Shownotes
Business Inspiration
How her jewelry business “happened.” [4:22] The beginning of selling online [6:42]Candle Flickering Moments
Adjusting to seasonal lulls and what to do to make that time productive [19:01]Business Building Insights
The background of a business was a surprise attraction for Angela [8:58] Why Angela shut down her shop for two years! [12:44] Managing your business growth – a cautionary tale [14:14] Reopening the shop full time [16:13] Photography tips and the importance of white balance [23:35] Rebranding and packaging [25:12]Etsy Specific Information
Etsy support systems [9:44] Advice for starting up your Etsy shop [10:51] Etsy order process flow [26:30]Success Trait
Angela is a natural problem solver and is also very resourceful. She believes there is a solution to every problem.Productivity/Lifestyle Tool
Craftybase – Inventory and bookkeeping for handmade sellersValuable Book
The Complete Metalsmith by Tim McCreight
Contact Links
Website Facebook Instagram LinkedIn Etsy ShopIf you found value in this podcast, make sure to subscribe and leave a review in Apple Podcasts or Google Podcasts. That helps us spread the word to more makers just like you. Thanks! Sue
Transcripts
Gift biz on wrapped episode 68,
Speaker:Within six months from that it was out earning what I
Speaker:was making as an attorney.
Speaker:Hi, this is John Lee Dumas of entrepreneur on fire,
Speaker:and you're listening to the gift of biz unwrapped.
Speaker:And now it's time to light it up.
Speaker:Welcome to gift biz,
Speaker:unwrapped your source for industry specific insights and advice to develop
Speaker:and grow your business.
Speaker:And now here's your host,
Speaker:Sue Monheit.
Speaker:Hi there.
Speaker:I'm Sue and welcome to the gift biz unwrapped package.
Speaker:I asked whether you own a brick and mortar shop sell
Speaker:online or are just getting started.
Speaker:You'll discover new insight to gain traction and to grow your
Speaker:business. And today I am so thrilled to have Angela Lee
Speaker:with us.
Speaker:Angela is an attorney and a Goldsmith living in Austin,
Speaker:Texas. She opened her first Etsy shop in 2008 to sell
Speaker:simple jewelry that she created at her desk while working at
Speaker:a domestic violence hotline over the next few years,
Speaker:she developed her skills as an artist,
Speaker:as her customer base grew,
Speaker:her hobby developed into a full-time business.
Speaker:Bright Smith sells custom handmade jewelry to people seeking effortlessly wearable
Speaker:pieces with an emphasis on craftsmanship.
Speaker:She also works as a public interest attorney serving Austin's thriving
Speaker:community of artists and musicians.
Speaker:I am so excited to talk with you,
Speaker:Angela, welcome To the show you I'm glad to be here.
Speaker:Is there anything else you think we should add onto that
Speaker:intro before we get started?
Speaker:No, that that pretty much sums it up.
Speaker:I like to start out by having you describe a motivational
Speaker:candle, it gives us a subtle look into what you're all
Speaker:about. So if you were to describe a motivational candle,
Speaker:what color is it and what would be the quote on
Speaker:your candle?
Speaker:Well, my candle would be gray.
Speaker:I like the color gray because I've always been more interested
Speaker:in, what's not there than what's there.
Speaker:And I think gray to me represents a possibility.
Speaker:The quote on it would be one by the furniture designer,
Speaker:Charles Ames,
Speaker:which is innovate as a last resort.
Speaker:Those familiar with Charles and Ray Ames work know that he
Speaker:was incredibly innovative,
Speaker:mid century modern furniture designer.
Speaker:And what that quote means to me is that it reminds
Speaker:me that I'm never the first to encounter a problem.
Speaker:No matter what challenges I'm facing,
Speaker:there is always a system in place to address that problem.
Speaker:And I can build upon those systems to better what I'm
Speaker:doing or to solve my challenge at hand.
Speaker:And from a design sense,
Speaker:I've always been a big proponent of learning to do things
Speaker:the right way before doing it my own way.
Speaker:I'm very interested in making sure that I have the correct
Speaker:foundation for innovation.
Speaker:Also since the quote would be on a candle.
Speaker:I think it'd be really interesting to see that candle as
Speaker:it burns down as a constant reminder of how often you
Speaker:find yourself at the point where all it says is last
Speaker:resort. That is so unique.
Speaker:I love the explanation in that whole thing that you just
Speaker:said, Angela,
Speaker:for a couple of reasons,
Speaker:just by you saying,
Speaker:if someone else has been there before you kind of as
Speaker:a stress reliever,
Speaker:it's like,
Speaker:okay, I can figure this out because someone else has to,
Speaker:someone else has figured out whatever the thing is that you're
Speaker:encountering and in terms of foundations and learning from other people,
Speaker:and then applying your own spin,
Speaker:it's kind of what we're doing here today,
Speaker:because we want all our listeners to hear your story.
Speaker:You are providing a foundation for them to build upon because
Speaker:let's face it.
Speaker:We don't all have to reinvent the wheel from the beginning.
Speaker:We're much further along if we can pick up what other
Speaker:people already know and then add our spin on top of
Speaker:that. Absolutely.
Speaker:And it's so much easier when you accept and realize that
Speaker:almost everything under the sun has been done already,
Speaker:but not your way.
Speaker:Exactly. There's always a way to build upon it or improve
Speaker:upon it,
Speaker:but without acknowledging the traditional way or the foundational way,
Speaker:it's difficult to distinguish yourself.
Speaker:Totally agree with you there.
Speaker:I'm going to take you back in time now to 2000,
Speaker:I guess it would be seven.
Speaker:And I want you to start going back and thinking about
Speaker:what it was like and give us the story of how
Speaker:you decided,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:what I am going to transition from this beautiful jewelry that
Speaker:I'm already making and actually open an Etsy shop.
Speaker:So how did you just,
Speaker:just make that first decision in the very beginning?
Speaker:It's kind of funny 'cause I,
Speaker:I don't feel like in the,
Speaker:especially in the beginning that anything was driven by decision,
Speaker:it was more just kind of happenstance.
Speaker:And additionally,
Speaker:I never really set out to have a jewelry business in
Speaker:the beginning.
Speaker:It was just something that I was doing and kind of
Speaker:the business.
Speaker:And came later after I discovered that it was a viable
Speaker:business, you know,
Speaker:there was a point when I decided that I was going
Speaker:to develop it into a business,
Speaker:but that was much,
Speaker:much later.
Speaker:So in 2007,
Speaker:I was a fledgling brand new baby attorney,
Speaker:and I'd always wanted to work in public interest.
Speaker:So I was working as an attorney on a domestic violence
Speaker:hotline. And if you can imagine what that's like,
Speaker:you essentially spend eight hours a day talking to people on
Speaker:the worst day of their lives.
Speaker:Domestic violence survivors are incredibly admirable,
Speaker:but also an incredibly challenging group.
Speaker:I remember there was a study that came out a few
Speaker:years ago that basically estimated the burnout rate of hotline workers
Speaker:at about 18 months.
Speaker:So right when I was nearing the 18 month Mark,
Speaker:I was really starting to feel the stress of being yelled
Speaker:at for eight hours a day.
Speaker:And so I was looking for things to do while I
Speaker:was on the phone that would relieve my stress.
Speaker:And I figured,
Speaker:well, my hands are free because I'm using this headset.
Speaker:So let's see what I can do with my hands.
Speaker:It was winter time.
Speaker:So I actually started by knitting.
Speaker:So I was knitting an amazing out of things at my
Speaker:desk and I wasn't even making anything.
Speaker:I was just kind of knitting straight lines and big pieces
Speaker:of cloth.
Speaker:And basically,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:I discovered that I was a terrible knitter.
Speaker:So I kind of drew upon another craft that I'd always
Speaker:been interested in since I was little,
Speaker:I used to string beads together to make necklaces and things
Speaker:like that.
Speaker:And so I thought,
Speaker:well, that's something I can do without thinking too much.
Speaker:I can do it at my desk.
Speaker:And so I dragged up all my old craft supplies and
Speaker:I was making all sorts of weird things with no intent
Speaker:of making anything,
Speaker:even that looked attractive.
Speaker:I was making things like chain mail from straight pieces of
Speaker:wire. And pretty soon I actually started making things that I
Speaker:thought, wow,
Speaker:this is pretty cool.
Speaker:And maybe I should kind of explore this further.
Speaker:So is that when you started your Etsy shop?
Speaker:No. No,
Speaker:not yet still.
Speaker:So I started making different things and I assume became interested
Speaker:in developing my craft.
Speaker:I was like,
Speaker:well, I'm making these same things over and over again.
Speaker:So I started learning about different techniques,
Speaker:which of course required investment in tools and different materials.
Speaker:When I decided to develop my craft,
Speaker:that's when I decided to start selling online because I thought,
Speaker:well, this is a good way to kind of subsidize the
Speaker:craft from what I earn online.
Speaker:And I expect it to be like maybe $10 a week
Speaker:or something like that.
Speaker:What I make online,
Speaker:I can use to put back into materials.
Speaker:So that's when I started the Etsy shop.
Speaker:And at the same time,
Speaker:I was also producing so much jewelry that I was literally
Speaker:giving it away.
Speaker:I was basically donating all of my pieces to silent auctions
Speaker:and things like that.
Speaker:And even that,
Speaker:I eventually outgrew to the point where I had so much
Speaker:stuff and there were only so many silent auctions per year.
Speaker:I just started listing it on my Etsy store.
Speaker:So your goal initially was really just to reimburse yourself for
Speaker:the materials you were putting into the craft.
Speaker:Yeah. Basically just subsidize my hobby.
Speaker:And then Why did you choose Etsy versus any other platform
Speaker:selling your pieces on eBay or consignment at local shops?
Speaker:Whatever. I hadn't Given much thought to it really.
Speaker:I had coincidentally at the same time,
Speaker:heard about it on NPR and I thought I would give
Speaker:it a look.
Speaker:And within about two months it was just really simple to
Speaker:set up a shop.
Speaker:So I was like,
Speaker:why not?
Speaker:And I went And with it.
Speaker:So then you set up your shop.
Speaker:So you already had all the inventory obviously,
Speaker:cause it had been a hobby really.
Speaker:And then you started putting your pieces up and what was
Speaker:the result Slow going for a little while,
Speaker:but pretty much within the first few months,
Speaker:without any attention to anything like search engine optimization or anything
Speaker:like that within a few months I was seeing at least
Speaker:weekly sales.
Speaker:Wow. Were you so excited when you got that first sale?
Speaker:I was totally excited.
Speaker:And the woman who purchased from me ended up continuing to
Speaker:purchase from me.
Speaker:So it was kind of an early lesson in customer retention
Speaker:and customer acquisition and things like that.
Speaker:So it was really fun.
Speaker:And one thing that I didn't expect to like so much,
Speaker:one thing that I really learned from Etsy is that I
Speaker:really enjoyed running a business.
Speaker:Interesting. Okay.
Speaker:So carry on with that.
Speaker:So what was it that you learned about running a business
Speaker:that you started seeing you had a passion for?
Speaker:Well, once I realized that things like,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:search engine optimization and photography and marketing and merchandising,
Speaker:once I kind of learned that these things existed and started
Speaker:learning about them,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:I've always been so drawn to new challenges and things that
Speaker:I've never experienced that learning about all these things and kind
Speaker:of driving myself to master them became really fun.
Speaker:And I've really learned that online selling is only a small
Speaker:percentage about the product you actually make.
Speaker:And the majority of success can be attributed to just running
Speaker:the business,
Speaker:Going to capture your knowledge.
Speaker:Does Etsy have the learning base or where were you going
Speaker:to, if you'd never been exposed to merchandising or SEO or
Speaker:any of that before,
Speaker:how were you getting your information?
Speaker:Early days?
Speaker:They have a blog where they post tips for sellers and
Speaker:that was a good resource in the early days.
Speaker:And now I am a frequent Terry of the Etsy forums
Speaker:and it's a very supportive group of sellers who will share
Speaker:knowledge or come with problems or,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:any of the challenges that they're facing.
Speaker:And it's the closest thing that anyone who sells online from
Speaker:home will have to coworkers.
Speaker:Wonderful. So are you suggesting then that at T has been
Speaker:all around turn key opportunity for someone not only to start
Speaker:putting their product up like you were doing because I'm understanding
Speaker:now that it is really easy to set up the shop,
Speaker:but then also continued learning through the forums and everything.
Speaker:Absolutely. It's so easy that sometimes it's even a detriment.
Speaker:I see a lot of times people will kind of start
Speaker:before they're ready.
Speaker:So I don't want to make it sound like you don't
Speaker:have to do your homework if you are going into it
Speaker:with the intent of it being a full-fledged business one day.
Speaker:But it,
Speaker:it is probably the easiest platform out there.
Speaker:What would you say are things that people need to have
Speaker:prepared before they get started?
Speaker:I think it's always a good idea to start with some
Speaker:sort of a brand in mind.
Speaker:I think one of the biggest mistakes that early sellers make
Speaker:is that they go in without kind of a direction and
Speaker:end up with a shop that's full of items that are
Speaker:maybe, you know,
Speaker:have completely different styles of photography or the products don't really
Speaker:make sense in align.
Speaker:And then what happens with that is that they have this
Speaker:developed shop,
Speaker:but then they end up having to,
Speaker:for example,
Speaker:take all their photos over or have to remake all their
Speaker:prototypes to fit in with a specific brand or a line
Speaker:or know philosophy.
Speaker:Okay. That's really good advice.
Speaker:So let me repeat that and emphasize it for everybody.
Speaker:If you're looking at setting up a shop and we talk
Speaker:about this for not just an Etsy,
Speaker:but any company you want to do some initial planning,
Speaker:what is it that you're presenting to the market?
Speaker:What is your product as Angela's talking about right now,
Speaker:and then also,
Speaker:how are you putting your brand around it?
Speaker:What do you stand for?
Speaker:What's the image you're trying to create that comes out in
Speaker:the photography that you're doing,
Speaker:and you want everything to be looking consistent.
Speaker:You might have an Etsy platform,
Speaker:but you might also have a Facebook page or other types
Speaker:of social media or even an additional website.
Speaker:Or if you're a local retail shop,
Speaker:you might already have signage in your shop.
Speaker:You want all of that to be looking consistent across platform,
Speaker:but to start and to think about it before you put
Speaker:up your site on Etsy,
Speaker:as Angela saying is a big point of emphasis so that
Speaker:people understand what you're all about.
Speaker:You know,
Speaker:there's no,
Speaker:there's the whole adage.
Speaker:You'll have to tell me if you agree with this.
Speaker:Angela is that if you're everything to everybody,
Speaker:you're nothing to anybody.
Speaker:You know,
Speaker:you have to decide what you're standing for in terms of
Speaker:products and image.
Speaker:Exactly. All right.
Speaker:So let's carry on.
Speaker:So you were getting your first sales and things are moving
Speaker:and you saw that you liked business.
Speaker:What happened next?
Speaker:After about two years when sales got very regular and I
Speaker:was still had the full time job as an attorney and
Speaker:I was essentially spending all of my free time filling orders
Speaker:every weekend,
Speaker:every evening,
Speaker:late into the night,
Speaker:I actually eventually ended up closing my shop because it got
Speaker:too busy.
Speaker:Oh wow.
Speaker:You can just temporarily shut it down.
Speaker:Right. So you can catch up.
Speaker:You can,
Speaker:Was that a turning point?
Speaker:Both in,
Speaker:in my career as an attorney and,
Speaker:and kind of in my home life,
Speaker:I was facing some challenges.
Speaker:So I shut down my store for two years.
Speaker:Oh, wow.
Speaker:And did you have it,
Speaker:so was it still existing on Etsy?
Speaker:It was just turned off or something.
Speaker:Yeah. It's still existed online.
Speaker:I just didn't have Any listings.
Speaker:Okay. You might see that as the failure of the business,
Speaker:if you're concentrating on the business,
Speaker:but at the time for me,
Speaker:my priorities were kind of different.
Speaker:You know,
Speaker:I'd only been an attorney for a few years.
Speaker:And so I still wanted to concentrate on that.
Speaker:I was just reading an article last night.
Speaker:It was an excellent article.
Speaker:It was in a Seattle paper about a crafter whose business
Speaker:kind of took off overnight.
Speaker:And she ended up facing some personal issues and her business
Speaker:tanked because of it in a way that was just spectacular.
Speaker:She, she takes spectacularly basically for client base,
Speaker:ended up crucifying her online.
Speaker:And she is now in a situation where she can probably
Speaker:never reopen again because she's kind of lost the reputation that
Speaker:she built.
Speaker:I think that's a very strong cautionary tale that you have
Speaker:to constantly keep on top of things and manage your growth.
Speaker:And if you find your self in a place where you
Speaker:think you might actually be damaging your business,
Speaker:by not keeping up with the growth,
Speaker:then you might need to stop and reassess.
Speaker:And I think that's a unique challenge of our listeners because
Speaker:we're all crafters handmade or for the most part,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:some people are purchasing other people's products,
Speaker:but the more business you then get the more work you're
Speaker:making for yourself because you have to produce the products and
Speaker:then also put them up on the at T site.
Speaker:And then at the end,
Speaker:fill all the orders.
Speaker:So it is a juggling act I would suggest.
Speaker:Right. And I guess The point too is that you have
Speaker:to manage your growth.
Speaker:So many people are driven by,
Speaker:Oh, I'm making this many sales in so many days and
Speaker:they keep driving for that number.
Speaker:When that number is only one metric,
Speaker:the more important metric is how happy are your customers and
Speaker:how many of your customers can you retain?
Speaker:And you need to look at the reputation you're building.
Speaker:So it doesn't do any good to have 5,000
Speaker:sales in a year.
Speaker:If only 3000 of those customers are happy because eventually your
Speaker:business will fail.
Speaker:Right. And just like you were saying,
Speaker:then you shut down and really can't start up again,
Speaker:for sure under that brand name,
Speaker:possibly something different.
Speaker:You know,
Speaker:the person you were talking about,
Speaker:who you read about last night clearly can start up under
Speaker:a different name later,
Speaker:but they've lost all that.
Speaker:They worked so hard for,
Speaker:with the other brand.
Speaker:So, you know,
Speaker:taking a hiatus or backing off.
Speaker:And it sounds like Angela,
Speaker:let me,
Speaker:let me know if this is true,
Speaker:but with Etsy,
Speaker:given the fact that you can put up as many products
Speaker:as you want and or turn on and off the shop,
Speaker:you have some control over that.
Speaker:And your caution is don't try to grow so fast.
Speaker:You need to be able to plan for your growth.
Speaker:Exactly. And back to what I was saying about at the
Speaker:is almost easy to a detriment,
Speaker:Right? So you are growing,
Speaker:things are going well,
Speaker:you took a couple of years off because you felt that
Speaker:you needed to,
Speaker:as you were in that mix,
Speaker:what made you go back?
Speaker:So after a couple more years in public interest law,
Speaker:and I was still in the same field of domestic violence
Speaker:at this point,
Speaker:I think it was like four years into doing the same
Speaker:thing. Every day.
Speaker:I realized that I really just couldn't manage the stress very
Speaker:much longer.
Speaker:And it was time for me to find a different way
Speaker:to support myself for a little while.
Speaker:And I thought maybe I could do a mixed model where
Speaker:I would do law part-time.
Speaker:And I was only banking on what I'd been making from
Speaker:Etsy before,
Speaker:which was a part-time income.
Speaker:So I was like,
Speaker:well, there's no harm in just starting it back up to
Speaker:subsidize my income.
Speaker:I'll feel a little bit better,
Speaker:but ironic that Etsy was my backup plan to the law
Speaker:degree, but that's what ended up happening.
Speaker:Wow. You know,
Speaker:within a few months,
Speaker:business picked up to its previous level,
Speaker:which was much faster than I thought that would happen.
Speaker:And so I thought about,
Speaker:I wonder what would happen if I treated at CZI as
Speaker:a full-time job?
Speaker:And it was just kind of a,
Speaker:let's see what happens type of thing.
Speaker:So I spent a few days learning more in depth about
Speaker:optimizing the site and the tools that were at my disposal.
Speaker:And within six months from that,
Speaker:it was out earning what I was making as an attorney.
Speaker:Wow. Were you as surprised as I am?
Speaker:You know,
Speaker:that said I was a nonprofit attorney,
Speaker:so my wages were like astronomical or anything,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:I was making about,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:probably about a teacher salary,
Speaker:a little more than that.
Speaker:So it is a livable income.
Speaker:It's a comfortable income and yeah,
Speaker:it was,
Speaker:I was surprised and also kind of very proud of having
Speaker:surmounted that challenge.
Speaker:And I guess My surprise doesn't come in necessarily from the
Speaker:ability to attain that kind of income,
Speaker:but the speed at which you did it,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:it came up pretty fast.
Speaker:Yeah. My,
Speaker:the big surprise that I'm constantly having is that my growth
Speaker:has always been faster than even what I've projected.
Speaker:I do a lot of projections and growth goals and the,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:I've constantly exceeded them,
Speaker:which surprises me every time,
Speaker:Viewed it to the quality of your product or how you're
Speaker:promoting it,
Speaker:or what do you think that is?
Speaker:Sometimes I feel like I have no idea.
Speaker:My husband is good at reminding me that I'm constantly working,
Speaker:whether it's learning something new and a new way to do
Speaker:something a new way to promote something to market or merchandise,
Speaker:something, you know,
Speaker:I am always working on it and I do treat it
Speaker:like a full-time job.
Speaker:I've always treated it like a full-time job since I made
Speaker:that decision to make it.
Speaker:So that goes back to what you were talking about in
Speaker:the very beginning with your candle,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:always building on the foundation and progressing.
Speaker:Right. Wonderful.
Speaker:All right.
Speaker:So this sounds fabulous.
Speaker:I love the story.
Speaker:Bring us to a time when it wasn't so good when
Speaker:you're saying to yourself,
Speaker:Oh my gosh,
Speaker:why did I ever start this in the first place?
Speaker:What was the challenge and how did you overcome the situation?
Speaker:That was definitely the nine months between when I reopened my
Speaker:Etsy store.
Speaker:And when I decided I could quit my day job online
Speaker:sales, any retail really is completely unpredictable.
Speaker:And until you're kind of used to those lulls and surges,
Speaker:it can be really,
Speaker:really just nerve wracking.
Speaker:You know,
Speaker:every time there was a lull in sales,
Speaker:I was convinced that I would never sell anything.
Speaker:Again. I was convinced that it was just over,
Speaker:this was a fluke and it's time to go back to
Speaker:getting a real job.
Speaker:So many of us go through this,
Speaker:it's like this for anyone in retail,
Speaker:especially in the beginning,
Speaker:it takes a while for you to learn that there are
Speaker:natural highs and lows.
Speaker:There are going to be natural,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:slowdowns and natural surges that you can never really rely on
Speaker:something being consistent from day to day.
Speaker:What you really have to concentrate on is the month over
Speaker:month and year over year comparisons.
Speaker:So when you're getting into a,
Speaker:well, you just have to know that this too shall pass,
Speaker:but then now that you're at a full-time level with this,
Speaker:how do you plan for that financially?
Speaker:Well, I,
Speaker:I do try to save a large amount.
Speaker:You know,
Speaker:I'm making enough now that I can save at the level
Speaker:that I was saving when I had a traditional 401k and
Speaker:things like that.
Speaker:So I always say for those eventualities,
Speaker:but additionally,
Speaker:even the lulls now it's kind of so busy that the
Speaker:laws I'm kind of thankful for,
Speaker:because that's the time that you spend really building the business.
Speaker:You know,
Speaker:when you start contributing to its growth by developing new products
Speaker:or maybe re photographing remerchandising old products,
Speaker:All right.
Speaker:Gift biz listeners.
Speaker:I want you to remember what Angela just said here.
Speaker:You know,
Speaker:in the times when she's making a lot of money,
Speaker:she's putting some aside so saving for a rainy day,
Speaker:if you will,
Speaker:and not just going out and celebrating because sales were so
Speaker:great, you can do a little bit of that too,
Speaker:but always have the plan,
Speaker:especially for our industries,
Speaker:the ebb and flow,
Speaker:as we've been talking about,
Speaker:it's always good to make sure that you're planning.
Speaker:You're putting a little bit away just so you don't have
Speaker:that stressful time when things are down and,
Speaker:Oh my gosh,
Speaker:where are we going to get the money from?
Speaker:Just, it's better to plan when you're in the good times
Speaker:than try to be reaching for it when you're in the
Speaker:bad, bad or low,
Speaker:I maybe should say anything you would add to that Angela
Speaker:that sums it up really well.
Speaker:Okay. All right.
Speaker:So what types of things you're talking about SEO enhancement,
Speaker:but what types of things would you suggest to our listeners
Speaker:in terms of things that help you move the needle to
Speaker:bring in sales?
Speaker:I think the most important thing on Etsy,
Speaker:especially is going to be your merchandising,
Speaker:really photography is the number one thing that will either launch
Speaker:or kill your shop.
Speaker:When you're starting.
Speaker:As I mentioned before,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:your actual product is only a very small part of the
Speaker:equation, and that's a very hard thing to accept at first,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:a lot of people feel that,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:whether it's true or not that they have this fantastic,
Speaker:amazing product that everyone will want.
Speaker:The problem is no one will know it if it's merchandise
Speaker:poorly. And so Give us a couple of tips for merchandising.
Speaker:Branding is very important.
Speaker:You want to remember that,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:just like,
Speaker:like a examples from traditional advertising,
Speaker:that your product should be presented in a way that's aspirational.
Speaker:So for example,
Speaker:if you're selling wedding veils,
Speaker:you don't want them photographed on a black background,
Speaker:even though,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:you might think,
Speaker:Oh, the black really makes the white pop.
Speaker:The problem is black.
Speaker:Isn't very bridle.
Speaker:So that would be a good example.
Speaker:Another thing is that you really have to keep in mind
Speaker:that the drawback of online selling is that the customer can't
Speaker:see or feel your products in person.
Speaker:So you have to be able to convey all of the
Speaker:virtues of your product in a photograph in a very few
Speaker:photographs. In fact,
Speaker:in five photographs,
Speaker:you have to capture what it is about your product,
Speaker:that, or its five best selling points and kind of in
Speaker:an environment that's going to be motivational for your shoppers or
Speaker:aspirational for your shoppers.
Speaker:And how do you feel about putting product in a lifestyle
Speaker:type photo,
Speaker:like rings on the hand of somebody or,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:that kind of thing.
Speaker:Is it more on Etsy about the product specifically versus using
Speaker:the product?
Speaker:It can be absolutely.
Speaker:And unfortunately I'm actually not very good at the lifestyle marketing,
Speaker:but I have seen many shops that are excellent at it.
Speaker:And they are very,
Speaker:very successful.
Speaker:Tography you're suggesting make sure as your bridal example that you're
Speaker:merging colors or presenting the product in the right way,
Speaker:that matches what the mindset is of the person who's going
Speaker:to be buying it.
Speaker:Anything else in terms of lighting or set up or any
Speaker:other tips for us on that regard specifically with photography,
Speaker:If like me,
Speaker:you don't have any sort of background in photography.
Speaker:The easiest way to start is outdoor.
Speaker:Natural light is the easiest light to work with when you're
Speaker:doing photos or editing photos.
Speaker:A lot of people suggest light boxes,
Speaker:but I found the learning curve there even to be kind
Speaker:of steep.
Speaker:I do use them now,
Speaker:but it took me a couple of years to develop my
Speaker:photography skill to where my light box photos didn't look very
Speaker:artificial it.
Speaker:So in the very beginning,
Speaker:if you've just got a really cheap camera and you don't
Speaker:know anything about photography,
Speaker:if you go outside and go into a shady spot,
Speaker:don't use direct light,
Speaker:but go into a light,
Speaker:a spot where the light is diffused or on a cloudy
Speaker:day, you'll get the best photos.
Speaker:And for photo tips,
Speaker:I think the most overlooked thing is a,
Speaker:I would recommend that people learn about something called white balance,
Speaker:which really affects how true your colors come out.
Speaker:So for example,
Speaker:if you have a photo that has a white background,
Speaker:you'll frequently see on Etsy and other platforms that the background
Speaker:looks slightly gray or slightly pink or orange or blue that's
Speaker:because the white balance is off.
Speaker:And a lot of people will try to correct that by
Speaker:brightening the photo,
Speaker:but it doesn't fix the white balance because the colors are
Speaker:still off and the photo then looks overexposed.
Speaker:So if you learn about something called white balance and learn
Speaker:how to edit that,
Speaker:that will really serve you well,
Speaker:Wonderful, great advice.
Speaker:So you've made the sale,
Speaker:you've got the product now you're sending it out.
Speaker:Do you do anything special with packaging or do you include
Speaker:anything special so that you retain a customer and they remember
Speaker:you for the future?
Speaker:That's what I'm trying to get to with that?
Speaker:Yeah. One of the things that I did when I decided
Speaker:to start treating my hobby as a business,
Speaker:as I rebranded,
Speaker:I went ahead and I trademarked my business name and had
Speaker:packaging made to reflect that name and to kind of an
Speaker:overall feel and brand.
Speaker:And so I have branded boxes that I put all my
Speaker:items in and I tie them all like with a bow.
Speaker:So a customer feels like she's receiving a gift when she
Speaker:gets her item in the mail.
Speaker:I think that first impression really is everything.
Speaker:And it really does influence the customer's first impression of the
Speaker:actual product as well.
Speaker:I include a handwritten note that it has the customer's name
Speaker:and any specific facts that I know about the customer.
Speaker:For example,
Speaker:I'll say,
Speaker:I hope your wife loves her present or something little like
Speaker:that, or best of luck on your big day for wedding
Speaker:orders. And I sign every,
Speaker:every card that goes with the order.
Speaker:Wow. So a real personal touch for sure.
Speaker:Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker:It's very important that the customers make that personal connection with
Speaker:you. Tell us about Etsy's backend in terms of once an
Speaker:order comes in,
Speaker:is it pretty smooth in terms of you knowing that there's
Speaker:an order in the shop and then fulfilling the order with
Speaker:capturing all the information that you need to send an order
Speaker:out? Absolutely.
Speaker:There's always room for improvements and I would have many suggestions
Speaker:for Etsy on how to improve it,
Speaker:but as it stands now,
Speaker:it is very,
Speaker:very usable.
Speaker:It's easier than other platforms.
Speaker:And if you make use of all the tools that they
Speaker:provide you with it,
Speaker:it's very,
Speaker:very easy.
Speaker:We have a great app that notifies you on your phone.
Speaker:Every time you make a sale or someone sends you a
Speaker:conversation. And in fact,
Speaker:I've become so dependent on it.
Speaker:The other day,
Speaker:my husband and I were out during business hours and I
Speaker:left my phone at home and I made him install all
Speaker:my Etsy apps and my email,
Speaker:the top of my shops.
Speaker:Again, it's almost useful to a detriment because I'm out there
Speaker:doing something fun and I'm still tied to my husband's phone.
Speaker:Yeah. Well,
Speaker:you're a true business woman.
Speaker:That's why it never quite leaves your mind,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:even when you're off doing other things,
Speaker:that's for sure.
Speaker:So, all right,
Speaker:Angela, I want to move on now into our reflection section.
Speaker:This is a look at you and how you manage and
Speaker:work through your day and,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:see what types of things you call upon to be successful.
Speaker:If you were to think of something that you do innately
Speaker:that just comes because you've had this trait for your whole
Speaker:life, what would it be that helps you as you manage
Speaker:your day?
Speaker:It's a combination of being a natural problem solver.
Speaker:And that might come from my training as an attorney and
Speaker:also resourcefulness.
Speaker:You know,
Speaker:I truly believe that there is a solution to every problem
Speaker:and I'm constantly thinking of ways to make things better.
Speaker:And I welcome those challenges.
Speaker:I don't Sharpe from them.
Speaker:In fact,
Speaker:usually the harder something seems to me,
Speaker:the more determined I am to overcome it,
Speaker:or find a better way to do it or end in
Speaker:a better situation.
Speaker:Then I started,
Speaker:Do you ever get flustered?
Speaker:I do.
Speaker:I do get flustered.
Speaker:And that's the biggest challenge to me has been managing growth.
Speaker:And there's always been a solution for the challenges that I've
Speaker:faced. It's not always the solution I want.
Speaker:There's always been a solution to it.
Speaker:Wonderful. And when you think of your day,
Speaker:you've already talked now about the Etsy app and how important
Speaker:that is,
Speaker:but is there any other tool that you're using you call
Speaker:upon almost every single day to help manage the business?
Speaker:Yeah, There's a software called crafty base that is excellent in
Speaker:for inventory management.
Speaker:And I think it's useful,
Speaker:especially for small-scale crafters,
Speaker:because what it does is that not only does it tell
Speaker:you what inventory you have in stock,
Speaker:but it will tell you the amount of inventory that you've
Speaker:used and the cost of each parcel of that inventory that
Speaker:you use to create a product.
Speaker:And it's a good habit to get into,
Speaker:right from the beginning to keep track of what assets are
Speaker:going out and buy assets.
Speaker:I don't just mean cash.
Speaker:A lot of people in the beginning will only look at
Speaker:cash and cash out,
Speaker:but what you really need to look at,
Speaker:especially when you're designing products is how much things cost per
Speaker:product and software that helps you manage that like crafty base.
Speaker:It's really essential for you to look at that on a
Speaker:day to day basis to make sure your pricing right,
Speaker:and to make sure that you're actually making a purchase.
Speaker:Absolutely. And I think this is a hole that a lot
Speaker:of people go down because they're not looking at what the
Speaker:costs are.
Speaker:And some of those hidden costs,
Speaker:like if you were to purchase locally,
Speaker:you have to drive and go get it.
Speaker:If you're having a thing shipped in,
Speaker:there's all the shipping costs.
Speaker:In addition to just the hard flat-out,
Speaker:this is how much,
Speaker:one piece of whatever the product is.
Speaker:So crafty base is that a computer-based program.
Speaker:So someone could Google and find it online.
Speaker:Yes. I believe they're based in the UK and barely out
Speaker:of beta,
Speaker:but they work great.
Speaker:And they're very responsive to customer feedback.
Speaker:How long have you been using them?
Speaker:Probably for a year.
Speaker:Okay. And is there a book that you've read lately that
Speaker:you think our listeners could find value in?
Speaker:And it's so specific,
Speaker:it's something called the complete metal Smith by Tim McCrite.
Speaker:It's basically considered the Bible for metal Smiths.
Speaker:You often go and resource books just to continue,
Speaker:not only,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:your business development,
Speaker:but also on your craft to figure out what's the newest
Speaker:and latest,
Speaker:whether there's new techniques,
Speaker:new materials,
Speaker:people are using all that kind of thing.
Speaker:I hate to say this because my husband's an English major
Speaker:and he's an avid reader,
Speaker:but for business people,
Speaker:everything is online these days.
Speaker:So much of my,
Speaker:my development has been through YouTube and other resources,
Speaker:blogs posted by other crafters,
Speaker:the Etsy forums and the dynamic nature of online content makes
Speaker:it the best resource,
Speaker:Very accessible as well.
Speaker:Of course,
Speaker:which leads me right into what I always like to talk
Speaker:about next gift biz listeners,
Speaker:just as you're listening to the podcast today,
Speaker:you can also learn through audio books.
Speaker:I've teamed up with the audible and you can get an
Speaker:audio book to learn about whatever aspect it is that you
Speaker:feel you need further development on,
Speaker:on your business for free.
Speaker:All you need to do is go to gift biz,
Speaker:book.com and make a selection.
Speaker:Okay. Angela,
Speaker:I would like to invite you now to dare to dream.
Speaker:I'd like to present you with a virtual gift.
Speaker:It's a magical box containing unlimited possibilities for your future.
Speaker:So this is your dream or your goal of almost unreachable
Speaker:Heights that you would wish to obtain.
Speaker:Please accept this gift and open it in our presence.
Speaker:What is inside your box?
Speaker:This sounds like a cop-out,
Speaker:but I feel like I would want it to still contain
Speaker:that unlimited possibility,
Speaker:even though on a day to day basis,
Speaker:I'm a very goal oriented person.
Speaker:I don't always like to know what's going to ultimately happen
Speaker:when I was very little.
Speaker:I decided that the goal for my life was to never
Speaker:know where I would be or what I'd be doing in
Speaker:10 years.
Speaker:And while on one hand,
Speaker:that sounds really scary.
Speaker:What it really meant is that I would always have the
Speaker:skill or the resources to change gears if I wanted or
Speaker:needed to,
Speaker:to the point where,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:the possibilities would truly be unlimited even in the,
Speaker:whether it be the near or the far future.
Speaker:So I'm not sure if that's really an answer to the
Speaker:question, but that's,
Speaker:that's kind of how I feel.
Speaker:Well, you get any gift you want.
Speaker:So it's really interesting how you've been talking about this because
Speaker:you sound so,
Speaker:so comfortable with the unknown.
Speaker:You'll figure it out,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:whatever comes to you,
Speaker:you'll find the solution.
Speaker:Resourcefulness. I talk about all the,
Speaker:how important that is,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:because to seek out some answers and then figure it out
Speaker:once you've got all your information.
Speaker:And I would suggest that you're a pretty special person,
Speaker:because I don't think a lot of people can feel comfortable
Speaker:like that.
Speaker:So it's very interesting that that's your answer.
Speaker:And I think it's something for all of us to think
Speaker:about in terms of how that could apply to our lives.
Speaker:Just being able to just be out there and whatever comes
Speaker:comes, and then you get to have lots of nice surprises,
Speaker:Angela, to putting it in that context.
Speaker:I absolutely agree that being an online retailer is your primary
Speaker:occupation. You absolutely have to be comfortable with the unknown and
Speaker:what you really just need is the confidence and the resources
Speaker:and the motivation to know that whatever happens,
Speaker:you can come out of it as a success.
Speaker:All right.
Speaker:So now I know we have sparked interest with all of
Speaker:our listeners.
Speaker:If there was one place that you would direct people to
Speaker:go to look at your product,
Speaker:where would that be?
Speaker:It would probably be my Etsy shop.
Speaker:It's bright smith.etsy.com.
Speaker:Perfect. And give biz listeners.
Speaker:You also know the show notes page will be connected up.
Speaker:So if you are out and about and didn't capture any
Speaker:of the information we've been talking about,
Speaker:just jump over to gift biz on rapt and look at
Speaker:Angela's show notes.
Speaker:Page the links to all of her other sites will be
Speaker:there as well.
Speaker:Alrighty, Angela,
Speaker:thank you so so much for taking time today and sharing
Speaker:with us your information.
Speaker:This has really been super special.
Speaker:You've provided some information that I didn't know before a great
Speaker:look at Etsy and your whole journey with your career.
Speaker:I wish you all good things and continued success with your
Speaker:business and may your candle always burn Bryce.
Speaker:Thank you.
Speaker:Learn how to work smarter while developing and growing your business.
Speaker:Download our guide called 25 free tools to enhance your business
Speaker:and life.
Speaker:It's our gift to you and available@giftbizonrap.com
Speaker:slash tools.
Speaker:Thanks for listening and be sure to join us for the
Speaker:next episode.
Speaker:Today's show is sponsored by the ribbon print company,
Speaker:looking for a new income source for your gift business.
Speaker:Customization is more popular now than ever Grande your product from
Speaker:your logo or print a happy birthday,
Speaker:Jessica Gribbin,
Speaker:to add to a gift right at checkout,
Speaker:it's all done right in your shop.
Speaker:We'll cross studio in seconds.
Speaker:Check out the ribbon print company.com
Speaker:for more information after you listened to the show,
Speaker:if you like what you're hearing,
Speaker:make sure to jump over and subscribe to the show on
Speaker:iTunes. That way you'll automatically get the newest episodes when they
Speaker:go live.
Speaker:And thank you to those who have already left a rating
Speaker:by subscribing rating and reviewing help to increase the visibility of
Speaker:gift biz.
Speaker:On-ramp it's a great way to pay it forward.
