easy.  The theme was white and the challenge was understanding your white balance.  This is another camera setting that is NEVER in auto on my Canon.  Auto white balance gives ugly photos, plain and simple.  Cloudy gives warmer color, daylight cooler tones and the various indoor settings adjust for different types of indoor lighting.  Custom balance can be your friend to get the most natural coloring if the other settings are not doing what you want.

Being winter here, the theme of white was almost too easy but I wanted to have fun with it.  Snow can get pretty boring real fast (those of you who have to stare at it for 3 months know what I'm talking about).  My maine coon, Jasper, is one of my favorite photo subjects aside from my toddler so I just had to snap the shot of him lounging with his best buddy, Zoe.  He's rather used to having a camera in his face and being a coon he has a mountain of patience and loves to pose for me and my toddler when she's wielding the camera on my old cell phone.  I personally think he much enjoys the paparazzi lol!

Of course I did have to get my winter shots as it gave me an excuse to get my butt out of the house despite my hatred for the cold.  I got some nice shots of snow on Kaylie's gloves, my lavender bush, dried sedum flower heads and fresh snow on the spruce trees behind my home.  I also took a family trip up to Munising and got some great shots of the waterfalls still flowing up there.  I've lived in the area for years and I've never actually seen the falls in winter before.  I'm glad I went!  Absolutely breath taking!

Munising Falls and some spruce trees adorned with fresh snow

Lastly here's a handful of Treasuries I've been in recently, check them out!