Stocking stuffers tend to be smaller, lower-priced items. “Lower priced” will be different for each business, and depend on its target market. To some, $5 is lower-priced while others consider $30 lower-priced. How much time and money you spend on stocking stuffer items should reflect your target market and the quality and price they’ll expect. Most…
There are no guarantees that what you make will sell. But there are a few places I like to look for clues that an item is popular before spending money on materials and time on production. It’s also important to have a good idea of what’s out there and if you can offer something better…
I created this “trend” list a little differently than my other trend lists (e.g. this year’s craft trends). This list is based on products that are commonly purchased for the holiday season either for gifts, decorating, or hosting. I’ve listed items that are showing high search volumes and appear to be on an upward trend heading…
Whether you sell your handmade products on Etsy or through your website, search engine optimization (SEO) is crucial to your online shop’s success. SEO is a complicated subject and search engines (e.g. Google, Etsy’s search engine) are constantly changing the algorithm so people can’t “cheat the system”. I’ve found, SEO doesn’t have to be that…
People are feeling the effects of inflation. Many resources are predicting that inflation will impact how shoppers behave and buy this holiday season. Here are a few examples of these sources: source 1, source 2, source 3. Whether you’re seeing your customers’ shopping habits change due to inflation or not, these tips will help your…
Social media is most commonly used by small business owners to market their products, brand, and business. But it’s NOT the most effective form of marketing. It can be frustrating to deal with a platform’s algorithm updates and getting your posts to actually reach your followers. When you use these 3 tips and change your…
If you’re like me and have a strong dislike for social media (to put it mildly), you’ll appreciate these marketing alternatives. Social media platforms are often here today, gone tomorrow. And during their time in the sun, they make changes overnight that can cut your reach in half or make it hard to grow your…
Most small business owners rely heavily on social media for marketing. But social media can be the least effective marketing method and trying to keep up with the algorithm changes is frustrating. If you feel like you’re spinning your tires when it comes to social media, but you’re not ready to throw in the towel,…
Whether you’re selling online through Etsy or at craft shows, taking the time to calculate conversion rates can improve your sales in a matter of days. It’s often ignored by small business owners, but it’s something every successful business (and every large corporation I’ve worked for) does on a regular basis. This task is a…
If you want to skip the growing pains associated with being a new business owner, avoid making these 5 mistakes. These are 5 things amateur or inexperienced business owners do: 1 – Jump in without research When you get a business idea, it’s so exciting and you want to strike while the iron’s hot. …