Etsy Speaker Series: Handmade Marketplace Panel Discussion

Last Thursday I had the pleasure of attending the third in Etsy's Speaker Series, which this time around was a panel discussion inspired by a book I'd just treated myself to: The Handmade Marketplace by Kari Chapin. Kari was joined by illustrator Jennifer Judd-McGee, jewelry designer Betsy Cross, sculptor Liz Smith, and writer Kim Werker.

The discussion was simulcast in the Etsy Virtual Labs, and I could have attended from the comfort of my couch, but I had heard a rumor that refreshments would be provided by Ninecakes. Needless to say, that encouraged my in-person attendance.

Kari Chapin was inspired to write The Handmade Marketplace because, in her words: "I was working in an adorable home goods boutique as the manager and buyer. The shop already had a strong focus on handmade goods when I came on board, but I saw an opportunity to add even more to my tiny shop's shelves. I started contacting Etsy sellers asking if they would be interested in selling some of their goods in my store, and lo and behold, these amazing sellers had a lot of questions for me. I found myself on a weekly basis writing up long, descriptive emails, guiding these fine folks regarding the ins and outs of working with a brick and mortar store."




The Handmade Marketplace tackles these questions in a clear and concise manner, and is presented in a beautiful and pleasurable to read format.

At the panel discussion, questions broke down mainly into three areas: pricing, selling, and marketing.

PRICING Determining what to charge for your work is often difficult, especially when you add to the mix wholesale versus retail. The panel emphasized the importance of not undercharging for your work, both for your sake and for the sake of other artisans.

There is a great blog post by Jill Hannah on pricing your work.

SELLING Jennifer Judd-McGee called Etsy "an introverts paradise," which made me nod in recognition. In The Handmade Marketplace, Chapin explains both online and in-person retail selling, including the typical yearly calendar of shows, and how to start a new craft fair.

MARKETING How to stand out from the crowd? Chapin devotes a good deal of her book to this, and a leitmotif of the panel discussion was the importance of community in the success of a home-grown business.

Diane Gilleland's great e-book Social Media for Your Crafty Business helps sheds light on this topic further,

It was an incredibly inspiring evening led by women who work hard and seem to be living out the dream many of us have of taking the leap toward self employment in our crafty business.



-MaryAnne LoVerme
wabisabibrooklyn.etsy.com
wabisabibrooklyn.com

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Marketing Made Easy

As a seller of handmade goods, we all like to include in our package to our buyers, a little hand-written thank you note as a way to show our appreciation for their purchase. As a seller who also purchase from Etsy on a regular basis, I notice that far too many sellers are not using this opportunity to plant themselves further on the minds of their buyers.

Far too often, I've received packages from sellers that write a note on a plain scrap of paper, or on a plain white note card that has no other information on it. I'm opening up your package, you have my undivided attention that this very moment so take advantage!


This is the perfect opportunity to tell your buyer a little bit more about yourself. Why not include a little bio about yourself along with your contact information? Tell me something I didn't know about you, that part of your proceeds go to charity, or that you do this to pay your own way through college, or that you learned your knitting from Grandma Judith back when you were living in Vermont. Whatever little tidbit you include, it'll give the buyer a little peek into your world that they can remember about you, making the virtual process a little more human.

Since I print my own thank you cards, I include a blurb on the back about me, that each card is hand-detailed and checked for quality. I also include my signature and contact information to make it more personable. When I have the time, I use a hole punch and secure the card to the package with ribbon. When I'm really busy, I just tuck the note inside. Either way, it's a good method of getting a few more seconds of spotlight in front of your customer.

Remember that you're not really just looking for customers to purchase from you once, you're hoping to build a relationship with them so that whenever they need [insert your category here], they'll think of you. This is in essence what marketing does.

--
Lisa
fubabee
http://fubabee.etsy.com